Steve & Renee’s, El Rayo and Viet Bangkok Cuisine

The Portland Daily Sun has published a triple review with breakfast at Steve and Renee’s and a Maine Restaurant week lunch at El Rayo,

I’m pleased to report that the lunch was quite good but the promised price of 15.10 is incorrect. The El Rayo folks are offering three lunch courses for 10.10-appetizer, taco and dessert. Way to over-deliver! The mushroom fundido was good, not surprising given the chef’s dedication to fresh ingredients, but the fish taco forced me to open that closed little mind of mine. The fresh cabbage salad was out of this world and the chipotle added the perfect kick, no added hot sauce was required.

as well as columnist Margo Mallar’s contribution to the set of reviews published earlier this week of Viet Bangkok Cuisine.

The Thai Basil was awful. The flavors were off, the texture of the chicken seemed that it had been frozen and thawed more than once. The vegetables were limp, the color olive drab, something you’d find in an army surplus store rather than a farmer’s market or produce section…It must be mentioned that the Massaman Tofu was good but the flavor was identical to that which I make with canned stuff. All in all, Viet Bangkok is a place to be skipped. There are too many better alternatives in Portland to frequent a place that goes by the numbers.

One comment on “Steve & Renee’s, El Rayo and Viet Bangkok Cuisine

  1. Viet Bangkok Cuisine was terrific when it opened, but a year later when I returned to get take-out the quality had plummeted. Sorry you had such a miserable meal!

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