Last weekend, in the midst of hectic days, four of us ventured to downtown Portland for a dinner out, followed by a 2Cellos concert at the Keller Auditorium. We chose Higgins Restaurant and Bar, at the corner of Broadway and Jefferson, for its relative proximity to the concert venue, so we had to park only once for the evening. It’s also convenient to several other Portland entertainment venues and offers a menu featuring “classic country dishes” built upon locally sourced, sustainably grown ingredients. (This is a recurring element in most Portland-area restaurants, as the region provides a dizzying range of foodstuffs, from every sort of meat a carnivore might crave to the freshest seafood to a cornucopia of grains, vegetables and fruit.) All items are á la carte, with entrées ranging between $22 for a pasta dish and $45 for select specials. We decided to start with the Greek mezze platter, offering typical Greek appetizers with a twist. It included a tzatziki made with carrots rather than the traditional cucumber and offering an extra zingy kick beyond just garlic. There was feta blended with red peppers that packed a flavorful punch, and a generous heap of hummus boasting some heat. Served with olives, crostini and new pickled asparagus, the opening course woke up our tastebuds and made us eager to try our main courses. (Our server also brought us a basket of two or three varieties of warm, rustic bread and a lovely Italian olive oil of rich green — fabulous!) Our table covered the whole range of possibilities: Harry chose the risotto of bay shrimp, leeks and spinach with provolone piccante (a fresh, generous, tasty, filling meal), while daughter Jenny went for the whole pig plate: Yucatán pork stew of roast loin, ribs, belly and chorizo with a butter corn posolé.   She also found it filling but felt the belly was nearly all fat with barely any meat. Sister Robbe opted for the cumin-carrot falafel with a rapini and root vegetable salad, basmati pilaf and lemon tahini sauce, another flavor-filled combo.  I couldn’t resist the lamb special which offered a housemade sausage as well as a generous slice of tenderloin and a boneless chop.  Served with couscous and more of that fresh asparagus, it satisfied on all levels. With no room for dessert, we made our way (downhill, fortunately) to the Keller. The auditorium quickly filled up with members ranging from 10-year-olds to octogenarians, and we noted also a general haze (though it didn’t smell of smoke) in the air. The 2Cellos consists of two classically trained Croatian (darkly handsome) young men, Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser (a major flirt and the more comical of the two). They walked on stage, one with a white electric cello and the other with a black one, each elegantly featuring the barest curving outlines of the traditional instrument. Beginning with a classical piece or two and backed by recorded violin accompaniment, they paused briefly to make it clear to any unfamiliar with their music that this would not be a traditional classical concert and that audience members were welcome to dance in the aisles, stand in front of the stage, sing along and generally enjoy themselves. They then launched into numbers from their third album, Celloverse, and a few pieces by which they first became known on YouTube. These were all classic rock tunes from U2, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin and Nirvana and artists such as Michael Jackson and Coldplay. Part way through they were joined by drummer Dusan Kranjc and proceeded to bring the house down, making those cellos sound like electric guitars and playing with ferocious energy. Behind them, dual screens played short videos, animated clips and psychedelic, kaleidoscopic patterns reminiscent of ’60s and ’70s concerts, all while spinning, sweeping arcs of light danced over the audience and bounced off that hazy air. While relatively short (with encore, the concert lasted just over 90 minutes), the evening provided a thrilling, energetic immersion into a new way to enjoy classic rock with two very talented and savvy musicians. — Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor