June 2007 – Page 3

Portland: Voodoo Doughnuts, Stumptown Coffee, and other “stuff”

June 5, 2007 mmm-yoso Caffeine Fix, Desserts, Portland, Oregon, Travel

For people who don’t like to eat in restaurants, the In-Laws sure did enjoy the breakfast buffets at the Embassy Suites. I on the other had other things in mind. And though several people mentioned that the location of the Embassy Suites in Downtown Portland was right on the "edge" of the more "scary" part of Downtown Portland, we had no problems. In fact I loved that we were just a block away from two of my favorite places in Portland.

The first being Voodoo Doughnuts.

This small and dark little doughnut shop with the edgy-punk look makes up some pretty good doughnuts.

And though there are many "fun" and offbeat names….stuff like the "Triple Chocolate Penetration", the "Arnold Palmer", and the ah..ahem, "Cock-n-Balls", being the unhip and boring Guy that I am…I just order the Old Fashioned Glazed. Now the Missus needs to undergo some serious Krispy Kreme deprogramming, She found the doughnut too light and fluffy, and gasp"…. old fashioned", but not so bad that She was able to hold off taking a bite until I took a photo.

As you can see it is good stuff! Reminds me of the doughnuts we used to get at this little renegade doughnut shop in Honolulu Chinatown. The shop located in a tiny doorway would only open from midnight to about 6 am, and made some great doughnuts.

Voodoo Doughnut
22 Sw 3rd Ave
Portland, OR 97204

It was my plan to take my doughnut down the street and grab a cup o’ joe from my favorite coffee shop in Portland(the doughnut never made it):

Stumptown Coffee Roasters.

Now from what I understand Stumptown hand roasts all their own coffee beans in small batches. Just watching the Baristas hard at work, you can tell they’re pros.

And though the crew is rather "detached" and the room cavernous(better for the afternoon DJ, I guess) and loud. The coffee is always rich and smooth. All three cups I had there were excellent. The Missus even thought the coffee was "too smooth", and lacked character….sounds like She needs some Starbucks deprogramming as well!

Stumptown Coffee Roasters
128 Sw 3rd Ave
Portland, OR 97204

After breakfast we met up and walked the 2-3 blocks to the Portland Saturday Market, which I’ve posted on before , so I thought I’d just do a few photos.

Now the In-Laws are not big on lunch, so I managed to sneak in a "snack" from this booth:

I ordered some Pierogies($4.75). You know me and dumplings! A friend’s Mom used to always make us fresh pierogies when she visited, and boy did I love them! These however, were not that good.

The toppings were much better than the pierogies. The potatoes were really dry. But still this was more than enough carbs to keep me going.

You see, the day was just beginning. With the help of FOY ("friend of yoso") Guilty Carnivore(thanks, man!), I was able to plan our day to the last detail. Some timing was involved, you see, even though the Max Light Rail ran every few minutes to Washington Park, the Washington Park Shuttle wasn’t beginning service until later in the month. So we had to coordinate our arrival with Route 63, or wait up to an hour between buses. As it happened we did well, and made to our destination…..first

The International Rose Test Garden.

And though we were a bit early in the season, and many of the roses weren’t in bloom, we still enjoyed the beauty of it all.

We also made time for the Portland Japanese Garden which is right across the street, also worth a visit.

I was surprised at how the photos turned out from my little ultracompact camera……

We managed to catch the Bus back to downtown and after getting the In-Laws settled and a short break went out for dinner……

To Be Continued!

Shizuoka Japanese Restaurant -It’s been in La Mesa for all those years for a reason

June 4, 2007 Cathy Japanese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Welcome to mmm-yoso the blog. Today, it’s Cathy’s turn because Kirk just doesn’t want to blog.

Hello again, friends. As you know I live in East County and sort of know the area. If you are familiar, then…over there on Fletcher Parkway, where the Souplantation and Michael’s are – in that strip mall- is, and has been, Shizuoka. There are 12 or 13 tables inside, depending how you divide up those in the center, they have never expanded or extended their lunch hours or dinner hours, and the menu has stayed pretty much the same over all these years. (The dinners are 50¢ more than lunch and beef is $1 more than chicken). 17 or 18 years, in fact. Sure, prices have gone up in general, but for the most part, that is it. You still walk in and the nice ladies all say ‘hello’ (and they all say ‘goodbye’ when you leave). The tables are always set with paper napkins and chopsticks. The hot tea has always been free. Sure, its served in a plastic teapot, with plastic teacups , but it is always fresh and tasty.

Pretty much everything comes with miso soup, which always has seaweed and tofu in it and it is always hot. It isn’t the instant miso but made from the paste.

Rich broth. Soft, silky tofu. Re-hydrated seaweed, with flavor.

We got the Chicken Karage as an appetizer ($3.20). Quite a lot of dark meat chicken, lightly breaded with a slightly spicy batter and served with a Ponzu sauce.

