Imperial Palate


Power Lunch at the Imperial.

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Imperial

410 SW Broadway
Portland, OR 97205
(503) 228-7222

Chef: Vitaly Paley

MENU HIGHLIGHTS

Tomato Soup,
cup, $4, bowl, $7;
Kale and Vegetable
Salad, $8;
House-Smoked
Turkey sandwich,
half, $7, whole, $11;
Dungeness Crab
Omelette, $15

Atmosphere: Casual glamour

Clientele: Lawyers, bankers, entrepreneurs; shoppers; Hotel Lucia guests

Most popular: All salads, served with tuna or rotisserie chicken; grilled cheese with homemade tomato soup

Chef’s pick, best seat in the house: “By the wood-fired grill, of course.”

Brag factor: The location — smack in the middle of downtown. “So we can get folks in and out in 45 minutes or less,” Paley says. “It goes without saying the quality of ingredients and creativity of our dishes is unrivaled.”

Overheard:  Financial types discussed “safe stocks” — AT&T and GE — and debated the merits of Merrill Lynch versus Charles Schwab. A businessman arriving late to a lunch meeting complained that “understaffing” meant he was inundated with work. Apple Pay, the new mobile payment technology, is the “way forward,” allowed one big wheeler, though his parents just don’t get it.

Tales from Garrett Peck, general manager: “A couple of guests were talking about the painting hanging in the back dining room, of a clear-cut and lone lumberjack artfully cut out of a trunk. Think chain-saw art. The guest asked a few questions and I gave him the spiel. Others started to listen. At the end, he said, ‘My name is Michael Brophy, and I painted that picture.’”

Critic’s corner: A bit on the noisy side.