Biwa

For many Americans the sushi restaurant has become their gateway into the world of Japanese cuisine. Besides sushi and sashimi, there is a lot more to Japanese cuisine. As our fascination with Japanese food has grown, so has our Japanese dining options. There are many Japanese restaurants around the country that draw a lot of influence from the izakaya. The izakaya is a kind of Japanese pub. It is a restaurant that serves both food and drinks. Some of the food you will find at a izakaya are yakitori, sashimi, tempura, and other grilled skewers. Another style of Japanese dining that has become very popular in America is the ramen shop. When you combine an izakaya with a place that serves ramen, you will have a uniquely American Japanese dining experience. While I was in Portland, Oregon, my friend told me about Biwa. He said it was a ramen place but served other Japanese food as well. While their Japanese food is pretty good, my friend told me that their burger is actually one of the best in Portland. The burger at Biwa is not served on their regular dinner menu. You have to wait for the late night menu on weekends to have the burger at Biwa.  The burger at Biwa comes with kimchi, mayonnaise, and a piece of char sui pork(Chinese BBQ Pork).On our trip to Biwa for the burger we also had some house made pickles, gyoza, and yellowtail sashimi. The yellowtail was fresh and delicious. The house made pickles were a great palate cleanser when eaten after the gyoza. While I do love gyoza, the gyoza at Biwa had a thicker wrapper than I had before. The flavor was fine, it was just the wrapper was chewy. The burger however was worth it. If you think having bacon on a burger was good, Chinese BBQ pork on the burger was even better. The beef was extremely juicy, tender, and flowing with beefy flavor. The kimchi perfectly cuts through the rich flavors of the beef and the pork. There is no wonder why Biwa only sells their burger only late night on weekends. It is because it is so good it would be the only thing they would sell. Biwa is a great place if you are into diving deeper into Japanese cuisine and dining. Biwa has many classic izakaya style dishes, ramen, sashimi, and a large selection of sakes. For a Japanese night in Portland, Biwa is a good place to be transported.