Nicholas Restaurant is a chain of three
Lebanese restaurants in the
Portland metropolitan area, in the United States. It is one of the oldest Lebanese and
Middle Eastern restaurants in Portland.[1] The business also operates in
Gresham.
History
Nicholas and Linda Dibe opened the first restaurant in 1987.[1][2] The Dibes fled
Beirut, Lebanon in 1982, immigrated to Portland with their four young daughters. Five years later they opened the restaurant.[2] Nicholas invested his entire pension in the restaurant, which first served
pizza and
calzones.[2][1] Later, the Dibes started adding some of their favorite Lebanese dishes to the menu, which became popular with customers.[2] The restaurant is now owned by one of the Dibes' daughters, Hilda.[1] There are several locations which are operated by different extended family members.[3] The business also operates in
Gresham.[4]
In 2020, Nicholas announced plans to relocate the flagship location to 1109 Southeast Madison Street, in the
Buckman neighborhood, in 2021.[2][1] In April 2021, Nicholas opened its new location which has a full bar.[3][5][6]
Reception
Willamette Week's Lauren Yoshiko said Nicholas is best for "homestyle hummus and kebabs, every day for decades" and wrote, "If Pioneer Place is Portland's living room, Nicholas is the city's Lebanese kitchen."[7] Nicholas has been recognized in the newspaper's annual "readers' poll", winning in the "Best Mediterranean Restaurant" category in 2016,[8] 2017,[9] 2018,[10] and 2020.[11]
^
abSilberstein, Nina (December 31, 2020).
"Nicholas Restaurant". The Southeast Examiner.
Archived from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.