For our sixth visit we decided it was time to ratchet it up, and visit one of the pizza heavyweights in Portland. Ken's is consistently regarded for putting out some of the best pies in the city. We have been here before, we know the quality, we have read the reviews, but this visit was for a different purpose from year's past.
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| Handmade |
I have had the privilege of meeting Ken Forkish (Ken's Artisan Pizza Owner) a number of times. He is a great guy. I have read his books Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast and The Elements of Pizza. I owe much of what I know about baking pizza to Ken. If you are interested in learning to bake great pizza and bread, definitely buy his book(s). All this makes this a tricky visit though. How do you objectively rate a place that you know so much about? Here goes...
We took our waiter's recommendation and ordered the Handmade. This pie was basic, consisting of red sauce, and fresh mozza. The sauce was amazing. Maybe the best I can recall trying this year. Garlic and fennel flavors really stood out, which worked very well together. Pro trip: when the pie first comes out of the 750+ degree oven, it has a runny consistency. Some people love this, but if you like sauce to have more consistency, let the pie stand a bit before eating it. This will allow the sauce to thicken up a bit. All in all, this was my favorite pie of the night, and it wasn't close.
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| Wood Fired - Brick Oven |
Ken's has a beautiful wood fired brick oven, which is a really show piece in the restaurant's design layout. This brick oven is a Le Panyol oven built by Master Mason Timothy Seaton. This was our first wood fired experience of the year, so we were super excited!
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| Margherita |
For the sake of consistency we ordered the Margherita. You can never go wrong with this combo, and it offers a good baseline for us judging pies this year. The balance and freshness of flavors stood out for me. However, Veggie Doughboy felt like the sauce stood out too much. As he put it, "rather than the sauce accompanying the cheese and being a supportive topping, it took center stage". Veggie Doughboy believes the sauce should always be the bridesmaid of a pie, and never the bride.
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| Hawaiian |
Veggie Doughboy ordered the Hawaiian, and subbed the Canadian Bacon for Mushrooms. This turned out to work fairly well. I am not generally a big fan of pineapple on pizza, but I would eat this again. For me, this was the 4th best pie of the night. To this point we haven't mentioned the crust. Oh, that crust! Ken's crust is just amazing. You really taste the simplicity and freshness. Personally I don't think you can mimic or beat that wood fired bake either. So good!
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| Soppressata |
The final pie of the night was the Soppressata. Very similar to the Margherita, but with meat. In hindsight, ordering this was a bit of a missed opportunity to try something different on the menu. However, like the Margherita the balance of flavors was there and Soppressata always adds bonus points to any pie for me.
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| More Pepper? |
Although a very small thing, the sea salt and chili flakes was a nice touch. I love both on my pizza, and I enjoyed being able to control these additional flavors with a pinch, rather than out of a shaker. It just felt a bit more artisan.
All in all, Ken's lives up to the hype. To this point in our judging, it is a definitely a contender for best pizza in Portland, and I highly recommend trying it if you haven't already.
Recommendation: if you are planning to check Ken's out for yourself, plan for a bit of a wait. It is a very popular place. Consider getting your name in, then walk down to the food cart pod on 28th/Ankeny. Here you will find Captured Beer Bus, which is where we enjoyed a pint before dinner. They have a really solid selection of beers on tap too.
Overall Rank: #4 (Tie)
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