Light, crispy, flavorful without the sauce and…well…only $3.20. It was a great start.

We each just wanted teriyaki Bentos this evening and I got the chicken with gyoza as my other choice. ($6.20)

All the Bento Boxes are served with a green salad with a nice ginger sesame dressing , a delightful cold noodle salad that is consistently al dente and has a wonderful mayonnaise based sauce and, the square of tofu in the middle.

The Mister got the beef teriyaki with his additional choice being sashimi- tuna, sliced thinly, in three pieces… but it had flavor.

Oh, the teriyaki sauce is a deeper flavor than I have had at other places and is not sickly sweet. My gyoza were filled with a well seasoned ground pork filling with water chestnuts and a small amount of scallion, adding just the right flavor as well as texture. The gyoza skins are not too thick nor thin and the gyoza are fried to a nice crispness.

This place does a brisk take out business and is always busy. There is a wait, it is a teensy waiting area and you will be seated in the order you walk in and stand there. It is best to get there when they first open (they are closed between lunch and dinner) so you can be assured of a seat. It is a wonderful, small, not fancy place with great fresh food.

Shizuoka Japanese Restaurant 9118 Fletcher Parkway La Mesa 91942 (619)461-1151 (in the mall with the Souplantation and Michael’s)

Tues-Fri 11:30-1:45, 4:30-8:45 Sat and Sun 4:30-8:45

Portland: More Foodcarts, Mio Gelato, and Kell’s Irish Restaurant & Pub

June 3, 2007 mmm-yoso Desserts, Indian Restaurants, Portland, Oregon, Pubs and Pub Grub, Thai Restaurants

When I asked my In-Laws where they wanted to visit on this trip to the Mainland, they said Seattle. They also said they wanted to go by train……. Which was no problem really, I've taken Amtrak's Coast Starlight several times, though my trips have always been from Seattle to LA. So what we did was send off the In-Laws on Amtrak, and leave on a flight the next morning since the Coast Starlight takes about 36 hours to reach Portland. We arrived a bit early, and got to our hotel at about 1pm. Since the standard check-in time is 3pm, I thought we'd check our luggage, get a bite to eat, and stretch our legs a bit. When we arrived I went to the Bellman and asked to check my bags. In the typical Portland manner, he told me, "that would be fine, but why don't you just check at the front desk, your room might be ready." And to my surprise our 2 bedroom suite was ready. Seems like my lucky day. After freshening up a bit, we were starved, and just wanted something quick to eat…and I knew just the place!

Yep, we headed to the food carts that line SW 5th Avenue. Now I had told the Missus about these food carts, and she saw my photos and my previous post, but there's nothing quite like being there yourself. The only problem was deciding what to get…..

The Missus settled on some Indian Food, not from the New Taste of India…

But from the "Real" Taste of India a few carts down. Talk about competition!

Now this food cart had a 9th anniversary special going on….some chicken-something or other, but the Missus was in the mood for lamb, and ordered the Lamb Saagwala, cubes of lamb cooked in a spinach, garlic, and ginger sauce/stew($7.00).

The portion size was quite large, and we weren't able to finish it. There was an abundance of well prepared and moist lamb. Didn't quite know what to expect, and this was better than what I had anticipated. I thought that the pieces of ginger were too large and disrupted my tastebuds at inopportune times, but the Missus loved it! In fact, She told me it was Her best meal in Portland….She was kidding….I think…….

In the midst of ordering paralysis, I decided to grab something from this Food Cart, called Thai Sky(????):

Since we had plans for a nice dinner, I decided on the Daily Special, Pad Kee Mao(Drunken Noodles) with Tofu($5.00):

I ordered this at medium heat, and it was a bit hotter than what I consider medium. The noodles were done well, they where a nice al dente. The flavor was interesting, I'm used to Pad Kee Mao that's had a bit of a sweet flavor, this version just had a mild soy(not fish sauce) flavor. Still, it did the job, which was to hold me over until dinner.

There's a ton of construction on 5th and 6th avenues for a new Max rail line called Green Line which will connect Portland State University to Union Station. So signs like the one on the right are on Evey corner listing the businesses. Did I mention that I love the public transportation system in Portland?

At about this time the Missus got a call from Her Mom telling Her that their train had been delayed about 2 hours. so we decided to take a walk around Portland. And after doing a bit of window shopping, the Missus told me that She needed "something sweet". Which was no problem since we were just up the street from Mio Gelato.

This coffeeshopish looking Gelato joint had always been full everytime I passed it on my last trip to Portland, so I figured it must be worth a try. The Missus did the ordering, so we don't remember the prices. But She got one scoop of Grapefruit, and one scoop of Mango.

Not being much of a "sweets" person, I found the Grapefruit to be very much to my liking ( all credit to the Missus here). Refreshing and palate cleansing, it was very nice. Both the Missus (who has a sweet tooth) and I found the mango gelato to be overly sweet and rich, which overpowered any mango flavor.

