Dynamic performances from actors Anthony Lam and Bobby Bermea rescue the performance from its more pulpit preaching moments.
Thomas Alexander Ross
Thomas Ross writes about art and booze, and edits fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for Tin House.
Posted inTheater & Performance
Jesus Hopped the ‘A’ Train Review: A Predictable, but Wonderfully Acted Morality Play
Bobby Bermea, Jesus Hopped the A’ Train Owen Casey Jesus Hopped the ‘A’ Train occurs almost entirely within the one-hour-per-day periods when two Rikers Island prisoners—Angel Cruz (Anthony Lam) and Lucius Jenkins (Bobby Bermea)—get to see the sun. Cruz awaits trial for the attempted murder of a cult leader (though Cruz says he “just shot […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Climate Change: Tropical Tastes at Three New Bars
I try to be a glass-half-full kind of person. By which I mean, when someone complains about something, I tell them to take a sip of my cocktail and shut the hell up. Yes, it’s still cool outside, and no one has yet devised a little hat for the tip of your nose, but within […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Overwrought and Flashy, Pink Rabbit Delivers
Writing about Pink Rabbit, the new Pearl District bar (and the city’s second—to my knowledge—cocktail outfit named for lyrics by indie dad-rock band the National) feels more like art criticism than food writing. It’s not just the neon “Employees Must Wash Hands” signage—the whole place is designed within an inch of its flashy, gorgeous life […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Boozylicious: I Don’t Think You’re Ready for This Jell-O
We all have those friends who get a few drinks in them and start making proclamations, stating their own undercooked thoughts as fact. But some claims are too thought-provoking to ignore. Like my friend Tommy’s theory, announced in a crowded kitchen that “sorry, but you can’t get drunk on just Jell-O shots.” Cut to Scooter […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Psychic Knows What You Need Before You Need It
Every year when Halloween rolls around, I’m reminded how Portland lacks a solid lineup of themed bars. But then, seemingly overnight, an old Victorian house on North Mississippi (previously home to a short-lived sandwich shop) got all dressed up in black and neon red and took the name Psychic. Luckily for us, the new getup […]
Posted inFood and Drink
5 & Dime is Winning Over Neighbors in Foster-Powell
It’s tough to open a bar with the goal of being a “neighborhood bar.” Yet not two weeks after 5 & Dime opened in Foster-Powell, a neighborhood about as far away from mine as you can get, it already felt like the bar I’d pop into when I was in the area. The drinks are […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Climate Change: Tropical Tastes at Three New Bars
I try to be a glass-half-full kind of person. By which I mean, when someone complains about something, I tell them to take a sip of my cocktail and to shut the hell up. Yes, it’s cold outside, and no one has yet devised a little hat for the tip of your nose, but within […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Pink Rabbit’s Overwrought National-Themed Bar Delivers
Writing about Pink Rabbit, the new Pearl District bar (and the city’s second—to my knowledge—cocktail outfit named for lyrics by indie dad-rock band the National) feels more like art criticism than food writing. It’s not just the neon “Employees Must Wash Hands” signage—the whole place is designed within an inch of its flashy, gorgeous life […]
Posted inFood and Drink
New Bar Roundup (Thank God “Sober January” is Over)
January sucks. And it’s largely thanks to “Sober January.” Half my friends quit drinking for the month of January, spouting some self-care bullshit about “hitting reset” on their health, as though not having a glass of Fernet at the end of the night will somehow slow death’s relentless march. But now this nonsense is over, […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Boozylicious: I Don’t Think You’re Ready for this Jell-O
We all have those friends who get a few drinks in them and start making proclamations, stating their own undercooked thoughts as fact. But some claims are too thought-provoking to ignore. Like my friend Tommy’s theory, announced in a crowded kitchen in the day-buzzed leadup to Thanksgiving, that “you can’t get drunk on just Jell-O […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Game Time: Outrage Brings Esports out of the Basement
At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeonly mid-millennial, I have to admit I find myself yelling to youths as they skateboard past my porch: “What the hell is esports? People gather around to watch other people play video games now? Why?” Then again, watching regular sports is arguably the same brand of meaninglessness, so […]