by Geon, Bryan
Portland Farmers’ Market—Kenton, N Denver Ave at McClellan St, 503-241-0032, www.portlandfarmersmarket.org; open June–September, Fridays, 3 p.m.–7 p.m.
Portland Farmers’ Market—King, NE 7th Ave at Wygant, 503-241-0032, www.portlandfarmersmarket.org; open May–November, Sundays, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
Portland Farmers’ Market—Northwest, NW 19th Ave at Everett St, 503-241-0032, www.portlandfarmersmarket.org; open June–September, Thursdays, 2 p.m.-6 p.m.
Portland Farmers’ Market—Pioneer Courthouse Square, Pioneer Courthouse Square, SW 6th Ave at Morrison St, 503-241-0032, www.portlandfarmersmarket.org; open mid-June–August, Mondays, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
Portland Farmers’ Market—PSU, South Park Blocks between SW Montgomery St and SW Harrison St, 503-241-0032, www.portlandfarmersmarket.org; open April–October, Saturdays, 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m., and November–mid-December, Saturdays, 9 a.m.–2 p.m.
St. Johns Farmers’ Market, St. Johns Plaza, N Lombard St at Philadelphia Ave, 503-877-5368, www.sjfarmersmarket.com; May–October, Saturdays, 9 a.m.–2 p.m.
South Waterfront Farmers’ Market, Eliza Caruthers Park, 3508 SW Moody Ave, 503-972-3289, www.southwaterfront.com/farmers-market.html; open June–October, Thursdays, 2 p.m.–7 p.m.
Woodstock Farmers’ Market, Key Bank, 4600 SE Woodstock Blvd, 971-208-5522, woodstockmarketpdx.com; open June–October, Sundays, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
In addition to the markets in Portland proper, there are farmers’ markets in the following surrounding communities:
Battle Ground (www.bgvillage.com)
Beaverton (503-643-5345, www.beavertonfarmersmarket.com)
Boring (503-293-5016)
Bull Mountain (503-314-2955, tbmfm.org)
Camas (360-838-1032, www.camasfarmersmarket.org)
Canby (503-263-5151)
Cedar Mill (503-913-7733, www.cmfmarket.org)
Clackamas-Sunnyside (503-704-4212, www.windancefarmsandart.com)
Damascus (503-929-9482, www.damascusfreshandlocalmarket.com)
Estacada (503-309-0846, www.estacadafarmersmarket.com)
Fairview (503-704-4212, www.windancefarmsandart.com)
Forest Grove (503-992-0078, www.adelantemujeres.org/fg-farmers-market/),
Gresham (503-341-4153, www.greshamfarmersmarket.com)
Happy Valley (503-504-8615, www.sunnysidefarmersmarket.com)
Hillsboro (503-844-6685, www.hillsboromarkets.org)
Lake Oswego (503-675-3985, www.ci.oswego.or.us/parksrec/lake-oswego-farmers-market)
Milwaukie (503-407-0956, www.milwaukiefarmersmarket.com)
Oregon City (503-734-0192, www.orcityfarmersmarket.com)
Sandy (503-489-2173)
Scappoose (503-543-3469, www.scappoosefarmermarket.com)
Sherwood (503-971-998-6431, sherwoodmarket.blogspot.com)
Tigard (503-619-6048, www.tigardfarmersmarket.com)
Troutdale (503-704-4212, www.windancefarmsandart.com)
Tualatin (503-333-9192, www.tualatinfarmersmarket.com)
Vancouver (360-737-8298, www.vancouverfarmersmarket.com)
West Linn (503-349-0015www.westlinnfarmersmarket.org)
Wilsonville (503-778-0261, www.wilsonvillemarket.com)
As a supplement or alternative to your nearest farmers’ market, you might consider community-supported agriculture (CSA). In CSA, you buy “harvest shares” from a local farm, and in return you receive a proportionate amount of the farm’s production, usually on a weekly basis during the growing season. For information about CSA and a list of local farms that participate in CSA programs, visit the website for the Portland Area CSA Coalition (www.portlandcsa.org).
Interested in growing your own, but don’t have a yard? Check out the Community Gardens page on the Portland Parks and Recreation website, www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/39846.
Home Delivery
If you’re after supermarket goods but don’t want to fight supermarket crowds, Safeway (www.shop.safeway.com) offers home delivery to some areas. For bins of fresh organic produce and natural groceries delivered to your door, try Organics to You, 503-236-6496, www.organicstoyou.org, or Grocery Getter Organic, 971-285-3270, www.ggetter.com.
Ethnic Markets
The small grocery stores full of delicacies from other parts of the world that are scattered around Portland and its surrounding communities reflect the region’s growing ethnic diversity. Interestingly, the majority of ethnic food stores of all kinds are located in suburban communities, a fact that mirrors the current pattern of immigrant settlement in Oregon (as well as the generally high housing prices and rents in close-in neighborhoods). Although many local supermarkets offer a selection of foods for ethnic cooking, try some of the stores below for a more authentic experience (and remember, this is a very incomplete list):
Portland World Foods, 9845 SW Barbur Blvd, 503-244-0670; 830 NW Everett St, 503-802-0755, www.portlandworldfoods.com; it initially seems like an ordinary supermarket, stocked with a standard range of groceries and produce, but a few minutes spent perusing shelves filled with such Middle Eastern products as carob molasses and candied mulberries, not to mention the tasty baklava at the deli, will cure you of your delusion.
Caribbean Spice, 4516 NE 42nd Ave, 503-493-2737, sells groceries produced throughout the tropical world, from West African fufu flour to Caribbean hot sauces.
Dashen International Groceries, 3022 NE Glisan St, 503-234-7785; formerly Becerra’s, this store sells hard-to-find Mexican and other Latin American groceries.
Fiji Emporium, 7814 N Interstate Ave, 503-240-2768, www.fijiemporium.com, sells East Indian and Australian (!) foods.
Fubonn, 2850 SE 82nd Ave, 503-517-8899, www.fubonn.com; this complex of shops, restaurants, and a supermarket bills itself as the largest Asian shopping center in Oregon.
India Supermarket, 17235 NW Corridor Ct, Beaverton, 503-617-9999, cheenibori.com, is one of several Indian markets in the Beaverton/Hillsboro area.
International Food Supply, 8005 SE Stark St, 503-256-9576, www.internationalfoodsupply.com, concentrates on Mediterranean and Middle Eastern foods. It shares owners with the Portland World Foods markets.
Martinotti’s, 404 SW 10th Ave, 503-224-9028, martinottis.ypguides.net, has an eclectic selection of European (especially Italian) imports; put your Christmas marzipan order in early.
Merkato Ethiopian Music and Food, 2605 NE MLK Jr Blvd, 503-331-9283, is one of several East African markets in this part of Northeast Portland.
Roman Russian Food Store, 10918 SE Division St, 503-408-7525, is one of numerous stores on the east side that sell imported food from Russia, Eastern Europe, and the Caucasus.
Uwajimaya, 10500 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy, Beaverton, 503-643-4512, www.uwajimaya.com; the sole Oregon outlet of a Seattle-based chain, Uwajimaya offers a vast selection of Asian groceries and goods, as well as some of the area’s best fresh seafood. A potential second Portland-area store in Old Town-Chinatown has been rumored for years.
Bakeries
Fifteen years ago, really high-quality artisan bread was as scarce in Portland as two weeks of sunny days in January (which is to say, quite scarce). While the climate hasn’t changed much since then, the city now boasts an enviable collection of places to buy truly outstanding bread and other baked goods. Here are a few of the most highly regarded bakeries in town:
Baker & Spice, 6630 SW Capitol Hwy, 503-244-7573, www.bakerandspicebakery.com; the bakery’s Cakery is a few doors down in the same complex, 6306 SW Capitol Hwy, 503-546-3737, www.bakerandspicecakery.com
Grand Central Baking Company, seven Portland locations, www.grandcentralbakery.com
Ken’s Artisan Bakery, 338 NW 21st Ave, 503-248-2202, www.kensartisan.com
Pearl Bakery, 102 NW 9th Ave, 503-827-0910, www.pearlbakery.com
Roman Candle Baking Company, 3377 SE Division St, 971-302-6605, www.romancandlebaking.com
St. Honoré Boulangerie, 2335 NW Thurman St, 503-445-4342, 3333 SE Division St, 971-279-4433; 315 1st St, Lake Oswego, 5
03-496-5596, www.sainthonorebakery.com
Little T American Baker, 2600 SE Division St, 503-238-3458; 1022 W Burnside St, 503-894-8258; www.littletbaker.com
A growing number of dedicated gluten-free retail bakeries have opened in and around Portland the past several years, including Kyra’s Bake Shop, 460 5th St, Lake Oswego, 503-212-2979; New Cascadia Traditional, 1700 SE 6th Ave, 503-546-4901, www.newcascadiatraditional.com; Petunia’s Pies and Pastries, 610 SW 12th Ave, 503-841-5961, www.petuniaspiesandpastries.com; and Tula, 4943 NE MLK Jr Blvd, 503-764-9727, www.tulabaking.com.
Wine, Beer, and Liquor
In both Oregon and Washington, wine and beer are sold at convenience stores and supermarkets, but in Oregon hard liquor is only available at bars and state-licensed liquor stores. Washington voters approved privatized liquor sales in 2012, and many grocery stores now sell hard liquor. (Washington has one of the highest tax rates on distilled spirits, so privatization has not led to lower prices, and many liquor-loving Washingtonians travel to Oregon liquor stores to buy in quantity.) Most markets of any size carry a good range of domestic beer (including microbrews) and the most popular import brands; for one of the city’s best selections of bottled beers, try Belmont Station, 4500 SW Stark St, 503-232-8538, www.belmont-station.com. While some supermarkets also have surprisingly good wine selections, the area’s wine shops are great for more esoteric offerings, and usually offer personalized recommendations and in-store wine tastings. Here’s a partial list of Portland wine shops:
Blackbird Wine Shop, 4323 NE Fremont St, 503-282-1887, www.blackbirdwine.com
Cork, 2901 NE Alberta St, 503-281-2675, www.corkwineshop.com
E & R Wine Shop, 6141 SW Macadam Ave, 503-246-6101, www.erwineshop.com
Great Wine Buys, 1515 NE Broadway, 503-287-2897, www.greatwinebuys.com
Liner & Elsen, 2222 NW Quimby St, 503-241-9463, 800-903-9463, www.linerandelsen.com
Mt. Tabor Fine Wines, 4316 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 503-235-4444, www.mttaborfinewines.com
Oregon Wines on Broadway, 515 SW Broadway, 503-228-4655, 800-943-8858, www.oregonwinesonbroadway.com
Portland Wine Merchants, 1430 SE 35th St, 503-234-4399, www.portlandwinemerchants.com
Sip D’Vine, 7829 SW Capitol Hwy, 503-977-9463, www.sipdvine.com
Vino, 137 SE 28th Ave, 503-235-8545, 888-922-8545, www.vinobuys.com
Vinopolis Wine Shop, 1610 NW Glisan St, 503-223-6002, www.vinopoliswineshop.com
Wizer’s Fine Wines, 330 1st St, Lake Oswego, 503-636-1414, wizers.com
Woodstock Wine & Deli, 4030 SE Woodstock Blvd, 503-777-2208, www.woodstockwineanddeli.com
Perhaps you prefer to cut out the middleman and go directly to the source—i.e., wineries and brewpubs. For a list of wineries in the region check out the online directories of Willamette Valley Wineries (www.willamettewines.com) or the Oregon Wine Board (www.oregonwine.org); for Portland-area craft breweries, go to the Oregon Brewers Guild’s Portland brewery list (oregoncraftbeer.org/breweries/portland-area/). If your taste runs more to hard cider, there are several cideries in the region; Wandering Aengus Ciderworks (503-361-2400, www.wanderingaengus.com), near Salem, has occasional open houses. There is even a sakery in the western suburb of Forest Grove: Saké One, 820 Elm St, Forest Grove, 503-357-7056, www.sakeone.com. Portland is also a center of the burgeoning craft distillery movement. The granddaddy of local distillers, Clear Creek Distillery (2389 NW Wilson St, 503-248-9470, www.clearcreekdistillery.com, tastings available), produces some of the world’s best fruit eaux-de-vie and brandies. Most of the dozen-plus new kids on the block occupy warehouses in inner Southeast Portland, in an area known (to some) as distillery row, and focus on gin, vodka, and other spirits. Several companies, including House Spirits Distillery (2025 SE 7th Ave, www.housespirits.com) and New Deal Distillery (900 SE Salmon St, 503-234-2513, www.newdealdistillery.com), have tasting rooms. Check out www.distilleryrowpdx.com for a complete list of distillers.
Eating Out
A comprehensive listing of Portland restaurants would double the size of this book. Since you’re interested in a guide, not a paperweight, suffice it to say that Portland has restaurants for every type of palate and pocketbook, with more opening all the time. For current restaurant reviews and recommendations, try Willamette Week’s Restaurant Guide, published each fall in print form and available online at wweek.com. The Oregonian online restaurant guide is available at www.oregonlive.com/dining/; the paper’s Friday A&E section includes full and capsule restaurant reviews. Citysearch (portland.citysearch.com) is another popular, if not always reliable, site for restaurant listings; Yelp (www.yelp.com) and Urban Spoon (www.urbanspoon.com) also feature user-generated reviews and ratings.
Don’t forget Portland’s ridiculously eclectic food cart scene; the highest concentrations of food carts are located downtown to serve the lunch hour crowd, but they can also be found in scattered “pods” around the eastside. Local blog foodcartsportland.com maintains an up-to-date list of food carts.
Other Shopping
Art Supplies
Blick Art Materials, 1115 NW Glisan St, 503-223-3724; 2710 Cedar Hills Blvd, Beaverton, 503-646-9347; www.dickblick.com
Collage, 1639 NE Alberta St, 503-249-2190; 7907 SE 13th Ave, 503-777-2189, www.collagepdx.blogspot.com
Columbia Art & Drafting Supply, 1515 E Burnside St, 503-232-2216, www.columbia-art.com
Muse Art + Design, 4220 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 503-231-8704, museartanddesign.com
Oblation Papers and Press, 516 NW 12th Ave, 503-223-1093, www.oblationpapers.com
Books
For a list of local bookstores, see the Cultural Life chapter.
Cigars
If you must indulge, Rich’s Cigar Store (820 SW Alder, 503-228-1700, 800-669-1527, www.richscigarstore.com) is the long-time source for fine tobaccos. Established in 1894, Rich’s has a walk-in humidor and, for nonsmokers, stocks more than 2,500 periodicals from around the world. Broadway Cigar Company (locations in Northeast Portland, Lake Oswego, and Camas, www.broadwaycigar.com, 503-473-8000) sells cigars and accessories, includes a walk-in humidor, and provides a well-appointed smoking lounge.
For Children
Children’s clothing, furniture, and toys are available at most department stores and discount stores. Such spelling-challenged national retailers as Babies “R” Us, Toys “R” Us (both at www.toysrus.com), and Gymboree (www.gymboree.com) all have multiple stores in and around Portland. Portland also has many independent stores that specialize in children’s stuff. Here are a few:
Black Wagon, 3964 N Mississippi Ave, Portland, 866-916-0004, www.blackwagon.com, serves up large helpings of hip designer clothes, toys, and bedding for the 0–6 crowd.
Child’s Play, 2305 NW Kearney St, 503-224-5586, www.childsplayportland.com, has a wide selection of toys and books.
Finnegan’s, 820 SW Washington St, 503-221-0306, www.finneganstoys.com, is the largest non-chain toy store in town, with a truly tremendous selection of toys and games.
Grasshopper, 1816 NE Alberta St, 503-335-3131, www.grasshopperstore.com, sells an eclectic assortment of children’s books, clothes, and toys.
Kids at Heart, 3445 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 503-231-2954, www.kidsathearttoys.com, sells high-quality children’s toys and books.
OMSI Science Store, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, 1945 SE Water Ave, 503-797-4626, www.omsi.edu/science-store; not exactly a children’s store, the gift shop at OMSI nonetheless carries a huge selection of science-related toys, kits, and assorted gadgets for kids of all ages.
Polliwog, 234 NE 28th Ave 503-236-3903, www.polliwogportland.com, offers clothing and accessories for newborns to first-graders.
Posh Baby, 916 NW 10th Ave, 503-478-7674, www.poshbaby.com; not for bargain hunters, this Pearl District store sells strollers, toys, furniture, and accessories.
Spielwerk Toys, 7556 SE 13th Ave, 503-736-3000, 3808 N Williams Ave, 503-282-2233, www.spielwerktoys.com, specializes in classic, old-school wooden toys and creative aids.
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Thinker Toys, 7784 SW Capitol Hwy, 503-245-3936, www.thinkertoysoregon.com, in Multnomah Village, sells a large selection of toys, games, and kits for preschoolers to high schoolers.
Music
The quality and range of music sellers in Portland is truly astounding. In addition to the standard assortment of mall chain stores, big-box retailers, and book/record/DVD purveyors, there are nearly two dozen independent record and CD shops in the city of Portland alone. Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard boasts the largest concentration of these shops, but every Eastside neighborhood seems to have at least one claustrophobic but much-loved used record store. Many of Portland’s indie record shops specialize in specific genres—punk is a particular favorite—while others practically define the word eclectic; virtually any music store in the city is worth a browse. The biggest, best-known independent store is Music Millennium, 3158 E Burnside St, 503-231-8926, www.musicmillennium.com, which hosts frequent in-store shows.
Party Supplies
Got balloons for that housewarming party? If not, you could visit your local supermarket’s customer service desk. Better yet, pay a visit to Lippman Company, 50 SE Yamhill St, 503-239-7007, www.lippmancompany.com. This festive establishment offers 12,000 square feet of party favors, pirate gear, balloons, costumes, and other party supplies in the Eastside Industrial District. Come for the helium tanks, stay for the practical joke selection.
Photo Supplies and Processing
When your photo processing needs go beyond 35mm prints, Blue Moon Camera and Machine, 8417 N Lombard St, 503-978-0333, www.bluemooncamera.com, in the heart of St. Johns, processes all kinds of arcane and rare film types. As a further gesture to iconoclasm, Blue Moon also sells refurbished manual typewriters. The more mainstream Pro Photo Supply, 1112 NW 19th Ave, 503-241-1112, 800-835-3314, www.prophotosupply.com, also has a photo lab and sells cameras, lenses and other accessories, photo paper, and ink.
