Postcard from Portland, Version Brunch

I know my postcards are usually all in one, but we ate a particularly incredible amount of noteworthy food in the Rose City.  This was our first visit to the Pacific Northwest, and we thank our cousins A&S for being awesome, having a delish baby and cuddly dog, and moving to Portland, OR. 

Today I bring you Brunch.

First up: Simpatica.  The wise cousins wanted to go to Tasty n Sons, but the wait was forever.  Don't worry, we went later in the week.  Simpatica may have been a backup, but it was just what the doctor ordered after a long (but direct) flight.  Please see the exhibits:

The Logger: Chicken-fried bison with sausage gravy, eggs, and potatoes. J is so into the gravy lately.  See, e.g. Jake Moon Cafe and Rooster Cafe.

Short rib hash with ramps, radishes, beet greens, fingerling potatoes, spring onions, and eggies.  That's me, if you couldn't tell.

Smoked salmon strata with onions, kale, carrots, and the best Hollandaise any of us had ever tasted. 

Frittatta with asparagus, speck (smoked prosciutto), chiles, and pecorino romano.  We loved every bite of this brunch, and I would definitely recommend it.  Would I go back next time I'm in Portland? That's hard to say, because there's still so much we wanted to try but didn't get the chance.




We saw a clip on Unique Eats about the Waffle Window and knew it was a for sure stop for us.  They have endless combinations.  Dessert, breakfast, snack, whatever it is, you can find it at the Window.  We ordered, waited, and sat outside in a sort of parking lot picnic area.  The day was impossibly sunny, and we were psyched.

J went sweet---bananas, whipped cream, chocolate sauce.  I went savory--brie, bacon and basil.  WW is a great place for a snack - you could have a bowl of cereal at 9, go to WW at 10:30, and have lunch at 12 without a problem.  It's delicious, affordable, and the variety is super fun.

Pine State Biscuits was on DDD at some point, but we saw it on Unique Eats. Three southern dudes move to Portland and opened a place where you can get it all...on a biscuit.

Sweet tea in a mason jar.  Squeeze that lemon, J-love.

Fried chicken, cheese, egg, on a biscuit.

The Reggie: Fried chicken, cheese, bacon, gravy. (That's J.)

There is nothing not to like about Pine State Biscuits.  Go for a $4 egg and cheese up, or the $8 Wedgie: fried chicken, fried green tomato, iceberg lettuce, and blue cheese.  Get a southern side blackeyed peas, hushpuppies, or collard greens.  The service is friendly, the place is tiny (but adorable), and you should definitely stop there if you get the chance. 

Remember Tasty n Sons from our first day in Portland?  Really long wait (it was Sunday, after all), followed by Simpatica saving the day? Well we couldn't leave it at that.  We had to go.  The day was Thursday, the wait was none, but somehow there were still a lot of people in that restaurant for a weekday.

It's important to get to know your chocolate potato doughnut.  Cut it open.  Savor it.  Share it with your best friend, because there's a lot more to come.

For example, see the below:  Glazed yams, lil' chicken hash, biscuit and eggs...

 

We really liked everything we had at Tasty's.  We had a really hard time narrowing down the menu, so I suggest you go with a group of 3+ to try more stuff.  They have small plates and larger plates, and I pretty much wanted to try all of it.  We sat at a bar-like area and could see the kitchen prepping.  The ingredients were fresh and delicious, and that's what made the food so great.  Please don't leave here without eating the glazed yams.  They were the last thing we lobbed onto our order, and they were my faaaaavorite.

That's it for brunch in Portland.  I hope my memory doesn't dissolve before I get to the other meals...

Have a great week!