A hot Friday evening in the Pearl District and the deck at Bluehour is packed with well-scrubbed customers. Suddenly, the buzz of polite conversation is broken. “Force-fed ducks! Foie gras sucks!” A loose-knit group of about a dozen protesters from the Portland Animal Defense League (PADL) has begun to chant, demanding the restaurant remove foie […]
Patrick Alan Coleman
Posted inNews
Tears, Cheers, and Beers
A Recap of Tuesday Night’s Election Results by the Mercury‘s Election Squad
IT WAS A PRIMARY ELECTION season marked, from the Democratic presidential contest on down, by excruciatingly close races—at least according to the pre-election day polls and punditry. According to poll numbers, Sho Dozono was holding Sam Adams under the 50 percent mark in the race for Portland mayor, and Steve Novick was consistently neck and […]
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HARD TIMES!
How to Eat and Thrive in the Coming Depression
Pullout: The Food Issue 2008
Posted inFeature
The Worst of Times
What Happens if the Food Bank Runs Out of Food?
Pullout: The Food Issue 2008
Posted inFeature
The Ringer
Two Local Chefs Shows YOU What to Do with that Food Bank Booty
Pullout: The Food Issue 2008
Posted inFeature
OUR FIRST ANNUAL CHEAP FOOD CHALLENGE
Mercury Chefs Make a Three-Course Meal for Less Than Five
Pullout: The Food Issue 2008
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Divot Dilemma
Down the Flavor Hole at Jáce Gáce
Jáce Gáce is the kind of ridiculous Portland mash-up that causes tourists to use words like “artsy,” “unique,” and “bizarre” when describing our city: The waffle stand/gallery/pub is going the distance to keep Portland weird. The problem is, weird isn’t always flavorful, even if it looks fantastic. The first difficulty Jáce Gáce presents is how […]
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Working Lunch
Nosh Answers Your Midday Questions
Lunchtime. You’ve got 30 minutes, a couple bucks, and a feeling of emptiness. It’s not the crippling, emotional emptiness that you’ve grown accustomed to—it’s hunger. Something must be done. This is the ballad of the lunchtime café. Those nondescript little places open from 7 am to 3 pm, Monday through Friday, saving the blank-eyed proletariat […]
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Fond of Fonda Rosa
Please Stop Eating Mediocre Mexican Food
Saturday night at a Southeast Portland Mexican restaurant that shall remain nameless. It’s packed. I’ve pushed my plate away in disgust, having eaten the worst fajita ever. It began lukewarm and gelatinous, it ended with a hair. Why, I wonder, do I subject myself to this cheese-smothered crap? Why are there so many people here […]
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Cholesterol Cadillac
Pine State: Just Grab ‘Em in the Biscuits!
“I’m trying to cut down on fried chicken before noon,” drawls the young man sitting at my table. We’re in Pine State Biscuits’ cramped dining room. It’s just after 11 am. He nearly made it. Woe to the health-conscious biscuit acolyte who discovered Pine State at the Portland Farmers Market, yet could only indulge in […]
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Red Hot!
Doin’ It Doggy Style
You’re surrounded by Chicago Cubs paraphernalia and staring at the grungy convenience store across the street. A tall boy of Old Style sweats seductively beside you. The air is heavy with the scent of sauerkraut and encased meats. If you squint your eyes just right, you could imagine yourself in Chicago. But this is Wayne’s […]