Count me another Californian who got the Portland bug on a recent trip there. The thing was, it was sunny, perfect weather. Whenever we native Californians visit other beautiful areas on perfect days, suddenly we imagine ourselves living there.
The thing is I’ve always loved Portland and port towns united by bridges and divided by water. Portland, Maine calls me almost as much as its West coast brethern, although there are a lot fewer bridges in Maine. Before you can say “but Maine doesn’t have the food scene,” check out this cool food and entrepreneurship conference that happened in Portland, Maine this year.
What happened in Portland, calorically speaking
[If you’re an aspiring food company or farmer, be sure to read about an incredible resource to help food businesses develop and promote products and ingredients in the Portland area and beyond.]
So, the awesome thing about long roadtrips is we had the chance to visit Portland, Oregon not once but twice within a one-week period this summer.
We arrived to stay with a friend an incredible wedding and food photographer Celeste Noche (whose Conde Nast Traveler article on Blue Star Donuts will have you booking the next flight to town).
Portland has some amazing Craftsman style homes
I’ll be writing separately about the magic that comes from meeting like-minded people when you travel. By the sheerest luck, we stumbled upon a room in this impeccably restored craftsman home in a great part of Portland — where my lives in tech and food collided with the owners, leading to some rollicking conversations about food systems and software systems.
(Get in touch if you’d like to hear more from me about this great place where you can sit on the porch and enjoy your food finds in the evening. If you’re not already signed up, please use my Airbnb referral link 🙂 )
We found this beautiful Portland craftsman home on Airbnb. Built from Stickley plans, the house is in the Irvington area of Northeast Portland and has been profiled in architectural magazines. The streets are lined with huge trees and it’s really convenient. One of the people who owns it is in the food business, which is especially fun!
With all this food, why is everyone so fit?
It’s the nature of Portland. Eat, walk, hike. Repeat.
Here are just a FEW of the food spots we really appreciated on this Portlandic adventure:
Hello lemon curd filled doughnut…a reason to get thee to Blue Star Donuts right away! I first fell in love with Blue Star when attending the World Domination Summit a few years ago. Now the doughnut shop has several locations and big plans internationally too. Hey, as long as they keep up this handmade-from-scratch quality, more power to ’em!
Here’s me, pretty much what I looked and felt like while eating my way through Portland. Meaning, surreal and happy. 🙂
Fine one last picture! Chocolate ice donuts filled with vanilla cream were just one of the incredible doughnuts that Blue Star Donuts makes.
Tony at Smith Tea shows off his hand made apron (meaning, HE made the apron!). He’s one of the alchemists who blend interesting tea flavors and collaborate with local artisans to create limited time flavors…like one that has candy from a local maker crushed into the tea! Good people and a lovely room to get tea and feel like you’re far away.
Meat or baked goods, or both? I got an amazing pickle at Lardo — which has three locations featuring sandwiches — that was just the ticket.
Olympia Provisions is a place you might want to hang out in all day.
The folks at Olympic Provisions (who had to rename their company Olympia Provisions, lest we confuse their charcuterie with worldwide sports competitions) started as a small operation in 2009. Some funding, a lot of awards, incredible quality and a vision to grow led them to set up several beautiful eateries and expand their production.
Their amazing sausages and my fave meat sticks (see below) are still made using old-world techniques.
Imagine a cigarillo box filled with smoked pork sticks. You’re at a dinner party, where cigars are most certainly not welcome. You pull out your Pepperettes. Stick one in your mouth and spit out the tip (or swallow). Tilt your hat to the side talk out the side of your mouth. You’re not just one cool customer. You’re in charcuterie bliss.
P.S. I wish I’d saved the boxes now that the company name changed. Collectible! 🙂
Spielman Bagels in Portland rocked my world!
Division Street in Portland packs in several incredible food spots. Salt & Straw is the cult ice creamery, Pok Pok is near by, Roman Candle makes wonderful breakfast food and has a restaurant next door. The list goes on and on – including Lauretta Jean’s Pie place that has outdoor seating and vintage knick knacks that make it a fun spot for dessert.
Time your Portland visit with the weekend
We weren’t there on a Saturday or we would have gone to Portland’s HUGE farmers market as well. There you can meet lots of the growers whose
The Portland farmers market sprawls through a park with towering trees.
So am I moving to Portland, Oregon?
Maybe, someday if an amazing food-related opportunity calls me there. (I have to admit, writing about the OSU Food Innovation Center, which is located along with Oregon’s agricultural trade promotion group, sparked my excitement about the bounty and food developments coming out of there!)
Then I got back to the SF Bay Area, connected with friends who are creating some really cool food programs and a culinary travel experience platform. There was a cool breeze, the kind that felt like old-school Bay Area summer. The kind that feels like you are out on the Bay, sailing. Sure, it hasn’t rained in 6 months and even my weeds are dying. But that breeze gave me hope.
Still with all the cities and industries and money and brainpower surrounding us in the Bay Area, there’s something dynamic. And it’s home.
With the sharing economy my dream is to be co-sharing living in both places…or maybe Portland, Maine too! There I put it out there: help me make it happen!
Stay tuned for more Oregon food adventures of which there will surely be many!
