1. Non-fat Vanilla Latte from Barista in the Pearl District: 539 NW 13th Ave, Portland, OR
2. Asparagus Soup with Homemade Focaccia Bread from Besaw’s in the Alphabet District: 2301 NW Savier St, Portland, OR
3. I loved Besaw’s so much that I went again for breakfast! Eggs Benedict with Roasted Tomatoes and Spinach.
4. Beer Tasting at Deschutes Brewery in the Pearl District: 210 NW 11th Ave, Portland, OR. I highly recommend the Champagne of the North Berliner Weiss – a yummy champagne-like beer!
A SacFoodie in Portland
A couple weeks ago, I found myself strolling the streets of Portland’s Pearl District with friends and admiring the range of food options, spanning from fancy fare to quirky holes in the wall.
Oregon is definitely known for its beer, so I wasn’t surprised to discover that the brewery that makes my favorite beer also has a restaurant (several, actually). Rogue Distillery & Public House is located in the heart of Portland’s Historic Brewing District. Besides a menu full of pub classics, they’ve got 38 beers on tap, including my favorite – Hazelnut Brown Nectar.
As luck would have it, the Portland area was experiencing a bit of a water safety issue at the time, so we weren’t able to order any water with our food. This allowed me to feel far less guilty when I ordered a few rounds of this not-on-the-menu gem – the Rogue Snickers (hey, I needed to wash down my dinner somehow, right?).
The Snickers was a mixture of my aforementioned favorite, Hazelnut Brown Nectar, and their Chocolate Stout. Wow. Simply wow! It really hit the spot with its rich, velvety flavor.
After dinner, we walked the beers off and headed to the popular Northwest staple – Voodoo Doughnut. As another SacFoodie mentioned on her trip to Voodoo, this must-see shop also serves as a wedding chapel. Yes, it’s one of those eccentric joints that make Portland so idiosyncratically wonderful. The doughnuts on display made us (and the estimated 50 people in line ahead of us) drool. Our wait was about 25 minutes, but it was so worth it.
I opted for the Old Dirty Bastard, which featured chocolate, Oreos and peanut butter. Apparently, the Bacon Maple Bar is one of their most popular, so I’m definitely going to try it the next time I visit.
If you’re ever in Portland, I seriously recommend stopping by Rogue Distillery (even if the city’s water is safe to drink) and Voodoo Doughnut. This SacFoodie was sad to leave!
Rogue Distillery and Public House
1339 NW Flanders Street
Portland, OR
Voodoo Doughnut Original Location
22 SW 3rd Street
Portland, OR
On the road again…
I love a good road trip. As a kid growing up, I spent a lot of time in the car heading to see relatives across the country. I always got a kick out of the games we’d play along the way (think “I Spy” and counting red cars), but my favorite part about road trips, even to this day, are the food stops along the way.
As we embarked on our first summer vacation with Jacob, our now 7 month old bundle-of-joy, we chose to drive to Seattle by way of Bend and Portland to see friends for the July 4th holiday. I know what you’re thinking: that’s a long time in the car with a baby! Actually, he did quite well! The only thing he didn’t allow us time for was meandering through small towns in search of refreshing libations and interesting road fare. Instead, we were roadies on a mission!
First Stop: Bend, Oregon. In the quaint town of Bend, we refreshed our spirits with local brew and appetizers at McMenamins, set in what was once an old Catholic schoolhouse. McMenamins are hotels and restaurants, all unique in their architecture, scattered throughout the Northwest. In Bend, the restaurant is adjacent to the hotel, where old classrooms are now the lodging rooms. Complete with a pub, bakery, movie theater and Turkish bath house, this place has it all. We drank a very light and refreshingly fruity, Ruby raspberry ale, and enjoyed the Hummus Plate and Baked Wedge o ’Brie, which was fried with an apple and hazelnut crust! Yes, it was as good as it sounds!
Next Stop: Portland. By sheer happenstance, we ate at both Jake’s and McCormick & Schmick’s while visiting Portland (M&S is an FH client). At Jake’s, we moseyed up to the sidewalk seating for Happy Hour and ordered cheeseburgers, fries and beer, for the perfect welcome meal to Portland! The following day, we strolled along the waterfront and literally stumbled upon McCormick & Schmick’s and decided to stay for dinner and a beautiful view of the water. I had a delectable parmesan encrusted Halibut, and Lance ordered scallops with stir-fry over rice; both dishes were cooked perfectly and paired well with Northwest Region wines.
Destination: Seattle. Our friends welcomed us with a very detailed menu of wonderful home-cooked meals – including ‘halibut and chips’ and bison chili – all gluten and dairy free recipes! (I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the gluten, dairy free foods; not only did they taste good, in some cases they tasted better!) On the one occasion we ate out, it was during a day trip to Snoqualmie, where we had lunch at the Salish Lodge overlooking the roaring Snoqualmie Falls. We were banished to the Attic Lounge due to all our gear and three kids in tow, but the upstairs restaurant offered stellar views of the falls. The fare was perfect for our parched palettes – I ordered the fire roasted chicken sandwich with cherry pepper aioli, crisp pancetta, fontina cheese, and fried sweet onions on house made sea salt focaccia bread.
Now, I’m sure you’re wondering about the ride home, and I must confess that we ate Burger King, pizza and hotel breakfast. After all, we were once again roadies on a mission, logging 1,700 miles of fond memories and many culinary delights!
McMenamins
700 NW Bond Street
Bend, OR 97701
(541) 382-5174
Jake’s
401 SW 12th Ave.
Portland, OR 97205
(503) 226-1419
Salish Lodge
6501 Railroad Ave.
Snoqualmie, WA 98065
(425) 888-2556
Pizzicato in Portland, Please!
When you think back on the travel you’ve done over the years – that family vacation, the business trip that never ended, girls/guys weekend at the beach – what do you remember? Odds are, we all recall the food. Sometimes it’s even easier for me to remember what we ate than where we were!
On a recent trip to Oregon, I grabbed a bite with fellow SacFoodie Kim Bedwell and one of our Portland colleagues at a gourmet pizza restaurant that really hit the spot. Both the ingredients and the décor were the definition of fresh. I tried the pesto chicken pizza and a side salad, the perfect pre-airport combo.
It’s no secret that the SacFoodies like their pizza (need proof?) and Pizzicato certainly fits the bill.
There are few things I despise more than being a hungry out-of-towner without a clue where to dine. So if you find yourself looking for lunch in Portland, or one of their other locations, check out Pizzicato! In the meantime, you can visit them online at www.pizzicatopizza.com.
Any other Portland foodie suggestions? Share with us by leaving a comment below!