A perfect Portland day
I'm back home for the holidays, and savoring every minute of Portlandy goodness. My cousin and I started the day with breakfast at Besaws in Northwest, and then I wandered along 23rd. It was about 9:30, so most of the boutiques weren't open yet, thankfully sparing me an otherwise egregious shopping bill. All of the little shops appeared to be thriving; my one disappointment was that Coffee People appears to be Starbucks now (I'm going to have to rethink my "Starbucks isn't really evil" stance). I turned left at Hoyt, wandering through the neighborhoods with funkily-decorated gardens, apartment doors, and balconies. Turned right on 12th and wandered through the Pearl District. Eventually ended up at Buffalo Exchange, where I spent two hours trying on used designer clothing (oh, how Pittsburgh needs a BE!). Then crossed the street to Powell's, just as the rain started.Surprisingly, the worlds second largest bookstore didn't have A Dictionary of Modern American Usage by Bryan A. Garner (which is reviewed exquisitely by David Foster Wallace in the book I'm currently reading). But they did have several other DFW books, great cookbooks, the latest Dave Eggers, and Michael Chabon's first novel. All of which i schlepped into the coffee shop and perused for another couple of hours along with the foamiest soy latte ever and a mushroom leek tarte.
After Powells, I wandered downtown, debating whether to catch a bus across the river. But first, I hit the Saturday Market under the Burnside Bridge (open mid-day Wednesday, I guess because of the holidays). Finding the Burnside Bridge and promenade usually pedestrian unfriendly (construction), I caught a 19 bus to E. 28th and picked up some groceries for the butternut squash risotto I'm making for my cousin and her sons tonight. (Yes, this would be the fourth time with this risotto in the last three weeks -- some recipes make for wicked cravings.) Going to take the extra Better than Bouillon to my parents' house tomorrow and introduce them to its yumminess.
Erin and I are meeting at a wine bar late this evening (and I'm really looking forward to tasting some Willamette Valley Pinot). Tomorrow I head to Eugene.
Comments
On the scarier note, so there's a Starbucks in the old CP? Would that make it a SB across the street from a SB? Do they really need four places on 23rd (incl. Tully's), or are they just needing more frontage for the sunny-weather bikers?
If you can, I would be truly delighted if you brought back a six-pack of Full Sail Amber. Otherwise, you definitely need to have one. My favorite spot is at a dive bar on Hawthorne -- Angelo's. They have free pool *and* foosball. The delightful water hole caddy-corner across the street, the Water Trough, has cheap pool and the best freakin' shuffleboard table!
JB -- The grass is green in both locations. (Well, no, it's probably literally greener in Oregon.) And I figured reading the Chabon book would be a good way to enjoy my current home. (I've actually heard "Mysteries of Pittsburgh" isn't all that good, but I like several of his other novels, so I'm looking forward to it.)
I was a little disoriented when I saw the Starbucks on 23rd, and forgot to look at the old Starbucks location across the street (Hoyt-ish?). I think they moved from the one location to the other, rather than opening two. I'll be near there again today and will report. At least Vivace is still thriving.
I talked to the owner of Vivace yesterday and he said it's still good (actually better) to have a Tully's and Starbucks across the street -- people choose to shop at the independent coffee shop instead.
if you're into the good books with pittsburgh references, try out The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Steven Chbosky (what's with the ch's?). it's aimed at a younger audience, but still a very good (short) read.
and I might have to try that risotto recipe out, I have a pumpkin risotto one that's pretty good, but I think the butternut might work better.