Eats
Photo by Dan Gold on Unsplash
Food
Portland is a foodie town. There's so much to choose from - from food carts (solo or in "pods"), restaurants, bars. A law that requires bars with "full on premises" liquor sales to also serve food encourages bars to offer a handful of quality items, instead of deep frying everything.
- Travel Portland offers a guide to city food cart pods
- Endless Distances has a guide to gluten-free spots (if you're part of the GF4L cult)
- Best Thai restaurant, Reddit thread
Free fruit!
On account of the climate, fruit trees and bushes are super fertile, and some yield so much you can pick 'em for free! Check out:
Groceries
Groceries out here can range from Wow! So cheap, these bulk bins to holy mother of God how much for a handful of pecans?!?
Cheaper
- Winco. No style, no Muzak or 1980s hits (someone quipped they don't play it because they're too cheap), best prices in town on a wide array of stuff. No stores in close in Portland, but worth the schlep to the East or South. Suburban stores may have more selection. Amazing selection of super cheap bulk foods, from coarse salt to gummy worms, granola to cashews.
- Trader Joe's. The national cult favorite chain.
- Grocery Outlet, a.k.a., Gross Out. Some seemingly random remaindered/expired/failed product experiment, i.e., Cool Ranch Twizzlers. Some very good deals. Best nickname of all time.
- Everyday Deals. Two stores in East Portland. No review yet.
- Chef'Store, 731 SE Stephens. Lots of restaurant-sized items, like 136 oz. Sambal Oelek chilly paste. Pretty good prices on bulk meats and fish. I bought 5 pounds of trout.
More expensive
- New Seasons. Despite being a B-Corp, prices are pretty high. Better quality produce and meats. Often, but not always, better music. No nickname coined, yet.
- Natural Grocers. Kind of pricey, but can beat New Seasons on some items. Lots of good bulk foods, organic stuff. Check the sale items.
- Whole Foods, a.k.a., Whole Paycheck. National chain, high quality, prices reflected in the nickname. Bezos can French kiss a goat, but hey, sometimes you want a $5 gluten-free 1.5oz mochi.
- QFC, a.k.a., Quick, Find Cash! High prices. No review yet.
- Providore Fine Foods. Fancy-ass, no review yet.
Lottery money
- Zupan's Markets. Hella expensive! Best to shop when a wealthy relative is paying. Proposed Halloween costume: Zupan's receipt.
Specialty
- Hong Phat Asian Market on 82nd St. Competitive prices on an array of common stuff, and lots of less common goods (unless you're a master of Asian cooking, then it's just another day at the market).
- Asian Family Market. Way out in Beaverton, but worth the trip for 1 gallon kimchi(!) and unique snacks.
- Fiji Emporium. Carries Fijian and Indian specialties, spices, cassette tapes. Charmingly disheveled. In North Portland.