altportland

Hillsdale Farmers Market

2010-02-14T16:55:22Z

10am-2pm, Sundays, February 21, March 7, March 21, April 11, 25, May 2 - November 21, 2010
Wilson High-Rieke Elementary Parking Lot
SW Capitol Hwy & Sunset
hillsdalefarmersmarket.com
googlemap
get there via trimet
find a bike route

The Hillsdale Farmers Market is a good one. First of all, it's on Sundays. Free parking is close by. It's big enough to have at least one of everything but not so big that you get overwhelmed. There's a pork vendor there that is magnificent, some folks that make tasty wood-fired bagels, and a soup vendor that I cross town for.

Autentica Mexican Cuisine

2008-12-10T13:56:17Z

5507 NE 30th
(503) 287-7555
autenticaportland.com
googlemap
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haute Pacific Mexican
dinner Tuesday-Sunday, brunch Saturday & Sunday

It's been a little bit since I've visited and written up about Autentica, so let me tell you about a meal just the other night.

A caveat: I went on a Sunday night, and the chef/owner Oswaldo Bibiano was not there.

The service here is much improved. I'm not sure what happened, but something certainly did because the service is attentive.

I ordered a margarita, which is always good here, blended or on the rocks. They also offered a pomegranite version.

The menu is divided up between small & large plates, seafood cocktails, salads, soups, and sides. Large plates do tend to be generous enough that you don't need an appetizer or salad. Those run from $17-$20.

Seafood cocktails run from $12-$15; small plates from $3-$10; salads, $8-$13; soups, $7-$8; and sides, $4-$7.

Generally, there are at least a couple vegetarian and vegan options, but on the current menu, there is only one vegetarian dish.

We ordered a succession of food: pulpo al pescador, queso fundido con chorizo, and a couple of platillos mexicano. And they began arriving, along with three homemade salsas and freshly made corn tortillas, almost immediately.

The pulpo is an octopus cocktail. The octopus is sliced into small pieces and then combined with chunks of avocado and onions in a red chile sauce. It's served with saltine crackers. All in all, a very traditional dish. As always, the octopus was delicious, but I really wanted bigger chunks of it, and more of it.

At about the same time, the queso fundido arrived. This is basically a mexican fondue, made with oaxacan cheese and chorizo -- a heart attack in a little bowl. And it has the potential to be incredible. Not so on my visit -- the fundido was overcooked, leaving tough cheese, little islands of chorizo and puddles of grease. It still tasted good, and my companion and I scraped and scraped to get bits of cheesy goodness off. This was especially good with the black corn tortillas in our tortilla basket.

And finally, the main event. The platillo mexicano ($18) is made up of two enchiladas, in red and green moles, with a chile relleno. It sounds like your regular combo plate at your corner mexican joint, right? Wrong. If you're a fan of mole, you have to try this! The green mole is made from pumpkin seeds, tomatillos and serrano peppers, really rich and complex, over a simple chicken or cheese in a tortilla. The red mole is made from 8 kinds of dried chiles and nuts, and is better than any I've tasted anywhere. And the chile relleno is stuffed with cotija cheese, in a tomato sauce topped with crema. We were glad to have some extra, handmade, fresh corn tortillas to sop up all the extra sauce!

Other dishes I've tried before include the tortilla soup ($8) which was delicious. Camarones al autententico mojo de ajo ($20) are to die for, gorgeous, subtle and garlicky, and accompanied by rice . Anything with a mole sauce is worth seeking out, as is the pescado entero or whole fish. Tamales and tostadas are excellent too.

I've never tried the desserts.

All and all, it was not as good as I've had in the past, but still a very good meal.

By the way, check out their brunch.

What bugs you about Portland restaurants?

2008-11-30T14:39:22Z

We're lucky here in Portland, but that doesn't mean everything is hunky-dory. Portland restaurants offer a lot to be irritated by, too. Here's my short-list, but I totally want to know what bugs you too!

