12396 Sat Feb 07 23:00:56 -0800 2004 7 4 Pacific Northwest 0 22389 So, I just got accepted at Reed College and will be going out there come August. Silly chowpuppy that I am, I'm already looking for places to eat. Mostly interested in unpretentious places with good vegetarian options (especially any fantastic soups out there), small ethnic places, and anywhere with an outstanding breakfast menu, and CHEAP is always good too. Also--coffee and tea? Local bakeries? The best place for artisan breads? Hehe, I guess I'm just a bit ecstatic about getting into school and not having to worry about _that_ anymore; this must be part of how I'm celebrating... Sat Feb 07 23:00:56 -0800 2004 0 kate 1 22392 How far away are you willing to wander? Luckily, you're in the Morelands, close to Sellwood and Woodstock, not far from Foster really, or 39th. Sun Feb 08 02:41:51 -0800 2004 22389 0 Nick 2 22401 Welcome to a soon-to-be fellow reedie! I think that you'll find a great selection of cheap ethnic food around Reed and Portland. All of the following are veggie friendly. Tom Yum Thai Food (just up the hill on Woodstock) They serve great soups, along with a very nice selection of thai. I recommend the pad see eew highly as one of the best in PDX. Delta Cafe (on Woodstock) Somewhat veggie friendly, this is a southern/louisiana style place. Never seen soup on the menu. Much better soul food can be found on NE MLK Jr Blvd at Yam Yam's. Om Seafood Restaurant (Powell Blvd) It's open every day from 11:30 to 11:30, the staff are actually chinese, and it caters to an Asian crowd. I ordered the Duck Supreme Soup and steamed sea bass with garlic. It comes with free white rice and very good tea. The Duck soup had a ton of flavor and the small size was the size of a large bowl to serve 4 or 6 individual bowl servings. The steamed sea bass came with rice noodles and was a delight. The fish was fresh, perfectly cooked, tender, and excellently complimented by a very complex garlic sauce. It could have served four easily. So I spent $15 and have had 3 separate meals from it. El Palenque Sellwood - Salvadorean/Mexican Food They are generous with their free basket of chips and make a great salsa. Don't bother with the guacamole, it's outrageously priced. Huge portions otherwise, with good mole and buritos. Fat Albert's Cafe (Westmoreland) Fat Albert's is an old school place for those of us who appreciate the quirks of diners. So expect cash and checks only, brisk, motherly waitresses, full test and decaf coffee only (none of that expresso nonsense), and artery clogging food. However, unlike your grandma's diner, this food is fresh, great, and mmm-good! The biscuits are made there fresh and so good, and they make breakfast food the way it is supposed to be made. The eggs, whether fried or over easy, are never tough, the sausage gravy is some of the best I've had, and the omelets are great. Pretty veggie friendly, although I'm not sure they use separate utensils for veggie and meat. You'll walk out of there spending $8 or less for a meal to hold you all day. One caveat: unfortunately the masses know about it, so either head there early or late and be expected to wait since it's a tiny place. India Oven (corner of Hawthorne & 39th) Pretty good indian, with bonus of low prices. India House (downtown) Very good. Buffet at lunch is a huge bargain. Unfortunately, with the ongoing replacement of the Bybee bridge until Nov, the 19 bus no longer takes you directly from Reed to Westmoreland and Sellwood. Anything on Hawthorne, Belmont, or Powell is pretty easy to get to via the 72 bus along 39th. If you have a car, all are acessible. Downtown is only 15 minutes away by bus. I know I'm forgetting a ton of great places, so if there's any fave ethnicities missing, I can probably supply a personal favorite. Artisanal breads - Ken's the best, but Grand Central Bakery is good too. Pastaworks on Hawthorne carry them, as well as Zupan's on Belmont. Tea - Tao of Tea is the best. You can buy it at their Belmont location or enjoy their tea with various asian vegetarian goodies. They're also downtown in the Chinese Garden. SarahWS Sun Feb 08 20:36:18 -0800 2004 22392 0 SarahWS 1 22423 Congrats. I live a few blocks from Reed..it's an interesting place (and beautiful campus.) Seems like an invigorating and intellectual school, and the coffee shop serves a wicked mocha for prices unheard of in this city. I teach at a local secondary school and know a great girl who will also be attending. Where are you coming from? That will have an impact on what you like (i.e. Hunan vs. Szechuan Chinese, Korean options vs. an abundance of Vietnemese) and what you expect. Having gone to school in NY, I find myself craving the take-out Chinese as well as Lebanese street food. We have much better Thai and Sushi here(IMHO.) In the Reed/Crestan 'hood you'll find Yokos, which is my favorite sushi - they have a tempura asparagus and crab roll, as well as a walla-walla roll (tempura onion and crab with, um...) that are just to die for. C-bar, right next door, is my favorite for a good drink and panini, though you may have a few years to wait until you get to sample the place. Oregon's liqour control is OBSCENE so I recommend limiting your consumption to closed quarters. I second the previous suggestion of Delta Cafe. Yum. I can't suggest the Thai place on Woodstock (name? i tend to block out details regarding bad meals) nor the Chinese. Pix Patisserie, on Division (South