Here’s a stupid question—can Portlanders get enough beer? Of course not, as demonstrated by the sheer number of beer festivals this town holds. There’s one happening now—the Portland International Beerfest, taking place at Holladay Park by the Lloyd Center, while next weekend is the Imperial IPA Fest at Saraveza and their Bad Habit event space. […]
MJ Skegg
Posted inFood and Drink
The Easiest and Best Breakfast You’ll Ever Make
I’ve recently become obsessed with refrigerator oatmeal, or summer porridge if you want to be slightly more lyrical. It not only tastes darn good but it’s also nutritious and super convenient. No matter how rushed you are, there won’t be any reason for skipping breakfast again, because the porridge is made (or assembled) the night […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Happy Hour Done Right (and a Little Bit Wrong)
Needing to get out of the sun and away from the crazies and bridge and tunnel amateurs that swarm downtown on a weekend, I slipped into Imperial for a time out and some lunch. I like the room at Imperial—it’s spacious, airy and manages to tastefully combine classicism with industrial design elements—and the soups and […]
Posted inDrunk
The French Solution to Illness: Wine
Whatever your views of the French—cheese eating surrender monkeys or the fount of all worldly sophistication—they do get some things right as demonstrated by the fact that a hospital in the city of Clermont-Ferrand is opening a wine bar for terminally-ill patients and visiting friends and family. “The aim is to ‘re-humanize’ patients by improving […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Another Remarkable Tasting Room to Check Out
Andrea’s review of Cooper’s Hall in the paper this week got me thinking about a lesser known tasting room that also does remarkable food called Tesóaria. Located on North Williams, it’s the Portland outpost of Tesóaria winery and vineyard in Roseburg. Winemaker John Olson takes the approach that if a wine seems fun to make, […]
Posted inSports
The Amateur Soccer Tournament (Now with Beer)
Most sports events are improved by the addition of alcoholic beverages—and that’s even more applicable when you’re playing them. So the First Annual Cascadia 7v7 Brewer’s Cup is a dead cert for keen amateur soccer players with a thirst, combining as it does a tournament held over two days and Lompoc beer (admittedly the beer […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Woman vs Endless Appetizers
In theory, when I see a restaurant that has an all-you-can-eat offer I want to take them up on the challenge and ram their marketing ploys straight into my infinite appetite. In practice, though, I can barely manage a couple of helpings at Salty’s all-you-can-eat brunch; meanwhile, other patrons have their plates piled precariously high […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Eat, Drink, Be Merry This Weekend
It comes down to this. Stuff that looks interesting. • Oregon BrewFest is already upon us, but you knew that already. Check out this CNN piece praising OBF. Oregon Brewers Festival, Waterfront Park, until Sunday •Red Star Tavern are having a free lunch. Yes, Free! But only if you buy two cocktails, which sounds reasonable […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Eating What the Chef’s Eat
Chefs Feed is the website that allows you to tap into where local chefs like to eat and, in particular, what their favorite dishes are. After doing some number crunching it appears that, from the 30-odd Portland chefs that have participated, the most popular dish is the Brussels sprout salad from Boke Bowl with six […]
Posted inDrunk
Exploring the Noblest Grape in Portland
If I was to nominate an underrated wine grape for this week’s issue of the Mercury dedicated to underdogs, it would be Riesling. Blighted with a bad rep as an unsophisticated wine on par with sugar water (blame unscrupulous German merchants for dumping that crap on the world), it can be confusing even when confronted […]
Posted inDrunk
The Wonderful, Intriguing Range of Lager Varieties: Lagerfest is Back!
Is lager the most misunderstood beer? Generally clean and crisp and the reach-for liquid when the days heat up, there is so much more to lager than what the big breweries offer, which generally ranges from the nicely refreshing, to a shade of piss water. Lager is the much younger sibling of ale—it’s only been […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Learn From the Ten-Minute Master
One of my all-time favorite cookery books is called French Cooking in Ten Minutes, or Adapting to the Rhythm of Modern Life. Despite the rather contemporary title, it was first published in 1930 and written by Edouard de Pomiane—who, while a Parisian, has a strong Polish heritage (his real name was Pozerski). If speedy French […]