Still, I can see why this place is very popular.

**** Mio Gelato has closed

Mio Gelato
25 NW 11th Ave
Portland, OR 97209

As we made our way back to the hotel, the Missus received another call from Her Mom saying that the train is further delayed…bummer! And though the Missus's Parents were not as late as we thought, by the time we got them settled, and something to eat (they have an aversion to eating in restaurants), we were very tired. So with some reluctance we crossed Biwa off our list, and walked on over to Kell's 2 blocks away.

Having been to Kell's in Seattle, I knew more or less what to expect, and really won't go into details here. Though as always, the Missus asked if they had some rice for Her Irish Stew(maybe one of these days they will) which was pretty good. And She enjoyed the soda bread.

Everyone was ordering sandwiches and burgers, but I ordered the Fish and Chips which were pretty bad. The fish dry and flavorless, and the chips are basic "industrial" fries.

Still, that draft Boddington's was nice, not overly chilled, but a perfect "cool", nice and mildly creamy, with a sweet finish. After a sip, the Missus decided that She wanted the Boddington's, so I ordered a Harp, which I thought would be too bitter for Her, but after a sip She decided that "this" was Her beer. So I finished with a draft Guinness, which I know the Missus won't touch. Strangely, it tasted over carbonated and very dull in flavor. Oh well, we were still in Portland, and had another whole day ahead of us!

Kell's Irish Restaurant & Pub
112 Sw 2nd Ave
Portland, OR 97204

Postscript: The Kindness of Portland Part 1

You know, I've written about the sincere kindness of the people of Portland before. But still, I'm always surprised…….

We were taking a break at Pioneer Courthouse Square, just having a seat to rest our feet a bit. And we noticed amongst all the construction, there seemed to be a major "to do" being set-up.

We were wondering what this event was. Just about that time, a Police Officer happened to walk past, and the Missus decided to ask him. Now usually we'd get a gruff "I don't know", or some distracted answer…. But this Gentleman replied; "I'm just on duty, so let me find out, I'll be right back…" Which made me feel really bad, I didn't want to be taking up His time. A few minutes later, He's walking back to us, and is talking on a cellphone. As he walks up to us, we can overhear that he's asking someone our question! Now, I'm really feeling guilty, since I'm sure he has more important things to do….. By the time he reached us, I could tell that he'd made a few calls, and he explained to us, what this was. Funny thing is, neither the Missus nor I can remember what event this was. But we sure remember that police officer! As I tried to mutter an apology for taking up his precious time, he smiled and told me, "well, you may be the first person who asks me what is going on here, but you probably won't be the last. So I better know what's happening." As he left, he introduced Himself and shook our hands….. So here's to you Officer Thompson! You're a great ambassador for the City of Portland!

15th Annual City Heights International Village Celebration

June 2, 2007 mmm-yoso Festivals & Events

I thought I’d do this post as early as possible, so if you do read it today (June 2, 2007) you’ll still have time to make on over to the 15th Annual City Heights International Village Celebration. The event is put on for the racially diverse community of City Heights by the City Heights Community Development Corporation. This year the festival has moved from University Ave to City Heights Urban Village Park located on the corner of Fairmount Avenue and Wrightman Avenue.

And though this year, the "May Grey" has turned into the "June Gloom", the festival was still as crowded as ever.

As always, the fair hosts a very large career fair and also provides health screenings, as well as other health related information.

060207_025

And as always there is a "Kid-Zone" with rides and other games for children.

But of course, this is a food blog……and even though I thought this year’s offerings, food-wise were not as abundant, or diverse as last year’s, there was enough to keep one in a constant state of needing a nap.

If you remember last year’s post, I was torn when faced with this……

The "hungry me" on one shoulder told me to "get it! How often do you eat TJ-style hot dogs…." The "responsible me" on the other shoulder said; "come on, can’t you hear your arteries screaming for mercy…you’re killing me, literally!"

So what to do….. Well, I needed to make a closer investigation…..

Which in retrospect was a big mistake….because you know which "me" won out!!!!

So this is the way I rationalized it. Last year "responsible me" won out, so this year, in the spirit of giving equal time…..

So next year, it probably back to "responsible me"….or maybe not. The bacon wrapped hot dog($4), was nice and moist, the crisp bacon wrapping the dog added good flavor(the Missus specifically chose a dog with an abundance of crisp bacon), and the onions, jalapenos, and peppers added some nice flavor. We did draw the line on the mayo though….

We hurried home and I kinda wrote this in a rush, so you’ll still have time to make it since the Fair runs until 6pm.

The favorite photo of the day?

San Diego’s Finest, at their finest. Seems like everyone enjoys a good fair!

You can find last year’s post here.

15th Annual City Heights International Village Celebration
Saturday, June 2, 2007
10am-6pm
Location: City Heights Urban Village Park