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Between eating organic produce, natural beef, cutting back on carbs, and ordering sweatshop free T-shirts, all while buying products from local small businesses and donating to the Human Rights Coalition, I simply haven’t had time for “fair trade.” In fact, I’ve never really even had a clear sense of what “fair trade” means–other than it’s […]
Sal’s Famous Italian Kitchen 2731 N Killingsworth 247-0500 I love the little guy. The independent restaurant where the owner works the bar or grill. A place like No Fish! Go Fish! or Navarre, where an individual person genuinely appreciates your presence in their restaurant. But sometimes I also like the comfortable anonymity of a restaurant […]
It’s always been my belief that a little “hair of the dog” is the only real cure for a hangover. Of course there’s also strenuous exercise, but involving myself in that reminds me too much of the book Drinking: A Love Story, about some lonely lady who hid liquor bottles in the back of the […]
Smart Monkey Foods smartmonkeyfoods.com 236-7878 Ani Phyo, co-owner of Smart Monkey Foods, is the perfect spokesmodel for the raw and living foods movement; she’s intelligent, confident, friendly, athletic, and absolutely stunning. She is exactly who should be pushing foods that are claiming to be “anti-aging.” Listening to Ani and partner Ede Schweizer’s story of how […]
Since the first time I heard the words barbecue and Portland uttered in the same sentence, it’s been a given that Campbell’s (on 87th and SE Powell) is the best this city has to offer. In fact, it’s so ingrained in Portland lore that Campbell’s smoked meats and sides are unbeatable, I’ve recommended it to […]
In 1858, the French seized Vietnam, beginning a colonial occupation that lasted nearly a century. As a result, a distinctly European taste for baguettes, café au lait, and gateaux emerged that exists to this day. One particularly delicious tradition preserved from this cultural intersection is Banh Mi (pronounced “bun mee”), French-Vietnamese sandwiches with a remarkably […]
Echo Restaurant 2225 NE MLK 460-3246 When a new food crosses my path, especially a strange, exotic new seafood, I’m thrilled. No–better than thrilled. Ecstatic. I feel something like Darwin must have felt when discovering a new species of bird on the Galapagos Islands. Unlike Darwin, however, I eat my discovery. My latest find is […]
Pasta Bangs 3950 N Mississippi 287-2782 Pasta Bangs has only been open for a month, but it’s already bustling with customers. The latest addition to North Mississippi, the small, yet airy bistro is shaped like a boxcar, a narrow storefront filled with comfortable booths and inviting atmosphere. The food, much like the interior design, is […]
It is a commonly held belief that oysters are an aphrodisiac. True or not, when breaded, fried, laid to rest between two halves of a crusty baguette and slathered with mayonnaise, the result is somewhat less than erotic. It’s more like deep-fried sex, or as it’s more commonly known, the oyster po’boy. Invented in the […]
TV dinners denote loneliness, and isolation from the world via television, not to mention excessive amounts of preservatives, sodium, and late-night Marijuana consumption. Not anymore, however, as Mother’s Bistro has brought the TV dinner full circle, turning it into a gourmet delicacy, enjoyed downtown among friends with nary a television in sight. In a much-appreciated […]
La Iguana Feliz 10834 NE Sandy Blvd. 503-257-2993 They say that if you see Chinese people eating in a Chinese restaurant you know it’s good. The same goes for Jews in a Jewish deli, Indians in an Indian restaurant, and of course Mexicans in a taqueria. Such is the case for La Iguana Feliz, a […]
Ciao Vito 2203 NE Alberta 503-282-5522 I’m sure you’ve seen this place by now. It took over the beloved if not culinarily brilliant Chez What, tore everything out, and became a swank, dark Italian bistro. Note the fashionable, open-air kitchen, the al fresco dining, the intimate, dark wooden tables indoors, and the informed and friendly […]
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