Restaurants in Lake Oswego

At Wild Wasabe, meals are nearly as much about presentation as they are about flavor. The sushi chefs deftly wrap fresh fish and spicy sauces into rolls, then plate them, into edible artworks resembling dragons, sunbursts, or American Gothic. The kitchen also heats up hot soups and entrees, and pours out premium sake, wine, and Japanese beers to complement meals. Diners sip while watching the sushi experts sculpt their appetizing works, or glance at the large flat screen television to fill their eyes as well as their stomachs.

The roster of creative cocktails available at Jinx Kitchen + Lounge boasts distinctive names like The Groaner, Pulp Fiction, and Kiwi Kamikaze. To mix these original libations, bartenders blend Thai herbs such as elderflower and ginger with premium spirits ranging from Mekhong Thai rum to bourbon and vodka. You can enjoy the drinks at the trendy eatery's round bar or in a dining room decorated with eclectic artwork. Between sips, sample authentic Thai dishes such as red and yellow curries, shrimp satay, and pad Thai. For those not afraid of a little heat, the jumbo wings are punched up with spicy basil sauce and the crying tiger features Thai-style grilled steak doused in tamarind.

Located in a historical two-story firehouse, Touché’s stately dining room charms with a grand piano, a long mahogany bar, and the smell of wood-fired pizzas and steaming lasagna. An elegant staircase leads upstairs, where you can play a post-dinner game of pool or enjoy any entree from the menu while peeking out the room’s large windows to look down at the streets below. The dinner menu is served alongside wines by the glass and bottle from Italy, Argentina, and France, finished by desserts such as silky vanilla crème brûlée and rich chocolate pots de crème.

Portland Prime's claim to fame is its steaks. Each highly marbled piece of USDA Prime beef is aged for 28 days before it’s cooked to achieve maximum flavorization. Wood-fired ovens sear the juices of diver scallops and ahi tuna steaks inside blackened crusts, and locally sourced ingredients enrich every dish, including seasonal desserts. The eatery’s expansive wine list boasts 140 bottles and 40 wines by the glass, which helped it to win Wine Spectator's 2011 Award of Excellence, which is only given to establishments at which it's truly enjoyable to watch other people drink wine.

Originally opened as the Top Hat Drive-In in 1953, Sonic has grown into a burger-franchise mecca that today operates out of 3,500 locations across the country, making it the nation’s largest chain of drive-in restaurants. Sonic specializes in made-to-order American classics—including burgers, hot dogs, milk shakes, and marshmallow Ford Thunderbolts—which customers order and receive without ever having to leave their cars. Unique menu items include toaster sandwiches stacked on thick slices of texas toast, as well as the brand’s signature tots and fresh limeades.

Sonic’s numerous awards include a 2011 Zagat survey ranking it among the top five fast-food restaurants in three categories: Best Value Menu, Best Milk Shake, and Best Drive-Thru. The benevolent eatery has also donated more than $2 million to public schools throughout the country through their program Limeades for Learning, which helps to fund educational projects and retirement plans for classroom guinea pigs.