Top Ten Things to do in Portland

July 22, 2008

Ok, I promised it, so here’s a list - no pix, sorry. You will soon notice that my idea of fun is hangin around at cool eats and drinks spots, and walking a lot on fun streets…

10. WASHINGTON PARK, the Japanese Garden and the Portland Rose Garden
All three of these beautiful areas are basically in the same spot. Washington Park is a huge 400 acre park with many walking trails and beautiful views of Mt Hood and Portland as well as quiet area beneath the huge trees. The Japanese Garden is absolutely beautiful, with different areas of the gardens coming to life in different seasons. And the Rose Garden has over 6800 rose bushes representing 557 varieties - major wow!

9. SOUTH WATERFRONT PARK
Portland reclaimed it’s Willamette waterfront for the people with this waterfront park. Get great views of all of the bridges, plus a really nice walk or bike or skate along the river. On the southernmost end of the walk, there is a small marina and nice outdoor cafes to enjoy some perfect July weather.

8. PEARL DISTRICT - downtown
ok, this is cheating in my top ten, cause there’s lotsa stuff in the Pearl that you have to see. They are all in walking distance to each other, so you can make a day of it, and then be there in time for Happy Hour!
• POWELL’S BOOKS - the largest independent bookstore in the world. It’s awesome, with collections of basically everything with used and out of print mixed in with the new. You simply cannot go to Portland without visiting Powell’s.
• Museum of Contemporary Craft - they had a great show while we were there. The gift store is impressive too, lots beautiful of glass, pottery and jewelry.
• Tanner Springs Park and Jamison Square - I mentioned these parks in an earlier post. Tanner Springs is a beautiful small natural area, very well done, and Jamison Park is a fun urban kids play fountain

7. a tie for VENDETTA and Rontom’s-
Vendetta = hip yet casual drinks and snacks hangout - great patio!
Rontom’s = mid-century mecca yet casual drinks and snacks hangout - get the Mojito with Cilantro in it - yum!

6. MISSISSIPPI AVE ARTS DISTRICT - see a buncha cool art on “Last Thursdays,” go to the BLACK WAGON for some hipper than thou baby stuff (and cool art), step across the street and have a martini to some cool grooves at Moloko Plus (used to be Mississippi Avenue Social Club), or grab a beer in a much more casual spot, complete with a veggie brat at Amnesia Brewing. And if you are there in July, you can’t miss the Mississippi Ave Street Fair! It puts those cute little town arts fairs to shame.

5. HAWTHORNE DISTRICT - go ahead and get your Stumptown Coffee on Belmont or Fresh Pot coffee on Hawthorne, then peruse the street for all of it’s awesome vintage shops, especially, House of Vintage, check out the Bagdad Theater and Pub, and enjoy all kinds of delicious small restaurants and pubs.

4. Broder - gotta go for brunch - Swedish food, whatever that means. All I know is that for brunch I got this awesome baked scramble in its own teeny tiny iron skillet - so cute - and great! It’s a tiny cute little spot…don’t forget to order the adorable Danish pancakes.

3. Alibi Restaurant and Lounge - totally authentic Tiki - LOVE IT - the cocktails are great and decorated with paper umbrellas, and there is Karaoke every night. One of my most memorable places to visit in Portland.

2. SATURDAY FARMER’S MARKET - If you’re in Portland on a Saturday, you just gotta go. Local. Delicious. Fun. Music. etc. See an earlier post for a larger description.

1. NAVARRE - Portland’s full of great eats and drinks. Navarre is at the top of the list. Navarre is a small place which truly changes it’s menu based on what they received from a local farmer. Everything feels as if it was cooked for you, served casually, family style, and desserts and wines are chosen specifically to pair with the food. this is a great date night, gathering of friends or casual night out for treats. Deelish. (we did a full write-up on Navarre last year. see it here.)

Other fun places:
mod shopping: Hive Modern, Relish, Canoe
chains but worth seeing Portland Style: Whole Foods Portland, DWR Showroom, West Elm, Horny Toad’s Lizard Lounge
other awesome eats: Bay 13 (seafood), Silk (vietnamese), Pok Pok (thai), Beast (euro-portland),
Voodoo Doughnuts, Hotlips Pizza (and homemade fruit soda!), Burgerville

Check Portland Octopus out for a lot of great Portland info.

Stumble it!

Tags: , Alibi, Beast, Black Wagon, Broder, Culture, food and drink, galleries, Japanese Garden, landscape architecture, Navarre, nightlife, outside, Pearl District, Portland, Portland Farmer's Market, Powell's, Rontom's, Rose Garden, Vendetta, Washington Park