Restaurant Websites

Have one
Keep it current -- that means hours, and if you'll be open on xmas
Make it readable with Flash turned off!
No music! None!

At the restaurant

Don't have an Open sign on unless you are open
What time is Close, exactly? Saying you're open 5-Close doesn't really tell me your hours.

So, what bugs you about Portland Restaurants? Feel free to name names...

The Tolman Guide to Green Living in Portland

2008-05-15T14:14:42Z

Tolman, Deborah, Lasley, Michelle, & Parker, Joe. (2008). The Tolman Guide to Green Living in Portland: Simple, Sustainable, and Affordable Practices. tolmanguide.geog.pdx.edu

Lydgate, Chris. (2008, May 15). Home, green home: Professor, students write online DIY guide to sustainability. Portland Tribune. http://www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php?story_id=121078408080410800

Check out The Tolman Guide to Green Living in Portland: Simple, Sustainable, and Affordable Practices, a totally cool resource on how to live greener. I just browsed several of the sections and was totally excited about the options of improving the way I live and impact the world.

To be absolutely fair, I learned about this via the Tribune where poor Chris Lydgate is now contributing to the Sustainable Life section. Still, the article came across a little snarky. For example, there's a remark about worms in the primary author's bedroom. And then, at the end of the article he complains that "Some entries fail to list a Web site where readers actually could find the article being reviewed — a puzzling omission in an online guide."

[Putting on my librarian hat now.] As you might be aware, a lot of publications don't publish their articles online, or if they do, they offer them for a fee. Tolman et al, being academicians, probably used the electronic resources available at the Portland State University Library to research the guide. But that doesn't mean you can't read the articles, or learn more about those topics.

Here's what you do: go to your library website with your library card in hand. It could be Multnomah County libraries, Washington County libraries, or your college or university library. Look for a link labeled Research, Databases, Find Articles, or Periodicals, and once there, select Academic Search Premier (I mention ASP because it's a huge full-text database). Once you get in the database, you can search for article titles, authors, keywords, really just about anything you'd like.

But back to the Tolman Guide; if you prefer to read on paper rather than on screen, they do have a PDF available for download (under the Download link, natch), Multnomah County Library also has several copies that will be available soon, but you can put on hold now.

New Seasons Market Deli

2008-04-07T05:58:50Z

all over town
http://www.newseasonsmarket.com/

This may be the best cheap lunch or dinner in town.

Of course you can buy groceries at New Seasons. But at their deli, you can also get hot food. Yay!!

We've been long time fans of the New Seasons deli, ever since we figured out that eating before shopping means we spend a lot less. But really, the food prices here can't be beat.

For example, tonight we tried the hot wok ($6.95 and up). Yum! You get a metal bowl and fill it as high as you can with goodies: noodles, rice, garlic, ginger, tofu and veggies. You can also add chicken, beef or shrimp, or white or brown rice to your wok bowl for a little extra. Now, choose from the 8 different sauces: most are vegan, a good number are gluten-free, so you have options. You can also get them to ratchet up the heat. Just a few minutes later, you have a huge hot meal on a plate. Grab a drink from the cooler, stop at the cashier, and then make your way to the dining area, stocked with condiments and magazines and lots of tables.

You can get a huge salad for $6.99 from their salad bar. Or if you prefer, they can make a caesar for you ($3.95 and up). They have 2 pastas each day, one veggie, one meat for $4.95 (and up). And two soups a day, one veggie, one meat.

You can get a bagel with lox, or cream cheese, or whitefish spread, or tofu paté (warning, not vegan!), or hummus, and veggies. You can even get your bagel toasted!

And then there are sandwiches. You can build your own from coldcuts, or tuna or chicken salad, or even grilled veggies. They have hamburgers, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, chickenwiches, even groovy hot dogs. And there's some specialty sandwiches as well.

If this isn't enough, there's always rotisserie chicken and chicken quarters, always pizza, always some type of roasted potatoes, and always some other yummy stuff. Chips and sweets are close at hand.

While the chicken and pizza leave me cold, the hot wok, salad bar, and sandwiches are consistently great, as good as you'd get in a restaurant -- but cheaper.

The only drawback is, if you're hungry and you're having them make you a sandwich or some other type of non-instant gratification, waiting may make you crazy. But no crazier than shopping with an empty stomach.

Farmers Markets are updated!

2008-03-31T13:18:42Z

It makes perfect sense to me that the first week of spring should feature snow flurries and hail. But spring means so many things - the end of the grey season, the beginning of our surroundings looking alive and colorful again, time for crushes and baseball and asparagus!

For those of us who are trying to locavore, spring also means finally vegetables that aren't root veggies or greens. Not that either is bad, it's just, well, it's nice to eat something else.

And so, locavores rejoice: the Saturday Farmers Market at PSU will be back this Saturday! And, in honor of that, the altportland Farmers Market section is now fully up-to-date with 2008 information.

East African Restaurant Row

2008-03-26T12:58:17Z

Horn of Africa
5237 NE Martin Luther King Blvd, in the Vanport Square Plaza

Burqitu East African Restaurant
3939 NE MLK Blvd

Sengatera Ethiopian Restaurant
3833 NE MLK Blvd

Selam Market & Restaurant
3513 NE MLK Blvd

In the last two months, there has been a ton of activity in the East African restaurant business on NE MLK. It's doubled, and there may well be more in store.

At the corner of NE Russell & Rodney is a new restaurant that it appears the Queen of Sheba folks are involved in. At least, when I chatted with them, they neither confirmed nor denied.

Selam Market, previously known as the only place to buy crack baggies for blocks around, is now a restaurant.

The cursed location formally known as Aunties' Kitchen is now Sengatera Ethiopian Restaurant.

And the former locale of Horn of Africa is Burqitu, a halal breakfast, lunch & dinner place.

All of the restaurants had heavy, home-made curtains in the windows. None of these have menus or hours posted, so for all I know, they aren't even open yet. But I'll be curious to hear what you think if you visit any of these.

Vegan options central to downtown

2008-02-25T14:27:25Z

While Portland is known as a vegan-friendly place, it's harder to find vegan food downtown at night than it should be. Here are some suggestions:

Food Carts (generally weekday lunch only)

Aybla Grill
SW 9th and Alder
SW 2nd and Alder
503/490-3387
ayblagrill.com
Levantine/Mediterranean

Dreamer's Cafe
SW 5th at Stark

Fuego
SW Yamhill at 6th
SW 2nd at Morrison
SW Market at 2nd
SW 4th at Madison
(all over downtown, the Pearl and NW)
vegan burritos

India Chaat House
SW 12th & Yamhill
503/241-7944
Indian

No Fish Go Fish
SW Yamhill at 5th
nofishgofish.com
Everyday, they have at least one, and up to three different vegan soups, plus at least two kinds of little warm cornmeal sandwiches

Tabor Czech Food
SW 5th & Oak
503/997-5467
schnitzelwich.com

The Whole Bowl
SW Alder at Park
"Whole Bowl has 3 food carts around the city and they all serve only ONE thing (yes, only one): a big, hearty bowl layered brown rice, red and black beans, fresh avocado, salsa, black olives, ..., cilantro, and tali sauce (their handmade signature sauce which tastes lemony and garlicky), " according to VegGuide.

Restaurants Downtown

Backspace
115 NE Couch (at 5th)
503/248-2900
backspace.bz
Monday-Wednesday, 7am-11pm
Th-Fri, 7am-12 midnight
Sat, 10am-12 midnight
Sun, 10am-11pm
free wifi on site

Habibi
1012 SW Morrison St
(503) 274-0628
habibirestaurantpdx.com
Levantine

Higgins
1239 SW Broadway
503/222-9070
upscale, local-seasonal foods, always something vegan on the menu

Karam
316 SW Stark St
(503) 223-0830
Levantine

Veganopolis
412 SW Fourth Ave
503/226-3400
veganopolis.com
open Monday-Saturday, 10am-4pm... or is it 9:30-5? Call to be sure
free wifi on site
raw as well as vegan options, lots of fake meat, beer & wine.

