In the pantheon of Portland’s lunch and brunch jungle Sur-Lie is the sleeper in the group. In fact it receives so little attention when it should be a bold-face contender. They ‘ve already established their might at dinner, but I urge all you foraging diners to take a turn down Free Street for innovative food from their lunch and Sunday brunch menus.
The dining room is flooded in sunlight at lunch and brunch
Chef Emil Rivera’s particular sense of taste delivers some of the best cooking in town. At lunch, for instance, the prix fixe $15 4-course menu packs quite a wallop of flavor and value; I love the idea that you can walk out with a dessert packet to take back to your office or nibble on as you walk down the street. See the menu below.
The lunch menu served Tuesday to Saturday; the dining bar
On Sunday, however, I had the chance to experience their food when I stopped in for a late brunch around 2:00 PM. My original plan was to visit the new OCHO—Otto Pizza’s food iteration to launch burrito mania only to see a sign on the door saying in part, “Closed…to collect ourselves, regain our bearings and figure out how to better serve you.”
The 5 by 10 service counter at OCHO
