NEW PEARL DISTRICT COCKTAIL BAR SILK ROAD OPENS WITH LATE-NIGHT CHINESE FOOD AND SHIITAKE MARTINIS

For over a thousand years, the network of Eurasian trade routes known as the Silk Road transported textiles, spices, and a myriad of other goods from Xi’an to Damascus. In the Pearl District, a new cocktail bar from Lulu owner Vijay Kumar takes its inspiration from the routes, using ingredients like chrysanthemum, lemongrass, and oolong tea for drinks while diners enjoy Chinese American standards.

Chef Lexy Foong, who formerly ran the Chinese American restaurant and karaoke bar Ambassador, is responsible for the food menu at the Silk Road, which opened earlier this month on Northwest Hoyt. Foong grew up in restaurants, learning wok cooking from her father, who founded the Ambassador in 1990, as well as watching the other chefs who worked in the restaurant and came from all over Asia. “A lot of my inspiration came from [my dad] and creating recipes alongside him,” Foong says.

At Silk Road, Foong forms the bar’s Silk Dumplings by hand, filling them with wagyu beef; she also cuts the rice noodles by hand before tossing them in a wok with beef, egg, and onion. By Foong’s design, the menu’s dishes are all meant to be enjoyed family style. “We wanted people to be able to try multiple things,” Foong says. “The days of going to a restaurant and ordering one plate per person are long gone.” The menu is largely gluten-free, a feature which Foong says is rare for Chinese restaurants. For dessert, Foong is serving Malaysian fried ice cream, a treat that she would look forward to as a kid while going on trips back to her dad’s home country Malaysia.

The cocktail menu will change with the seasons and incorporate ingredients based on winter, spring, summer, and fall. On its opening menu, the Fungus Among Us takes umami components like shiitake-infused vermouth and an MSG mushroom brine to make a powerhouse martini that includes vodka and gin. For Silk Road’s Oolong Old Fashioned, bartenders sous vide oolong tea with demerara syrup before adding bourbon.

Kumar and Foong designed the food and drink menus to be versatile, in order to transition from “an inviting dinner spot to a cocktail lounge at night.” The Silk Road team had lamented the dwindling of Portland’s late night scene and were inspired to create a place for late-night Chinese food. Like its sister bar Lulu, Silk Road will have DJs on the weekends, but patrons should expect a more lounge-y, low key vibe here.

Silk Road is open at 1230 NW Hoyt Street, Suite B.

2024-03-27T20:18:29Z dg43tfdfdgfd