Vegetarian House
22 NW Fourth Ave
503/274-0160
vegetarianhouse.com
open 7 days a week, 11am-9pm
Chinese vegetarian & vegan food - thanks to the Supreme Master

In the Pearl:

Must-dos for anyone visiting Portland

2008-02-24T23:48:41Z

Visit Powells
what, do I have to sell this? They're the largest bookstore in the US, for cripes sakes. They have a coffee shop for reading, wifi-ing, and people watching.
1. Visit Powells Technical Store (if you're a techie)
  Our beloved Fup no longer walks among us, but PTS is an awesome place to visit, or camp with your laptop.
go to Voodoo Doughnuts
No, they're not the world's best donuts, and if that's what you're looking for, you're missing the point. No, this is just the world's funkiest donut shop. You can get vegan donuts, non-vegan donuts, donuts in the shape of unmentionables, and even, a couple of years back, donuts with nyqyil in them. Marc Acito notes, "Let's not forget the donuts with bacon at Voodoo Donuts. Yummy and good for the arteries. LOL."
Leave downtown and visit the east side
If you're a foodie, know that the majority of excellent food options is on the east. The majority of ethnic food is on the east side (exceptions being Indian most notably). The best pubs, and some of the best brewpubs, are on the east side. The inner eastside is easily and quickly reached using TriMet, our local public transportation.
Go for a ride on the tram
Portlanders love to complain about the tram, but if you really want a good view of Portland, there is none better. McAuliflower of Brownie Points notes, "The tram is free to ride down (the #8 bus will take you up to the top), otherwise you need to buy a $4 tram ticket to ride it up." Course, if you're scared of heights, how's about checking out Council Crest, the city's highest point, and a lovely one, too, as Randy suggests.
Go for a walk!
You don't have to go all the way to Forest Park to get a good walk in. I have some suggestions for walks that are adjacent to downtown...

And here are some ideas that aren't for everyone, but, you know, might be right for you

Go to Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade for some classic video-gaming
home to video games from the 70s on, and the largest and best-maintained collection of pinball machines. After 7pm, you can have a beer with your game...
See a Timbers Game
The Timbers are our professional soccer league. And they have an army. Just saying.
go to Forest Park
there are trails, an arboreteum, mountain views, and, um, trails. You can mountain bike on Leif Ericksen, and run and walk just about all the rest
History buffs must check out Pittock Mansion
Check out the liquid of your ~~choice~~ vice
We are the craftbrew center of the world. We're surrounded by some of the best vineyards (and wine producers) in the world. We're known by coffee lovers around the country as a hotbed of coffee roasters and master baristas. We even have shops devoted to the pursuit of tea, and restaurants that specialize in old-fashioned sodas.
Visit a garden
We have two rose gardens in Portland. We have a Chinese Classical garden, and a Japanese Garden. We have an arboreteum, and a rhododendron garden. And, we have the world's smallest park -- right downtown.

So, Portlanders, what do you consider the universals, that every visitor should do when they come to town?

BC2 - Bento Coffee & Cookies

2008-02-14T19:53:55Z

431 SW Madison St. (Portland Building)
(503) 227-0707
6:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday
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find a bike route
Great little bento shop for unusual bentos and good city/county gossip.

Aaron wrote me awhile back, asking about BC2. So like a good reporter, I dropped everything and went there for lunch. And then sat on it until this week.

BC2 is a tiny place tucked in on the Madison Street side of the Multnomah Building. From the outside, it looks like just another bento/rice bowl shop. But that's where the comparisons end.

BC2 is a place with a following. Many folks who work in city or county government are devotees, for obvious reasons. And thus, many news reporters from the Oregonian also make this a necessary lunch stop.

They offer an assortment of cookies, naturally. And coffee. But I didn't pay any attention to that, because the lunch options are worth crossing town for. Of course they have an assortment of chicken bentos, shrimp, salmon, and tofu as well. Nothing really exceptional there.

