Ken's Artisan Pizza
Pizza restaurant · Kerns
304 SE 28th Ave, Portland, OR 97214
Highlights
Wood-fired pies with char, sourdough crusts, hand-pulled mozzarella
Wood-fired pies with char, sourdough crusts, hand-pulled mozzarella
"Ken’s Artisan is the old guard in Portland’s short pizza history. And while every aspiring pizzaiolo now vibes with long-fermented dough, hand-pulled mozzarella, and imported tomatoes, this wasn’t the norm when Ken’s opened their rustic wood-fired operation in Kerns nearly two decades ago. The corner restaurant maintains its casual neighborhood feel, despite hungry visitors killing time outside until it’s their turn to try these world-class pies. No, reservations aren’t taken, but it’s worth a little wait for their leopard-spotted pies, lush with pistachio pesto and mortadella, or sweet corn and smoked bacon balanced with green tomatoes that are bright and pickled." - krista garcia
"Ken’s Artisan is the old guard in Portland’s short pizza history. And while every aspiring pizzaiolo now vibes with long-fermented dough, hand-pulled mozzarella, and imported tomatoes, this wasn’t the norm when Ken’s opened their rustic wood-fired operation in Kerns nearly two decades ago. The corner restaurant maintains its casual neighborhood feel, despite hungry visitors killing time outside until it’s their turn to try these world-class pies. No, reservations aren’t taken, but it’s worth a little wait for their leopard-spotted pies, lush with pistachio pesto and mortadella, or sweet corn and smoked bacon balanced with green tomatoes that are bright and pickled." - Krista Garcia
"A companion pizzeria launched by the same French-trained founder and regarded as an iconic part of the city's food scene; it was part of the professional operations through which he taught people to bake and develop recipes. Like the bakery, it was sold in 2022 to friends and employees after the founder spent pandemic downtime away from his restaurants." - Jonathan Kauffman
"Ken Forkish isn’t running his illustrious pizzeria anymore, but he didn’t want to leave the business until his pizza recipe had reached the platonic ideal of a good pie. Forkish says the restaurant is making its best pizza ever now, and he’s right: The crust is now a blend of sourdough and traditional yeast doughs, topped with mozzarella that blankets the pie evenly. Pies are cookies in the restaurant’s wood-fired ovens, which leopards the crusts in char." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Rebecca Roland
"Ken Forkish isn’t running his illustrious pizzeria anymore, but he didn’t want to leave the business until his pizza recipe had reached the platonic ideal of a good pie. Forkish says the restaurant is making its best pizza ever now, and he’s right: The crust is now a blend of sourdough and traditional yeast doughs, topped with mozzarella that blankets the pie evenly. The one thing that remains: The restaurant’s wood-fired ovens, which leopards the crusts in char." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden
