mothra says....what a pleasant surprise. on a recent wine tasting trip to hood river recently, k and i made our way over to viento tasting room and after a nice chat and purchase from tom, he suggested that we have lunch at one of the many brew pubs in town. we chose pfriem brewery. now i have had pfriems beers in the recent past and are becoming some of my favorites. however, i did not expect this level of cuisine from a brew house.
we seated ourselves on a mid-week afternoon around 1pm outside near the fireplace. although overcast, it was mild in temp. cara greeted us with a big smile and not only took our drink order but explained the menu in detail, responded with her recommendations, all without missing a beat. now that is customer service!
in no time, a “strong blond ale” for k and my “unfiltered wit” arrived. now these are two really good beers but i really loved that unfiltered pilsner style of beer. we sipped our beers but, prior to our entrees arriving about 20 minutes later, an appetizer of chicken liver mousse and toast arrived. nothing better than a really good mousse or pate. especially made fresh. yum! we enjoyed our mousse and refreshments and it started to rain. everyone on the patio sprinted inside, .......except us. it’s oregon... for crying out loud.
k’s prosciutto and mozzarella on grilled bread with onions, fig relish and fresh arugula was amazing. but not as amazing as my dish: a large bowl of about 20 steamed clams and chorizo in a frothy red chorizo sauce. spicy, tangy, clams were excellent and two large grilled bread to sop up the sauce. all in a standing rain.
please review the menu as this was one giant pleasant surprise. this is a new favorite and, a stop that we will make many more times in the near future.
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pluses: excellent service by cara with a smile. great menu, marvelous flavors, great low prices, fantastic beer, all for $37.00. a 30% tip on top to the server.
negative: only one. some idiot dog owner left their beautiful large white dog tied up outside without any water. cara was kind enough to go to the dogs aid and fill a bowl full of fresh cool water. well done. mothra says..... new favorite (and this is just my 7th fav) . 4.0 of 5.0