Portlandia Food Pod City

Every once in a while, & when you can swing it, I feel that it's good to get away from your day-to-day life to find some inspiration in a completely different setting.  

That was our plan when we booked a weekend trip up to Portland in early October 2016.  Kate had never been to the Rose City & I had only passed through Oregon on a family Amtrak trip when I was ten.  

Her friend from high school, Christie, & her family picked us up at the airport & took us to the Mississippi Food Pod: an outdoor picnic area, surrounded by these one-room food shacks.  They were all lined up with their own signs, much like Kaaboo, but with wild combinations I would have never dreamed of.

This was like the outdoor version of the Food Halls that we see a lot of these days.

"White Elephant" was firing up plates of Fried Beef Jerky over White Rice with Crispy Egg Rolls.  "Bo Kwan's KOI Fusion," was piling up Kate's favorite sandwich, The Reuben, where you could pick your protein.  She got one with Pork & along with our White Elephant plate, grabbed one of the last open tables to nosh.

Kate & I always like to order different items & split everything so we can both try new stuff.  These two spots did not disappoint & it was a great way to kick off the food portion of our Portland "Food & Drink" excursion.  

Afterwards, Christie & the fam took us downtown to hit some breweries, because when you spent about four days a week at tasting rooms, you like to see how the other half lives.  We went to 10 Barrel, Rogue, Deschutes, & Base Camp just to name a few.  Like in San Diego, folks in Portland don't go thirsty.

Kate & I did a lot of recon to plot out our three days & three nights there.  It's good to have a blueprint of spots to checkout when in roam.  Without renting a car, we found our way around on public transit & the light rail to our base camp for the weekend, a Best Western just north of downtown.  

Sunday, we met up with my friend, J-Rod from Lincoln College & watched the Bears game at a cool Bears bar & actually won a tin sign in a raffle.  

Our friend, George from San Diego also happened to be in town & we met him at some pirate bar.

We found an awesome dive bar called "Reel M. Inn" that only had one guy working, who was pouring pitchers & frying some fantastic Fried Chicken & some of the best JoJo's (potato wedges) I've ever had.

Lardo was also a must on our list:

They do all different Pork Sandwiches & Dirty Fries.  It was amazing.  We also liked how they had to-go boxes, bags, napkins & utensils all on a shelf for customers to grab themselves.  We got two different sandwiches & couldn't eat it all, so we gladly put our leftovers in our backpack & headed over to Voodoo Donuts for dessert.  

And, what Portland trip would be complete without a visit to Powell's Bookstore?

"Just give me an hour in there," I told Kate.  I bought three great books to bring back to San Diego.