Eating East of Portland
Woohoo! Portland, how nice to see you!
It's been a while since I've been in Portland. The last time, I stayed near the City Center; same side of the river as my brother's school. This time, I get to stay in his apartment, which has the best view in the mornings.
Since my brother and his girlfriend were off on this Tuesday, it was time for a group excursion!
SE Division - Pine State Biscuits
Last time I was in Portland, my family and I got a variety of dishes featuring this chain's fried chicken.
But I'm few years older, so I can't eat as much as I did in that picture. Neither can my brother; he and I aren't breakfast people. While we were here, I was able to try some Stumptown Coffee. It's known for having some pretty fantastic brews. I'm not a coffee drinker, so I'm probably not the person who can taste the nuances of good coffee.
They ordered the Hash Ups and we took the Pine State Club, a sampler that comes with:
- Ayers Creek grit cakes with fried chicken and spiced honey
- PImento Cheese & friend green tomatoes
- Aged white cheddar wrapped in Johnston County Country Ham
I really liked it. Pine State Biscuits is known for their fried chicken, which is admittedly very good... But I really liked everything else much better. The pimento dish was cheesy, but the tomatoes cut through the heaviness. As for the ham? It was sweet and paired with one of my favorite cheeses ever! YUM.
This place also makes a seasonal poptart. I believe ours had goat cheese and raspberry in it. It tasted kind of like a toaster strudel, but better.
Tam discretely slipped his card to the cashier and told them to pay for their meal. My brother said thank you, but it was on.
SE Division - Pok Pok
All my knowledge of Portland comes from my brother. If he says there's a heavy lack of good Asian food, I believe him. This is a great contrast to LA, where there's tons of it. Anyway, he and his girlfriend love this place because it's the closest they get to home cooking.
The woman who worked here warned us about the flavors; I'm guessing that a lot of people don't like the authentically Thai combinations. In fact, the restaurant doesn't serve normal Thai dishes. Period. No pad thai, no panang curry, nothing.
They were ALL good. Each of the dishes tasted like something we've eaten at home. The Yam Makheua Yao tasted like torta talong in FIlipino cooking, and the Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings tasted like the fish sauce Tam's mom makes. They weren't joking when they said authentic. I've learned that Southeast Asian food has a lot of similarities to each other, and this restaurant definitely brought that idea home for me. Big standouts were the Wing Bean Salad, and the Hoi Thawt.
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After we finished lunch, my brother insisted that he pay for the bill. I whispered to Tam to go to the bar and pay for it, while his girlfriend told him to just wait for the waiter. His response?
"I know these two, they're gonna try to go up to the bar and pay for it."
So my brother went up to the bar and paid for it, then used the bathroom. I mean, he had to learn from the best.
SE Division - Salt & Straw
What's lunch without a little dessert? Lame. That's what.
It's only lame because Salt & Straw is my favorite ice cream place. Well, maybe tied for first. It's named Salt & Straw because that's how ice and other chilled products used to be transported, you know, before refrigeration existed. What's especially cool is that they have really unique flavors and toppings, and they have a theme for their monthly flavors. In June, it about taking what otherwise would be wasted and turning it into ice cream. Stuff like jams, bread, etc.
Tasting Flight
front to back:
1. Almond Brittle with Salted Ganache
2. Lemon Curd and Whey
3. Toasted Baguette and PBJ
4. Sea Salt and Caramel Ribbons
What's cool about this place is that they do flights of ice cream! Similar to how you'd get a tasting flight of beer, except. Well. Ice cream, obviously. This worked out because Tam and I were having a hard time deciding what to choose for our flavors.
My favorite was the Lemon Curd; it tastes like lemon squares/bars. I started baking because I wanted to eat lemon bars all the time. Tam liked the Sea Salt and Caramel. The ice cream itself is flavored like sea salt, then it has caramel added into it... This gives it a more authentic salted caramel taste.
SW Waterfront - Little Big Burger
After we got home, we headed down to Little Big Burger. It's one of my favorite burger places in the world, mostly because they have my most favorite ketchup ever! I usually get their cheeseburger with cheddar cheese. This time around, the burgers were alright... Not as good as Shake Shack. Though, I think at this point, nothing is as good as Shake Shack. Their truffle fries are pretty legit; they're flavorful and crunchy... Something both In-N-Out and Shake Shack miss.
And that was it!