Alma
Restaurant · King ·
Elevated Balkan dishes with hyperlocal ingredients and unique flavors
Elevated Balkan dishes with hyperlocal ingredients and unique flavors
"Portland’s first upscale Balkan restaurant and the debut from chef Vedran Jordan, this spot emphasizes hearty, meat-forward Balkan dishes—think meaty skewers, smoky baba ghanoush, and substantial lamb shanks—bringing elevated regional flavors to the neighborhood." - Paolo Bicchieri
"Led by chef Vedran Jordan—a Sarajevo refugee who trained at Bamboo Sushi, Gado Gado, Oma’s Hideaway and with Gregory Gourdet—this new Balkan restaurant opens with a focus on elevated “Ottoman-era” dishes and a polished, community-minded vibe. Highlights include an imam bayildi (a half-roasted eggplant marinated overnight with Vegeta, its innards mixed with aromatics, chilies and tomatoes, and served with toum yogurt and green zhoug), a kanpachi crudo dressed in black Moroccan salt with housemade citrus kosho and ginger (sourced from Aji Fish Butchery), plus standout preparations of baba ghanoush and a substantial lamb shank. Beverage director Chris Mateja (formerly of Nightingale) has crafted bright, vibrant cocktails using liquors from South America and the Balkans, and the spirits program features three rakias (grape, plum and a secret third) with more planned; several spirits were custom-made for the restaurant by Andy Garrison of Tuff Talk Distilling. Housed in a pretty space in the King neighborhood, the operation emphasizes a hardworking, compassionate team—with Jeremy Fong as chef de cuisine, Mo Morales as sous chef and Emily Gilmer as general manager—and will donate 5% of opening-week sales to The Sameer Project. The restaurant opens Friday, June 13, and will be open Thursday through Monday from 4 to 9 p.m., by reservation only." - Paolo Bicchieri
"Chef Vedran Jordan, a refugee from Sarajevo who left when he was 12 and after 17 years working through Portland’s most esteemed kitchens, is taking his pop-up into its first permanent location in early summer 2025 in a tremendous restaurant space with serpentine arches and colorful ceramic tiles meant to invoke Turkey. He named the pop-up after his mother and says, “I always wanted to bring the food of my culture and the food of my family into Portland,” Jordan says, “[to] showcase and educate people on the Balkan region.” Offerings are renditions of both family recipes and “Ottoman-era” classics: kebabs feature prominently as part of Jordan’s commitment to using animals from head to tail — lamb heart, liver, and neck are all cooked over the charcoal and glazed in a sticky pomegranate sauce. Tomato corba — a light Turkish soup with vermicelli, thickened with dehydrated yogurt and wheat known as ariz — comes topped with grated garlic and a dollop of yogurt. The menu is designed so two people can eat tapas-style through most, if not all, of the items; all the meat will be Halal-friendly, highlighting his family’s Islamic culture. Jordan notes that his home region “has been colonized so many times that it can be difficult to highlight the indigenous cuisine of the area.” On the drinks side there will be Balkan wines, classic cocktails, and a house-fermented yogurt liqueur handled by beverage director Chris Mateja, formerly of Nightingale. Rakia, which is somewhere between brandy and moonshine according to Jordan, will feature heavily; flights of rakia come paired with pickled vegetables — “You always need snacks when you drink,” Jordan says. Jordan is attentive to Portland’s diverse dining scene and to the King neighborhood’s history as a non-white community, and he emphasizes remaining affordable and accessible while building a kitchen culture free of toxicity: financial security for workers, paid time off, and “a sense of education rather than intensity.” “We need a much healthier restaurant culture than we have,” Jordan says. “And it’s definitely shifted after COVID. I want to keep pushing for that.”" - Paolo Bicchieri
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