This is a travel blog, but I feel that even something across the street is travel. If not to me, it probably is to you. Either way, travel is really about taking something in. It's about the culture and people, the man-made and natural sights and just about experiencing what the world has to offer.
Look at me, I'm justifying posting something to my own blog. It's mine. I'm posting it. Get over it. There, that's better.
Le Happy has become, without a doubt, my favorite restaurant within 2 blocks of my house. That doesn't sound like much of a rave, but living in the Pearl District of Portland there are 9 restaurants within two blocks. I'd also go so far as to call Le Happy one of my favorite restaurants in Portland. Since my favorite restaurants are in Portland, I suppose that makes it one of my favorites in the world. Okay, enough of the rambling.
Le Happy bills itself as a crêperie restaurant and bar. I don't have any experience with the place as a bar in terms of "whoo hoo, it's 1am and I'm at the bar," but I do have experience with the bar as a place that provides me with alcoholic beverages. They're tasty. Well, the prickly pear margarita is tasty. This is my favorite drink and it's hard to find anywhere else, so that's all I have when I go there. The people I've been there with seem to like the other drinks though. Good enough for me.
The menu is simple. What do you want in your crêpe? Sure, they come up with fancy (or not so fancy - e.g. "Le Trash Blanc") names for some of their favorite options, but these are really just suggestions. The options are, while statistically calculable, immeasurable. If your crêpe doesn't taste good, it's your fault. After all, they make it right, it must be that you ordered the wrong combination. The food is consistently good.
Crêpes may be technically French, but this place is all Portland. It's liberal, it's quirky, it's unique, it's just plain . . . bizarre. Maybe it's the disco ball in the middle of the room. The waitstaff is quintessentially Portland as well. Unfortunately, this isn't necessarily a good thing. Portlanders are in their own world. The trend here has not been buc`ked. Be prepared to wait a bit. Be prepared to not be quite sure if you're not exactly welcome. After a number of visits to Le Happy, all I can tell you is that you are welcome there. It's how everyone is treated. The service will usually be slow, but you'll get the food. It does almost seem like the place knows it has good food and no matter how the service is, you'll still come back. They're right. Luckily the service isn't deporable. It's just tolerable, and I can handle that.
Oh, I almost forgot! This is the only place that I consistenly order dessert. Do it. You know you want to. Do I really have to say why? It's crêpes. It's not too rich, it's not too sweet. It is, as Goldilocks would say, just right.
Here are the specifics:
Price: Reasonably priced. As little as $4 for an entree, up to $13.
Cuisine: Crêpes
Reservations: Generally, no. The place is small so be there at an off time or be prepared to wait.
Pets: With the outside seating, I would assume so.
Cuisine: Crêpes
Reservations: Generally, no. The place is small so be there at an off time or be prepared to wait.
Pets: With the outside seating, I would assume so.
Parking: Street only
Address: 1011 NW 16th Ave - Portland, Oregon
Nearest town: Portland, Oregon (Located in Pearl District of Portland)
Nearest town: Portland, Oregon (Located in Pearl District of Portland)
Nearest 10,000+ city: Portland, Oregon
County: Multnomah, Oregon
My rating (out of 6): 3 for service, 5.5 for food, 5.5 for decor, 4 for view - average 5
My Current Location: Home, Portland, Oregon
From Le Happy's website. I could go for the two block walk to take my own picture, but I'm feeling lazy.
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