of Hawthorne - that is, closer to Reed, as Reed is very deep in SE Portland) is a great hang out and serves the most divine desserts this side of France. Perhaps the best desserts in France as well - I spent two weeks in Provence and Paris over the holidays and had one dessert that could rival those found at Pix. There are gazillions of great cafes/coffee shops/brunch spots in SE. My new favorite is a co-op on SE 6th and Market called the Red Wing Cafe. Amazing baked goods, scrumptious soups, yummy sandwhiches, fantastic prices. Another favorite coffee spot is Palio in Ladd's Addition, though the coffee sucks. Ambiance is perfect though - I spent many a college break sipping herbal tea and reading old National Geographics there. Portland is, again IMHO, the best the US has to offer. The food, the people, the quality of life, the summers, the public transportation...tap into each of these and you'll find many spots of your own. Just make sure to share them with us! Mon Feb 09 23:53:09 -0800 2004 22389 0 rachaelLK 2 22429 Rachel, I bike by C Bar everyday - is it open? Has the OLCC shut it down? I wasn't sure what you meant by your post. It looks like a really cool place to hang and one of these evenings I will stop by on my way home. Tue Feb 10 11:12:56 -0800 2004 22423 0 Justine 3 22441 Hey there, Last time I was there it was open (duh!) That was over a month ago. They open at 5 every day - the garage doors don't swing up until the summer so it may be tough to discern whether or not they're going at it. It's a great place. Very Portland - indie rocker bartenders, emo blasting on the stereo, a nice array of microbrews. Rachael Tue Feb 10 23:48:02 -0800 2004 22429 0 rachaelLK 1 22693 Wow, thanks to everyone for the awesome recommendations! Makes me even more psyched to be leaving for school. To Rachael--I'm from Vermont, the Burlington area, which has an enormous number of dining establishments per capita. It's not a diverse area, so I've found the ethnic pickings a bit slim, though there are several cafes that serve a nice melange of Thai-Vietnamese-sushi-etc. What we do have up here is a lot of really fantastic local produce and lots of little hippy-dippy places that really know their veggies--hence, I'm a farmer's market fiend and a bit of a produce snob, so any tips on the best places for fruits and veggies are welcome. Another thought: seafood. I'm sure the options in Portland are much better than those in Vermont (the only landlocked New England state!)... so I'd love to hear people's advice in terms of that, as well. Sat Feb 21 11:38:32 -0800 2004 22389 0 kate 1 22785 Congrats on going to Reed. I'm an alum, so I'll give you a few pointers. I lived in Portland for six years after graduation, so most of these places are about town. But frankly, getting out of Sellwood will help put Reed in perspective and make the whole experience a little nicer. Food shopping - it's the west coast, so most stores are better than, say, Nashville where I live now. People's Food Co-op has good (but expensive organic) produce and they used to run a farmer's market. Zupan's, Stroehecker's and Nature's (fancy-schmancy) and a little more down to earth is Sheridan's on SE 3rd which has good produce, wine and a nice selection of olives. Best list (all highly opinionated, with no justification) Best Sushi - Mio Sushi (NW) Best Thai - Thai Orchid or Thai Peacock Best Late Night - Montage (good food), Roxy (skanky), Original Hot Cake House (required for graduation). Best Indian - Bombay Cricket Club (yum!) Best Chinese (dim sum division) - Legin Restaurant Best Pizza (real) - Escape From New York Best Pizza (Hippie) - Bella Faccia Pizzeria Best Pizza Honorable Mention - Hot Lips, Pizzicato, Pizza Oasis Best Coffee - Peet's Best Espresso - Cafe Torrefazione Best funky breakfast place for vegetarian freshman Reedies - Cup & Saucer Cafe (Hawthorne) their motto "Same Day Service" Best Overlooked Coffee Place - Old Friends and True Brew, this was my local, so I'm biased. They have a fiercely loyal band of regulars who like the mellow atmosphere. It's on the 19 bus route. Best Food Cart Downtown for a vegetarian - (tie) Pasta From Venus and Honkin' Huge Burritoes. Best Burrito - La Sirenita (NE Alberta) (although I hear El Burrito Loco is amazing) Best Burrito where the bathroom is in a stripclub next door for no apparently good reason - El Grillo Best Seafood (since you asked) - Jake's or McCormick and Schmick (these places are both expensive, but Jake's has an affordable lunch menu) Best Place I feel compelled to mention - Bernie's Southern Bistro (screw the Delta) You should check out Citysearch for Portland. It is more or less accurate (link included). Any Asian food is going to be better than the best in Vermont and the coffee kicks ass - in a few years you will find that so does the beer. Have a good time, read your Iliad (Take notes! You won't remember a thing when you get to conference!) and enjoy Portland. Most Reedies take a few years to get off campus and discover the city. Try to experience the city outside of the Hawthorne/Downtown/Sellwood home range. Portland is a superior city for bike riding, I highly recommend bringing one or buying one so you can get around. Finally the groovy walk/shop/eat districts are Ne Alberta, SE Hawthorne, NW 23rd/21st and the Pearl District. Link: http://portland.citysearch.com/best/categories/2003/?cslink=cs_home_4_4_More%20... Wed Feb 25 21:35:17 -0800 2004 22389 0 Ian