XLB (Portland, Oregon) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids XLB |
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Exterior of the original restaurant, 2021
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| Restaurant information | |
| Current owner(s) |
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| Food type | Chinese |
| Street address | 4090 North Williams Avenue 2175 Northwest Raleigh Street |
| City | Portland |
| County | Multnomah |
| State | Oregon |
| Country | United States |
XLB is the name of two popular Chinese restaurants in Portland, Oregon, USA. A chef named Jasper Shen, whose family has a history in Chinese cooking, opened the first restaurant in January 2017. It's located on North Williams Avenue in the Boise neighborhood. Later, in 2019, Jasper and his new business partner, Laura Tran, opened a second XLB in the northwest Portland area called Slabtown.
XLB is famous for its xiaolongbao, which are special soup dumplings. The restaurants also offer other tasty dishes like different kinds of soup dumplings, baozi (steamed buns), noodles, and fresh green vegetables. Many people really like XLB, especially their soup dumplings. In 2020, Willamette Week magazine's readers voted XLB as the second "Best Chinese Restaurant."
What XLB Looks Like
The first XLB restaurant can fit up to 48 people inside. When you go in, you'll see a cool painting of Gordon Liu, a famous Chinese martial arts film actor. An artist named Michael Palaus created it. The designer, Trish Grantham, made the place look great with paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling. She also had characters from the Chinese zodiac painted on the walls.
In 2017, a writer from Willamette Week said the restaurant had a "clean-lined hall" with fun Chinese-style decorations. These included kung fu paintings and lights that looked like they were from the Qing dynasty. The gold wallpaper had silhouettes of Chinese zodiac animals like the dog, snake, and rooster. In 2020, Fodor's Inside Portland described the original XLB as a "bright, modern space" with comfortable seats and colorful zodiac wallpaper. During the summer, you can even sit outside on the patio.
The second XLB location in Slabtown can seat about 45 people. Outside, there's a walkway where 20 to 30 more people can sit during the warmer months.
Delicious Food at XLB
The menu at XLB features many tasty options. They have different kinds of soup dumplings, baozi, other buns, noodles, and fresh greens. Their most famous dish is xiaolongbao. These are special dumplings filled with pork and a delicious soup inside.
Other dishes you might find include "light-battered five-spice" popcorn chicken. This chicken has a sweet taste with hints of clove and cinnamon, and a slight tingle from Sichuan pepper. They also serve a Shahe fen noodle stir-fry with beef strips. The stir-fries often come with fresh vegetables like bok choy, green beans, and other seasonal Chinese greens from the Portland Farmers Market. To drink, you can choose from beer, wine, or a refreshing lychee-lime soda.
A writer once said that the menu, which started with about a dozen dishes, was inspired by Chef Shen's childhood memories of eating in his family's restaurants. XLB also offers special prices during early evening and late night happy hour.
The Story of XLB
Jasper Shen opened the first XLB restaurant in Portland's Boise neighborhood in January 2017. He is a second-generation Chinese chef, meaning his family has been cooking Chinese food for a long time. Jasper spent over two years learning how to make the perfect xiaolongbao. Before XLB, he had thought about opening a Chinese restaurant with other chefs back in 2014. He had also helped open an Asian-French restaurant called Aviary in northeast Portland in 2011.
When XLB first opened, it was incredibly popular! So many people wanted to try the dumplings that the kitchen was very busy trying to keep up. Jasper Shen has said that the opening was a bit challenging because of how many customers they had.
In April 2019, Jasper Shen and his new business partner, Laura Tran, announced they would open a second XLB. This new restaurant is in northwest Portland's Slabtown area. It's located in the Leland James building and has a menu similar to the original. XLB has also taken part in The Oregonian newspaper's yearly Dumpling Week, where local restaurants create special dumpling dishes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, XLB adapted by offering online delivery services so people could still enjoy their food safely.
