by Sam Soule for pdxguide.com

Echo 2225 NE Martin Luther King Boulevard (503) 460-3246

Echo is a nice place to eat and drink. That's not an especially unique statement to make. There are many nice places to eat in drink and Portland. You just don't find them on Martin Luther King Boulevard.

Of course, there are along East Portland's major north-south thoroughfare a number of very cool bars. However, none of them are the kind of cool bar that aspires to an atmosphere that could be described as "refined," "somnolent" and "cute" -- all words I've heard to describe Echo. None of them are backed by kitchens that can whip out high class fare like dijon lamb chops and grilled chicken panini, crab dip and roasted fig salad. None are them are that, well, nice.

Save one. Echo, which opened recently in the space inhabited by the East Side Cafe, is just that kind of "nice." Put it this way, Echo flavors it's serving water with cucumber slices.

The water at Echo is nice.

The question seems to be, is Echo more bar than restaurant? Those who read the kind of commentary I roll out know my familiarity with dive bars and rock 'n' roll clubs, Pabst and all-you-can-eat spaghetti specials. I felt a little unsure about my opinion regarding Echo. Where exactly did it stand? After talking to a number of people, I realized this ambiguous impression I had of Echo was justified. There were those who thought it more "a place to eat." And there were those who were "surprised to find it was so much like a bar." And for as "nice" as it was, Echo seemed to have a feel hipster vibe, a sort of learned rock 'n' roll flair.

Everyone seemed to agree on that. Exactly where it was going was anyone's guess.

So, at the moment, the direction of this high-ceilinged room -- brick walled, with granite-topped bar and stately bar back -- leans more to the food end. Impressively high-backed booths line the bank of windows to the front with most of the serving space dedicated to dinner tables.

Though the physical environment is sturdy, the atmosphere has a relaxed, mature glow -- not stuffy -- that lends itself to enjoying the house menu of simple elegance, classic food items slightly upgraded: hamburgers, tacos, pulled pork sandwiches, sweet potato custard and baby spinach salad.

This also happens to be a good way of describing Echo's bar action: classic items, slightly upgraded: micros, margaritas, and mohitos.

Good, fresh, hand-crafted drinks. Solid. (And nice.) The bar end of this room has a few two-top tables, as well.

Prices settle solidly in within the 6 to 11 dollar range for sandwiches and most entrees; specials run as high (perhaps too high) as 16 dollars. Drinks are around 4 to seven bucks. Desserts, which are delicious, are bit expensive for the serving size; then again, that is the very definition of "dessert." The cucumber-flavored water is free.

Nice. The food, the drink, and the service at Echo is all, in a word, nice. Where it falls on the restaurant/bar line may very well fall on when you visit. One person told me that Echo seemed to her to be sort of like a grown-up version of some of Portland's past and present trendy rock hangouts (Felini's, Dante's, Slabtown). A good point. I hear those reverberation, too. They may be the source of Echo's greatest charm.

The fact that it is wise and hip and in search of it's own voice.

The opinions expressed within are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of pdxguide.com or The Columbian Publishing Co.