The document summarizes a meal at Jade Tea House and Patisserie restaurant in Portland, Oregon. It describes the author's desire for comforting food on a cold winter evening that led them to the restaurant. Upon arriving, the open layout and busy atmosphere is noted. The specials included a seafood medley that was hot and fresh. Entrees like vermicelli salad, fried snapper, and barbecue chicken were flavorful and tender. The meal concluded with delicious dessert options like Vietnamese wedding cake. In summary, the author had a satisfying meal on a winter evening at Jade Tea House and Patisserie due to the fresh, flavorful dishes and busy but welcoming atmosphere.

1. Food:
Big and Saucy
Jade Tea House and Patisserie
It was a cold, bleak Thursday evening in January that I set out with comfort on my
mind. The piss-ant drizzle was causing a bi-polar definition of the word that could
have easily been fulfilled by gin as it could have with a large bowl of Pho. Seeing as I
had just returned from a trip to Thailand where I was spoiled in a never ending
parade of obscure but tasty animal bits cured and slathered in exotic spices on a hill
of perfect fruits and vegetables, my stomach was aching for the fulfillment of
gestational satisfaction it couldn’t know in the west.
Bravely I walked toward Jade Bistro Tea House and Patisserie, a familiar restaurant
known in Sellwood for its friendliness towards allergy-blessed patrons that crave
pan-asian ensembles with out too much American invention. In a city known for its
bottomless stomach and welcoming attitude towards Asian mores in dining, it’s easy
to find Thai dining experiences where everything tastes like ketchup, sugar and soy
sauce. Could Pok Pok have the only corner on anything remotely authentic from the
Indian Ocean?
Upon entering Jade you find tall windows and an open floor that invite conversation.
Intimate diner, beware: you won’t find a quiet nook where an attentive waitress will
pour you a vase of sake. Once you order at the counter and are tantalized by pastries
you didn’t realize you’d be adding to your plate so quickly, you take your number on
a stick to your table and wait. Water and utensils are up to you to acquire from
neatly stocked stations downstairs as well as up, which can seem like a hassle when
Jade is packed wall to wall with a line out the door but all is forgiven once you
receive your plate sizzling and saucy with the days ingredients.
Specials are clearly posted and always delicious. A grilled seafood medley was
brought piping hot with the mussels, squid, clams, and salmon practically tumbling
off the dish into our mouths. Each bite was tender and free from the aftertaste of
aged catch. The main entrées were, my personal favorite- vermicelli salad with
shrimp and chicken along side a fried snapper, which arrived as big as my head.
Barbecue chicken was also ordered and I found my self minutely regretting my
choice of salad as the chicken arrived was whole bird and was surprisingly akin to
ordering duck and chicken in Thailand from practically any local vendor on wheels
with the skin crispy and evenly seasoned and the meat more than happily parting
from the bone before you dig in. The vermicelli salad was heaped with beautiful
noodles, jicama, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers and bean sprouts with the chicken and
shrimp hiding playfully to the side. A delicious sweet chili sauce was offered as a
dressing.
Dinner did not cause us to neglect our dessert stomachs. Rice pudding, various
coconut and mango cakes met our eyes as well as macaroons, chocolates and
traditional known Asian sweets like the sesame seed ball with honey. We opted for

2. the Vietnamese Wedding cake by far the best dessert you could ever have. Eat it at
room temperature and the layers of butter cream, unique pastry crunch and the airy
cake itself will sweetly win you over. I used to hate cake.
Jade Tea Bistro and Patisserie
7912 SE 13th Ave. Portland, Oregon
Monday-Saturday 11am-9pm Closed Sunday
(503)477-8985