Fire On the Mountain (4225 N Interstate Ave)

When my friend Heidi moved to Minnesota, I think I remember her telling me how they went to the State Fair and saw fried pickles, fried Twinkies and other fried goodness and how funny/odd it was. I mean where else would you find things like fried pickles and fried Twinkies, except at a State Fair. Well, guess what. Fire on the Mountain in North Portland has both! And fried mushrooms, to boot!

They are known for their chicken wings - 12 sauces (which you can try before you buy), including raspberry habenero, Jamaican jerk, peanut, and barbecue. I haven't ever been to a restaurant to eat chicken wings before and haven't really had them that much. But I must say it is fun to dig in with my hands and eat the saucy, hot chicken, burning my chapped lips every second, and then lick my fingers one by one. I think the sweet barbecue sauce was my favorite, with the hot sauce coming in second.

We also had the fried mushrooms - which were a huge quantity for the money - and were fresh and juicy, with a thick coating of fried batter. Served with ranch dressing.

We went on a Friday night and got there around 7:45 or so, and it got super busy right after we ordered. I'm sure it is busy on a regular basis. The next time I go - I'm going to get the fried pickles. Anyone want to split the fried Twinkie?

A Taste of Bali (947 SW Broadway ), South Park (901 SW Salmon St) and Leonardo DiCaprio

After two days of snowbound boredom, Kristin and I decided to take a field trip into the thawing city. The bus ride was noisy. Kr-chunk, kr-chunk, the chains on the tires crunched on the road every second. Before we fed our appetite for sexy violence with Blood Diamond at the Broadway Theater, we decided to feed our appetite for dinner. Right across the street from the Theater, A Taste of Bali called to us. It is a somewhat dingy place, not really attractive, but the menu looked great and the colorful pictures of Bali on the walls were fun to look at.

Inside, a PSU student was ordering his dinner at the front counter. As we pondered over the menu, an enthusiastic man, I think the owner, told us to sit down, that he would be right with us. We ordered our food - I had pork satay - and ate the cabbage salad that is served with all meals. A woman who was visibly intoxicated came in and ordered a pina colada drink. The owner knew her - she seemed to be a regular.

It took a few minutes, maybe 10 or 15 for our food to come out, but once it did, it was worth the wait - the pork was grilled perfectly and was juicy and crispy on the outside. The owner had to leave to go pay his electric bill, which he announced at least 5 times on his way out the door, with a big toothy grin. "You have any questions, you ask my son or my wife. They help you."

We paid the son, who joked around like his father and asked me if I was going to pay for his dinner too. Next time, I said and left to go watch Leo fight in the African jungles.

I have never liked Leonardo DiCaprio, but he is excellent in Blood Diamond. There haven't been many good action movies lately, but this one was worth it. Check out the Broadway Theater, too - they have new seats and tables and are now serving pizza.

South Park entertained us for Dessert - we'll have to go back to give it a full review, but the the warm dates we had for appetizers before our dessert, were beautiful and melty, sweet and salty and combined with the swanky atmosphere, we could tell there was much more to be experienced. The Apple Compote Bread Pudding was more custard-y than soggy bread, which I loved and the caramel sauce topped it off nicely. Next time, we'll have dinner and see how good this place really is.

Pambiche (2811 NE Glisan St)

Even though we had to wait outside for almost an hour (at least it seemed like it), huddling together by an outdoor heater, it was totally worth it. Once we sat down, I immediately ordered a Cuban Hot Chocolate.

It was a little bit spicy and really warmed me up, even my toes, which were uncovered in my Tevas the whole time we were sitting outside in 35 degree weather.

I had an Empanada Picadillo (Cuban beef hash seasoned with Mediterranean herbs and vegetables sautéed in a Spanish olive oil and sherry wine sofrito) which was fabulous and the spices were so deep and rich, soothing my sore throat and entertaining my tongue greatly.

We shared a Cuban Cigar for dessert - it's not on the menu, I think it was a special that night. A chocolate truffle shaped like a cigar, in a pool of some kind of liqueur and whipped cream. Lovely. All of this to celebrate my good friend Ansley's visit to Portland.

I think after the Cuban Cigar, she might ditch SLC and move back to Oregon. How could she not?