Music
I’ve waited so long to write about Portland,
that I had to skip over some pretty major things, the main one being MusicFest
NW! Our good friend Mike flew out for the weekend portion of a five day music
festival spread out across the city, similar to SXSW. I hadn’t heard of most of
the bands, but managed to find ones ahead of time that I thought I might like,
and I wasn’t disappointed! I got to sample a wide variety of Portland music
venues, which I otherwise would not have gotten to do. Crystal Ballroom
is totally cool – it’s upstairs, and has a wooden, spring-loaded dance floor.
There’s a balcony with tons of extra seating, as well as an additional bar with
tables. I got to see Passion Pit there, who were so much fun! We saw several
shows at the Pioneer Courthouse Square in the middle of downtown, which
they transformed into a music venue for the weekend. It was much more corporate
than I would have liked, but I got to see Gardens and Villa, Menomena, Beirut
and Silversun Pickups there! Hawthorne Theater was very Trees-ish, for
those reading from Dallas. We rocked out to some Against Me! and had a total
blast! We tried to catch a show at Doug Fir, and ended up having a
terrible, terrible experience and I will likely not be back. Before that,
however, we got to hear a guy named Kishi Bashi who was a seriously insane
violin player. Look him up. A few weeks later, we saw Father John Misty at the Wonder
Ballroom, who I am now in love with.
The last one I want to talk about was just
crazy. Sam got us tickets to go see Random Rab and Govinda at a venue called Refuge.
Now, I’m not a huge fan of electronic music, but these guys make the kind that
I really like. The kind that has belly dancers! This venue was ridiculous,
though… the whole thing was like a mini festival. There was the main room with
the music and the dancing, and an aerial silk that people played on! Then,
there was more of a chill room, with couches and slightly quieter music. The
lobby and the patio were all set up for vendor booths selling clothes and
jewelry and art. It was yet another of these love-filled bonding experiences
with a ton of random strangers. I can’t believe they just have a place like
that!
Eateries
For brunch, we had great experiences on
Alberta St. at Fuel Café and Pine State Biscuits, which is a
legitimate South Carolina southern eatery. These biscuits are for real, y’all.
Sam got a biscuit sandwich with fried chicken and sausage gravy, and my egg,
cheese and mushroom gravy biscuit sandwich was to die for! And then, there was Blossoming
Lotus. Mmm. Higher-end vegetarian restaurant, where I had something called
live nachos that were these homemade “chips” made from walnuts, zucchini-tahini
nacho “cheese,” ground pecan chorizo, topped with your standard nacho veggies,
cashew sour cream and avocado dressing. I was freaking out, it was so good.
Wow. Our other favorite by far was a Lebanese place downtown called Karam
that was possibly the best I’ve ever had. At least comparable to Ali Baba in
Dallas, maybe better. Salt and Straw is the most ridiculous ice cream shop I have ever
been to! Seriously, Amy’s has nothing on this place. This is a gourmet ice
cream shop, with flavors such as Honey Balsamic Strawberry with Cracked Pepper
(Heaven on earth, I’m telling you!), Pear with Blue Cheese, and a seasonal
called Feast’s Oregon Bounty, which consisted of salted chocolate ice cream
with whiskey-candied hazelnuts and a cheese buttercream ribbon. Ice cream
perfection. We spent our last day in town working and snacking at Ford Food
+ Drinks, an adorable coffee shop with perfect paninis, delectable coffee,
and a seemingly endless supply of electrical outlets!
Bars That May or May Not Also Have Awesome Food
If I had to pick one go-to hangout in
Portland, it would be the Bye and Bye. Great cocktail menu, great beer
selection, and late night vegan food! We had a vegan “meatball” sub sandwich
that was delicious! Over and Out was another fun place… we were looking
for a sports bar for some football watching, and came across this place. Large,
high-def TVs, a pool table, but playing indie music and amazing food! Nothing
like your traditional sports bar. Secret Society was a small cocktail
bar with a heck of a Tom Collins and possibly the best tuna melt I have ever
had. No canned tuna here! The Hilt on Alberta was very cool, too… we
needed a late afternoon spot for some snacks and wifi, and ended up here. They
make a ton of liquor infusions, and some great hummus and falafel. Green
Dragon Bistro is, apparently, also a brewery, but I didn’t realize that
when I visited, because they also have an amazing beer selection. They get
special note here because they carry La Chouffe, a beer that Sam and I fell in
love with in Amsterdam, and are rarely able to find! Bailey’s Taproom is
the last one I’ll mention – they boasted a daily rotating, high-end beer
selection. Enough said. :)
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