But where you can you get unagi kabayaki? Or ginger pork bento? Or udon soup? Hawaiian bento? Mexican or spring roll or potsticker bento? Octopus Mt Vege bento? Sesame seaweed? Kimchee? Fish Cake? Bibimbob? or the Hi-Pro Lo-Carb? You know where I'm going, don't you?

On my first visit, I ordered the Octopus Mt Vege bento ($6.75)—that's an octopus salad, made up of pickled ginger & seaweed, with a cabbage & carrot salad and your choice of white or brown rice. Both types of salad were delicious, and I love having a choice of rices. And it was a perfect amount of food -- enough to sate, but not enough to make you sleepy the rest of the afternoon.

On the second visit, I saw someone enjoying the unagi kabayaki (that's grilled eel to you, $6.75). I decided to try something more pedestrian, like the tofu bento ($5.50). This is a traditional bento with steamed veggies and your choice of rice. The tofu was heated and doused in teriyaki, and thery were very generous with it. The veggies had seen a bit too much time in the steamer, but they were still had a little flavor.

With all the bentos ringing in between $5.25-$6.75, this is a very reasonable lunch downtown. Add a cookie for a $1, and, well, you have a cookie.

There are two vegetarian options and one vegan, so vegetarians, this is probably not the place for you.

Changes on MLK Jr Blvd

2008-01-22T19:59:51Z

Wildfire is changing its name
Wildfire Wood Fired Pizza & BBQ (3925 NE Martin Luther King Blvd. (503) 546-3111) is going through some changes, that's for sure. Their web site claims that their new name will be Good Smoke Wood Fire Pizza & BBQ. Go to the building, however, and check out their new sign: Carboni's. According to the note on the door, they will no longer be serving BBQ, but instead will offer pastas. The web site, naturally, says nothing about pasta.

Horn of Africa is relocating to 5237 NE Martin Luther King Blvd, in the Vanport Square Plaza. The grand opening will be sometime in the future, probably the end of February or beginning of March.

A new Ethiopian/Eritrean restaurant will be moving into Horn of Africa's old spot at 3939 NE MLK Blvd.... conveniently located nextdoor to that pizza joint that can't figure out its name.

Wayne's Chicago Red Hots (3901 NE Martin Luther King) did not make their MLK Day opening, thanks to red tape, but they are hoping to open March 1. The inside is pretty rough right now, but at least work has begun. It can't open soon enough for us. Vienna Beef!

Terroir is still open. As is Subway and Popeyes...

East Burn

2008-01-22T15:17:18Z

1800 E Burnside
(503) 236-2876
theeastburn.com
googlemap
get there via trimet
find a bike route
11- close (?) 7 days a week

As a bar, I don't think I can say strongly enough that I love this place. They have 18 beers on tap, and many more in bottles. They have a cute little basement bar that will remind you of the rec room you wish you had had when you were a kid, complete with board games, skee ball, and slot cars. They also have a karoake video jukebox, though I don't have the details on when that gets turned on (or if it ever gets turned off).

The upstairs looks like a dining room, though the Bender Brothers claim that the first floor and basement should just flow into each other. Truth is, they don't really. The dining room still feels very formal, with its cloth napkins. But they do have the cutest little make-out room.

But the best part is the patio. It's rooved, so you can sit outside while it's raining buckets and enjoy the ambiance. They have heaters, so you can stay warm. But big deal, lots of places have a roof and heaters. Okay. This place has two things that really set my heart a flutter.

One, they have tables whose seats... are swings. You know, like swingset swings. Dude! And, they have tables with a fire ring in the center.

The food is good though not great, but the portions aren't all that big, and the prices are a smidge high. Apps are $5-$9, salads $7-$12, sandwiches $7-$9, and entrees $11-23. Fries are homemade, and really not bad.

