"Postcards from Portland" - Biscuits, Beer & Books

Postcards from Portland - Biscuits, Beer & Books

Thanks for tuning in to my "Postcards from Portland" series documenting the delights this pacific northwest city has to offer. 

Portland Day 1 consisted of, as the title lends itself to, a day full of culinary and literary delights...plus new friends made along the away.

We (the hubby and I) arrived in Portland late on a friday night. We checked into The Nines, and decided to head upstairs for a drink and bite to eat at Departure, which is ironic, since we had just arrived. Departure is a posh little spot perched on the top of The Nines Hotel, boasting modern Asian cuisine, and a late-night happy hour menu - specials on drinks and small plates, which can be found in a variety of locations throughout the entire city (the late night happy hour that is). 

With full bellies, and a night of good sleep, we were set to embark on day 1 of our Portland adventure.

We started the day off in search of coffee, Portland style. Feeling a little jet-lagged and trying to get our bearings, we ended up at a Starbucks to our own regret, but we needed the jolt to get things going. Portland coffee would have to come later. 

Coffee in-hand, we headed off in search of the famed Portland Farmers Market. And boy, did it deliver. This farmers market alone, had me won-over and ready to pack my things and move across country.

Here's a few snapshots....

 

After seeing all this...our mouths were watering, but with multiple vendors, how to choose what to eat for breakfast. Well thankfully, I had the opportunity to sit next to a Portland resident on the flight out, who graciously provided a lot of great tips and must-see spots to check-out, and Pine State Biscuits was one of these. (Which happened to have a cart at the market!)

I must say, I've never been crazy over biscuits and gravy (yes, I admit this, even being a full-blooded southerner). However, the Pine Street Biscuits made me a convert. I'm still craving these biscuits and more so, the gravy, weeks after we've arrived home.

On the menu:

I opted for The Reggie - biscuit complete with fried chicken, bacon, cheese and gravy. The hubby opted for The Moneyball - a biscuit (I think there was one on the plate) topped with gravy and an over-easy egg.

Fat & Greasiness...y-u-m-m-y is all I have to say. 

The Moneyball

The Reggie

And before we left the market...a little music to go on the side...

With some food in our bellies and a few extra calories sticking to the ribs, we could set off to explore the beer capital of the world. And when I say that, this is why...Portland has 40+ craft breweries within its city limits. In my books, that makes it the beer capital of the world.

So, we hopped on to the MAX Light Rail, and headed over to Widmer Brothers Brewery. 

Remember the Portland resident I mentioned earlier. Well, this person also happened to be an employee of Widmer, which I'm very grateful to for not only providing us some great tips, but also, for getting us in on a brewery tour Saturday...apparently, these tours fill up fast. 

Widmer was a great way to start out some beer tasting, as well as, beef up our beer making knowledge. 

These 4 massive tanks produce some absolutely delicious beer...

Hops in a bucket

At the end of the tour was a tasting consisting of the Hefeweizen, Citra Blonde Summer Brew, Drifter Pale Ale (my favorite), and the Rotator IPA: Shaddock IPA.

Happy Tasters

After the tour and tasting, we decided to head on over to the Widmer Gasthaus Pub for a couple of more samplings and some grub.

The tasting menu (of our choice) included the Marionberry Hibiscus Gose, Oatmeal Porter, Nelson IPA, Rotator IPA: X-114, and unfortunately, I can't remember the last two. I suppose the the beer already drank might have had an impact, but I do remember that one tasted like pineapple.

Let's just say out of the tastings...the Marionberry Hibiscus Gose was the clear winner. So good, and super refreshing for a beer!

After Widmer, we were off to Tom McCall Waterfront Park in downtown Portland for the largest Craft Brew Festival in the country. Why, I ever thought this would be a great idea to do on a Saturday has failed to escape me. It sounded good...over a 100 beers at your fingertips, $6 dollars for a mug and $1 per token for samples.

What we realized is that after an hour in line for one beer, we decided that sampling was out of the question, and we would have to fork over 4 tokens for a full glass of Terminal Gravity's IPA.

However in the process, we made some new friends - Kim & Matt - a really nice couple from Wisconsin. 

After all the beer, crowds and heat (75 degrees...what I'm talking about), we decided to check out Henry's for dinner with our new friends. Henry's is located in the Pearl District, in a historic brick building...and of course, they serve beer and good food. This is Portland after all.


After dinner, we set off to explore Powell's City of Books...a book store that literally takes up an entire city block and houses more than 1 million new, used and out of print books. Let's just say the first trip there was a little overwhelming. I didn't even know where to start, so I took photos instead.

After soaking up some literary culture, we, and new friends headed over and up to the Portland City Grill at 111 SW 5th Ave. on the 30th floor, for a nightcap and an amazing view of downtown Portland and the Cascade mountains. 

And that ladies and gentleman was Day 1 of Portland...
complete with Biscuits, Beer & Books.

Stay tuned for "Postcards from Portland" - day 2. 

-Mo Vid

Portland

Portland....is definitely a city with more to offer than 5 days could lend itself to.

About a year ago, the hubby and I decided we needed to check out this happening metro area that prides itself on being one of, if not "the" greenest city, as well as, a land of bridges, roses, outdoor activities galore, music and of course who could forget craft beer and farm-to-table cuisine along with the famed food-truck craze.

That's a lot to pack in 5 days. And, I'll just say this...we need to plan another trip...Or, consider relocation options.

So please stay tuned as I kickoff my "postcards from portland" blog series over the next few weeks, but first here's a snapshot of what's to come:

The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall

• 7 Craft Breweries visited, a Craft Brew festival, and I lost count of the # of local brews tried
• A Farmers Market that would make any foodie think they'd died and gone to heaven 
• A snow capped mountain 11,000 feet up and a seaside stroll that was straight out of "Goonies"
• Satisfied (and slightly larger) bellies full with fresh oysters, ranier cherries, figs, biscuits and out-of-this-world gravy, thai style chicken wings and donuts with maple frosting and bacon.
• Coffee. Coffee. Coffee.

Stay tuned...