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Going to Portland - Fire Needs Booze Badly!
firewaterword
SatchitanandaPais Vasco to San FranciscoRegistered User regular
SatchitanandaPais Vasco to San FranciscoRegistered User regular
Hi H/A! I'm going to be heading to Portland, OR for about two weeks on business. Thought I would solicit some advice from you folks, as I'm sure there are those of you around here who know the area.
I'll be staying around the Chapman Square area -- which I assume is more or less downtown -- but I'm not sure which hotel yet. I'm open to recommendations there as well if anyone knows any nice hotels in the area - closer to SW Main St and SW 1st Ave the better.
I'll probably be busting my ass most of the time, but in the off chance that I get some free time, I'd love to know if there's anything "must do" in the area. I won't have a car, but short cab trips are cool. I'll also have a decent expense account, so if there are any outstanding food spots in the area, I'd love to know those as well.
Thanks!
I'll be staying around the Chapman Square area -- which I assume is more or less downtown -- but I'm not sure which hotel yet. I'm open to recommendations there as well if anyone knows any nice hotels in the area - closer to SW Main St and SW 1st Ave the better.
I'll probably be busting my ass most of the time, but in the off chance that I get some free time, I'd love to know if there's anything "must do" in the area. I won't have a car, but short cab trips are cool. I'll also have a decent expense account, so if there are any outstanding food spots in the area, I'd love to know those as well.
Thanks!
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu
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should be pretty high up on your list of 'places to go'
go to Cafe Montage if you get the chance.
I suggest Widmer and Rogue Breweries and have also heard that Hopworks and Dechutes are excellent as well.
Powells city of books is pretty good if you are into reading.
but they're listening to every word I say
There's also the second-run theater downtown that serves beer, which is awesome.
If you like gardens, the Japanese and Chinese Gardens are pretty cool little spots. I think the Chinese Gardens, which are downtown, would be more accessible by public transit.
The Saturday Market is fun, though not exactly a unique, "Portland-only" concept. Same with the Farmers Market by the PSU campus.
Couple of good food places:
3 Degrees, 1510 SW Harbor Way, http://larkspurhotels.com/collection/riverplace/dining - Killer happy hour menu, $3 burgers, good desert, tasty drinks, awesome view of the river.
Portland City Grill, 111 SW 5th Ave # 3000, http://www.portlandcitygrill.com/ - Also a great happy hour menu, but it tends to get busy/full. If you go there for dinner, it can be spendy, but I have always felt that I got what I paid for.
The Screen Door, 2337 E Burnside St, http://www.screendoorrestaurant.com/ - Top notch breakfast place, hours are kinda wonky, and it can get busy, but the food is stellar.
There are also certain streets that are just a lot of fun to wander up and down. Alberta St in NE Portland is one of my favorites. Tons of shops, book stores, bars, and food spots. It runs from 33rd to the river, more or less. Hawthorne Blvd in SE Portland also has a stretch like this, starting at around maybe 39th. Very pedestrian friendly, lots to see and do.
Hope that gives you some ideas. Enjoy your stay!
-Ancient Dwarfish Proverb
Hawthorne, Alberta and northeast mississippi are all great streets to take walking tours of; cool areas, lot of fun/quirky shops and restaurants. The Baghdad on hawthorne (E 37th or something) is a great theater and place to have a beer, if you don't mind paying slightly inflated prices.
voodoo donut is worth visiting, especially if you have meetings or something and think it would be fun to bring a box of a dozen truly ridiculous donuts
If you like books, go to powells. It is the best bookstore anywhere.
where you're staying, it's a lot easier to walk or take light rail places than it is to worry about cabs. light rail downtown is free for the most part, so you can just hop on and ride.
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
If you're talking about the Baghdad theater, that place is great. There's also a bar attached and their tater tots are goddamn addictive.
There's another one that I can't remember the name of. It's run by the same company and they have big comfy couches to sit on. But I've never been there
Same deal as the Baghdad: overpriced and vaguely overhyped, but still a cool place
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
I also had a chance to goto Hair M today - man, that place is pretty cool. Beer + haircut + massage = hat trick. Also took a stroll along the waterfront.
The Screen Door is just a few blocks from my hotel, so I'll probably try to check that out for dinner tonight if it isn't too crowded. I don't want to fall into the trap of eating at my hotel all the time (that said, the food is pretty awesome - "braised pork belly served with figs on a thin slice of french toast" sort of awesome!)
Hit up Clyde Common for eats and happy hour. The burger is delicious and the bartenders are all amazing.
Kell's
I have no idea what locals think of it but we still talk about it and even though we like our local place and a few others we've checked out. We want to go back to Portland just to go there again.
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
I'm going to try to meet up with an old friend from college living up here and take her out to dinner - probably going to be either Pok Pok (omg fish sauce chicken wings?! yes) or Le Pigeon. I've been told I need to go to both, but my friend back home threatened physical violence if I don't make it to Pok Pok.
I guess T-Pain was at some club last night. Which would have been interesting, if I gave a shit about T-Pain.
On a semi-related note, where the hell can I buy booze downtown? I went out for some scotch at a corner shop near my hotel, but the dude there said some craziness about there only being one liquor store downtown which can only sell it during certain hours. A 22 of Widmer placated me somewhat, but what the hell Portland?
but that guy was crazy, there is definitely more than one liquor store downtown. there's one in the pearl, and one on tenth at like salmon
On the other hand, this is why Portland has some great bars.
THE MONTAGE
one of the most amazing restaurants in portland and even oregon in general
you can eat alligator there man
alligator
if you are too much of a chump to finish your food, they will twist it into tinfoil animals for you. but you should finish that shit because it is amazing
There's a liquor store on 11th and Lovejoy downtown in the Pearl. A nice one too.
Pok Pok is great. Its sister restaurant Ping is actually downtown on...4th and Couch. If you don't make it up to Pok, hit Ping. Lots of skewers. Bacon wrapped quail eggs? Yes please.
well.. well...
the montage has EXCELLENT mind-blowing mac n cheese
I'll second the recommendations for Screen Door and Pok Pok, though you will need to cross the river to get to both. In fact, if I had to recommend one restaurant, it would be Pok Pok because it's both incredibly delicious and you won't find Thai food like it anywhere else. (If you go, order the fish sauce wings. Trust me.)
Teardrop is great. Daniel and everyone there are a bunch of great bartenders. Evan who used to work there (and who now runs the bar at Laurelhurst Marker) just won 1st place in the cocktail competition at the Distiller's Fest that was this weekend.
Cool. Even more reason to check out Laurelhurst Market.
I went to Teardrop for the first time on Repeal Day last year with some guys I know who work in a wine shop in town. They brought along a bottle of Floc de Gascogne to see what the bartenders might be able to do with it. Floc is a rather unusual fortified wine and, as far as I am aware, they had never tasted it before. Nevertheless, they took a few sips and made one of the most amazing cocktails I have ever had. I am pretty sure that a modified version of that cocktail with the Floc is still part of their regular drink menu.