Yesterday, we went there for lunch. An order of calamari (in rice flour batter, very nice), a steak salad, an order of fresh cooked chips, and a hamburger set us back $33 before tip. The calamari was really the star of the meal to my mind, though the salad was nice (would have been better if the meat had been cooked to order, and the salad actually tossed with the dressing). The chips tasted like kettle chips (and indeed, they weren't hot or greasy. So how do I know they haven't come out of a bag). And the burger was good, though it too would have been much better if it was cooked to order. I mean, why have the waitress ask if the cook is going to ignore it?

A week before, we went in and had a bowl of soup and a spinach salad. The bowl of soup was homemade and really filling. The spinach salad came out on an appetizer plate -- for $8, I was expecting a little more food.

There are a few veggie options, and the web site welcomes you to tell your server of special dietary requests.

Just be forewarned. This place is great to hang out in, they have twenty-something different wines by the glass, they even have a late night menu (though since they don't have a closing time, does that really do any good?) but the food doesn't match the rest of the package.

Cherry Sprout Produce Market

2008-01-21T15:51:43Z

722 N. Sumner St.
(503) 445-4959
googlemap
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9-7 Monday-Saturday
9-6 Sundays

Think of Cherry Sprout as the daughter of the Big City Market. It started and is owned by two former employees of BCM.

The market is an interesting combination of the old Big City (which really served the old neighborhood with lots of greens and ethnic foods) and a reflection of the new neighborhood (seeking organic produce and vegan/vegetarian/health foods). Just like the old store, you can find a full fridge case full of eggs, dairy, tortillas, margarine, salsas, but you can also find fake meat and fake cheese. Lots of specialty sodas, lots of spices.

I do miss the marked-down fruit that I used to get at Big City, but I love the organics, the boca burgers, and the great selection of latin produce at Cherry Sprout.

Gossamer

2008-01-15T13:52:57Z

2418 E Burnside
(503) 233-4807
gossamerfiberarts.com
googlemap
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finding a bike route
Tuesday-Saturday 11-5
Sunday 12-5

Gossamer is a fiber arts, crafts, and Waldorf supply store. The store carries 100% wool felt, plant dyed felt, brown sheep yarn, needle felting supplies, embroidery thread (wool & linen), beeswax candles, toys and more. . .

We do special ordering and have teacher discounts on most items.

Just opened in December 2007, this store is still building up steam as far as stock goes. They carry wool batting, plant dyed wool, 100% wool and plant-dyed felt pieces, a good selection of Brown Sheep lambs pride and shepherd shades yarns and natural-fibered embroidery thread, as well as all the tools to use with these.

They also stock dollmaking supplies, beeswax modeling wax, crayon sets, and single blocks, and lyra pencils and sharpeners. And they offer classes in knitting, sewing with wool felt, needle felting, and embroidery.

The store feels kind of spare, but in a good way. I scored in a big way on some linen and Peaches & Creme Cotton that the owner was selling from her stash.

the Abyss

2008-01-14T20:12:46Z

If you're a beer geek and you don't already read John Foyston's The Beer Here blog, you should. John's been writing about beer for evar, and he's really an engaging writer with a well-developed love of the absurd.

He's also got his finger on the pulse of beerstuff in a way that the rest of us who blog about beer, but don't do beer for a living, can only dream about.

Like, for example, Deschutes Brewery's Abyss. It was named Best Stout in the World in the October 2007 issue of (that fine beer publication) Men's Journal . Okay, so I don't expect much beerwise from Men's Journal , but the fact remains, Abyss is an incredible imperial stout. Particularly on tap. And you should seek it out.

But beware: it's 11% alcohol by volume. As LL Cool J says, Mom said knock you out.

Last year's bottled Abyss needed some laying down - it was just a bit much. I don't know about this year's bottles because they will be released today, Monday, January 14, but I do know, getting it on tap is a safe bet.. Truth be told, I don't know who'll pouring it, but my guess is Concordia, HorseBrass, Green Dragon, and Bailey's Taproom. But if you see it, you have to try it ... if you're a beer geek.