It was our first, and only, full day in Portland. I was pretty ambitious with our itinerary, wanting to hit up as many food spots as we could in between shopping and sightseeing. I must say, we were pretty successful (and stuffed!).
Wanting to beat the Sunday brunch rush, we started the day bright and early. The restaurant was about a 10 minute walk from the apartment so we were able to burn off some calories before promptly consuming them.
HunnyMilk is a brunch restaurant that originally started as a weekend pop-up in east Portland. They've since opened up their own brick and mortar on west Burnside, just a block away from Providence Park.
It's a cute space, bright and airy with an open kitchen. A good third of the restaurant is a huge waiting room with couches and board games. There's also a random collection of art pieces and a smattering of honeycomb motifs throughout.
HunnyMilk's prix fixe concept solves every brunch-goer's dilemma: savoury or sweet? For $23 (+ a flat service charge of $4/person), you'll get a drink (juice, hot chocolate, tea, or coffee), a savoury dish, and a sweet component, all served up on a metal tray. There's about four savoury and three sweet items to choose from. The options are all playful and interesting. It's a condensed menu but it has enough variety to please all sorts of tastes.
Before our food came out, we were served a complimentary churro doughnut. The churro bite was crispy and chewy, with a generous coating of cinnamon sugar. We dipped them in the accompanying chocolate pudding with whipped cream. Amazing. Me thinks all meals should start with a churro amuse bouche from now on.
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My fortune cookie waffle on the other hand was delicious! A crispy waffle dipped in honey butter and then topped with raspberries, bananas, vanilla bean mascarpone mousse, strawberry drizzle, and crushed fortune cookies. The mascarpone mousse was easily my favourite part, while the fresh fruits helped lighten things up considerably.
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Conversely, the rice krispy crusted French toast was pretty heavy. It's fried and then topped with NY cheesecake schmear, poached rhubarb, watermelon jelly, and baby basil. The rhubarb by itself was quite tart -- I think strawberries would have been a better choice.
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The roses bloom from April to October. June is their peak but there was plenty of roses in bloom during August when we were there. Admission is free, as opposed to the Japanese Garden across the park, so definitely take advantage of it.
We didn't feel like the long walk back, so to save some time, we took an Uber over to Powell's Books. Powell's is arguably the largest independent new and used bookstore in the world. It basically occupies a full city block.
Powell's is three floors tall, organized into nine different color-coded rooms. It was basically a maze filled with books floor to ceiling. I could've easily spent a whole day inside here.
Unfortunately, my collection of unread books is at an all time high so I had to be on my best behaviour and walk away empty handed.
Sizzle Pie mural across the street. If you think about it, pizza does cover all the major food groups.
We spent the next little bit shopping through some local boutiques and stores. Made Here PDX and Tender Loving Empire feature work by local artists and creators. Another store I would recommend in the area is World Foods. They're a specialty food store offering a wide variety of curated local and imported foods. My favourite section was the chocolate aisle. Yes, an entire aisle filled with gourmet, handcrafted chocolate bars.
This was Pioneer Place, a shopping mall smack dab in the middle of downtown. There's not very many stores inside but I did manage to pick up a Portland magnet in the Made in Oregon store.
We also stopped in MUJI, everyone's favourite store for pens and Japanese minimalism.
Next, we hopped into another Uber and crossed the bridge into east Portland. We planned to grab some charcuterie at Cheese & Crack, followed by dessert and drinks at SORO SORO Coffee & Dessert. There were no available seats at Cheese & Crack, so we switched up the order and got dessert first.
SORO SORO is a Korean cafe with fancy latte art and cute desserts. They're newly opened but they have definitely gained a following through Instagram. The cafe was slammed, so they did warn us that it would be a 20 minute wait for drinks. We came all the way there so we weren't too fussed. All of the tables were full as well but people were considerate and didn't linger for very long.
I'm *that* person who will order a hot drink during the summer only for the cute latte art. I decided on the matcha latte ($5.00). I'm no matcha connoisseur but they kept the bitter quality and didn't add too much sweetener.
Kudos to the barista though. Even regular latte art is not easy but they managed to pump out perfect designs under so much pressure.
We also shared a slice of rainbow cake ($6.00). A classic example of something that looks better than it tastes. Not horrible by an means, but the cake was plain and dry. Very artificial vanilla.
By the time we finished and circled back to Cheese & Crack, the room had cleared up. Cheese & Crack (short for crackers, not the drug) is a "snack shop". It's super casual. Perfect for those times when you're not hungry enough to eat a full meal but wouldn't mind nibbling on something small.
We shared the Beecher's flagship cheddar & brie brûlée cheese plate ($12.00) with a side of capicola ($4.00). Each cheese plate is artfully arranged with olives, cornichons, housemade rustic butter crackers, housemade savoury oatmeal cookies, and baguette. Condiments, like dijon, honey, chocolate ganache, and a seasonal fruit preserve, are served in vintage teaspoons and cutlery.
I loved the interactive nature of the plate, and there were so many different combinations you can make for a different bite each time. I highly recommend a stop here!
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During happy hour (4-6pm), the restaurant serves half portions of their famous khao man gai (with purchase of a happy hour beverage) for only $5.00!
Seeing as we were eating all day and had plans for late night, the half portion was the perfect amount of food! The rice is simmered in chicken broth and Thai herbs, and served with the chicken that was poached. Despite being breast meat, the chicken was quite tender and moist. The main flavour of the dish comes from the sauce. It's a pungent mix of fermented soy beans, Thai chilies, vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar. I love that it's also served with a clear soup on the side. It's a light chicken broth, a bit on the salty side, but it was nice and comforting.
Since the sun was out in full force, we decided to take a longer break at the apartment and wait for the temperature to drop a little.
Later on in the evening, we walked over to Trader Joes, one of my favourite grocery stores in the states. Some of my must-haves: everything but the bagel seasoning, white truffle chips, and 99¢ coffee lover's espresso beans!
For our final stop of the day, we headed over to Von Ebert Brewing. Portland is well known for its love of craft beer, with over 75 local breweries.
Von Ebert is a relative newcomer on the scene, as they took over another brewery back in early 2018. The space is absolutely huge, and it's divided into a bar and a family-friendly dining room. Through large windows in the back, you can spy on their production room which is filled with huge beer tanks.
SC ordered the brewer's choice tasting flight ($12.00). They constantly change what's on tap, so I have absolutely no idea which beers were included on the board. I did have a sip of some of them, but I think it just further confirmed why I don't drink.
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We pretty much rolled ourselves back home after that.
Happy and full. The best feeling in the world.
- CT
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