Eat, Shop, Walk, Then Eat Some More

What happens when 8 women get together for a birthday weekend getaway in Portland? Shopping and eating, eating and shopping, followed by some shopping, and some more eating. We crammed our luggage into 2 rooms at the Nines, a hip luxury hotel in the heart of Downtown, and hit the town with the goal of doing our best to support the local economy.

Since I had just been in Portland the week prior with my parents, I was mostly interested in getting to know some spots I had not yet experienced. And since the birthday girl is a foodie, I knew we were in for some culinary treats. Our first stop was dinner at Nostrana, a rustic Italian restaurant where I enjoyed a warming bowl of butternut squash soup, a rustic salad with yummy seasonal vegetables I was unable to identify, and a simple but delicious Pizza Margherita.

The next morning, still full, we made our way to Portland's breakfast institution, Mother's Bistro.

Going out to breakfast is one of my favorite things to do on weekends, so I'm a bit of a connoisseur. The Chanterelle Omelette was good, but not life-changing. The Pumpkin Pancakes, on the other hand, were quite yummy and rivaled those at the 14 Carrot Cafe in Seattle.

Needless to say we had a lot of walking to do if we were going to work up an appetite for any additional culinary escapades, so after breakfast we explored Downtown and the Pearl District.

Later that afternoon, chilled, and a little worn out from shopping, we stopped at Elephants Delicatessen, a gem of a deli I wish I had known about earlier and could have shared with my parents. The place is jam-packed with typical deli fare like meats and cheeses, but they also have a hot bar which is surprisingly diverse and delicious. I enjoyed Butternut Squash and Pear Soup, fancy "Grown-up" Mac-N-Cheese and Butternut Squash Pizza which has the divine combination of roasted butternut squash, onions, dried cherries, gruyere & brie. Mm, mm good. 

Surprisingly, the pièce de resistance came, from all places, the Deschutes Brewery. Although they have the usual bar fare, they make an effort to use seasonal and sustainable ingredients and therefore come up with some interesting twists to burgers and fries. I decided to try the Walnut Beet Burger which is a patty made of roasted beets and toasted walnuts, topped with goat cheese and white balsamic vinaigrette dressed field greens on a brioche bun. If you loathe beets, you probably wouldn't find this veggie burger as delicious as I did.

They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I'm starting to think that the way to get me to consider a move to Portland, might be through my stomach!

It seems I've made myself hungry again. Bon appetit!