KEX, the new “social hotel,” and its ground floor restaurant Dóttir—both imported to Portland from their birthplace in Reykjavik—seem almost too perfect for our city. Suspiciously perfect. The artfully weathered interior, filled with Nordic furnishings and staffed with young people sporting perfectly manicured facial hair, feels like the creation of an alien species looking to lure humans into a space where their customs can be more easily observed.
Maybe that’s why, during my two visits there, the clientele—a charmingly motley bunch that included a gaggle of kids in their 20s on a ski trip, dudes in dirty overalls, and a woman taking multiple photos of a cocktail—all seemed to approach the space warily. As if at any moment, they’d have a plate of whale meat forced upon them, or be asked to explain their feelings on fracking.
As our restaurant critic Andrea Damewood will tell you, any concerns you might have about the food at Dóttir are unfounded. And so far, no one has quizzed me on environmental issues. Mostly because, as I made clear early on, I was only there for the beer.