Exploring Portland, U.S.A.

The City of Roses will surely blossom your trip to the Pacific Northwest. Portland, Oregon has so much to offer to any Adventurer who wants to experience this unique city. In a place which supports local restaurants, shops, and markets, you will find people who pride themselves with living and supporting local establishments. So if you are curious on why locals “Keep Portland Weird” be sure to keep reading below!

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Transportation

• Portland International Airport: Voted by Travel and Leisure Magazine as the #1 airport in the United States for 7 years in a row. Airports across the United States can be stressful and confusing, but PDX puts the customer first and is easy to navigate. You can reach Portland from any corner of the United States, with major airlines such as Alaska, Southwest, and Delta serving many domestic and international destinations.

Portland’s airport is also a prime spot for shopping and grabbing a bite to eat. Scared of high airport prices? Don’t be! PDX has street pricing for all of its vendors which is a major win for the customer! Remember, no sales tax in the State of Oregon!

PDX is constantly looking for ways to improve its customer experience and to continue to hold the title of “Best Airport in the United States”. The PDX Next Team is looking to improve this already amazing airport to be better than ever! With more restaurant, shops and modern concourses, PDX will have it all! For all updates on the future of Portland International Airport make sure to check out what the PDX Next Team has cooking up here.

“Keep Portland Weird” Tip: Locals are obsessed with the old Portland Airport carpet! The carpet which was laid in 1987 became a huge hit with people from around the world traveling to Portland just to take a picture of the carpet. People would merchandise, get tattoos, or even buy shoes with the pattern. With recent renovations and new carpet being installed at the airport, it is rare to find the original carpet. Only one area of the airport still dawns the famous patterned carpet, which is located near the A Gates. The bad news is you only have until November of 2019 to get a famous shoe selfie since the airport is saying goodbye to the A Gates as a part of the PDX Next project.

• Tri Met MAX: An easy and cost effective way to get around the city is to take the Tri Met MAX, for short, the MAX! It’s only $5 per person for a day pass and if you fly into PDX, there is a stop right there at the airport! It has a few different lines that can take you to most everything you want to see in Portland.

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To-Do

• Powell’s City of Books: The World’s Largest Independent Bookstore has been around since 1971 and is without a doubt the most impressive bookstore we have ever been to. There are about 1 million books in different color coded sections, meaning there is literally something for everyone!

We could have spent days wandering throughout the store looking at all the different genres of books. It was so overwhelming though that we ended up just heading to the travel section-of course! We could go broke in there with all the fascinating books on travel to dozens of countries.

• International Rose Test Garden: Since Portland is the city of roses, the International Rose Test Garden is a must see! Since 1917, this garden is home to hundreds upon hundreds of beautiful roses to see and smell.

The entry is free and it is open from 7:30am-9pm. The easiest way to get to the garden is to take the MAX to the closest station, Washington Park and then hop on the free shuttle to take you around the park.

• Portland Waterfront: If you are looking for a nice stroll or to find a nice bench to people watch, the Portland Waterfront is the place to be. Overlooking the Willamette River and some of Portland’s famous bridges, we enjoyed taking a stroll along the river walk. Tom McCall Waterfront Park goes alongside the riverwalk and the tall evergreen trees provide nice shade. If you bring a blanket to place on the grass, you can even have a nice picnic!

“Keep Portland Weird” Tip: If you are visiting during the 4th of July be sure not to miss the fireworks over the Willamette River. Locals flock hours before to try and grab a good view along the riverwalk. If you want to see the fireworks right above your head you can also find a tour service to take you on a boat or wait patiently to try and secure a spot on the Hawthorne Bridge.

• Portland Saturday Market: If you want to get a good feel for local life in Portland as well as get some awesome local souvenirs, you should spend some time at the Portland Saturday Market. It is open on Saturdays from 10am to 5pm and also on Sundays from 11am to 4:30pm. There is an assortment of different stands with locally made items ranging from lotions to jewelry to paintings. The best way to get to the market is to ride the MAX and exit at the Skidmore Fountain Station. 

“Keep Portland Weird” Tip: Try some of the many famous Portland food carts which serve up foods from all over the World. We had some yummy Polish food at one of the food carts, so make sure you bring your appetite.

• Go Bar Hopping: If bar hopping is your thing, Portland has some really great bars, cider houses, and breweries to check out!
  • • • Cider Bite: Located in Portland’s Pearl District, this Cider House has an awesome selection of ciders and some good bites of food to eat as well. It’s a great chance to catch up and enjoy the atmosphere.

We got a couple of cider flights which included Baked Apple, Peach, Banana Bliss, Easy Squeezy, Old Mule and Pina Colada. We really liked all of the different ciders that we tried and they ranged from sweet to dry. We also ordered some chips and salsa and a cheeseboard to snack on, which were both very good. Altogether with tip, we spent $52.

• • • • Backwoods Brewing Company: This local brewery was founded in 2012 and has some great reviews so we thought we would stop by for a couple of drinks. If you’re not a huge fan of beer, there are some other options of wine, cider, or cocktails.

Jonah had a beer flight which included the Logyard IPA (Flagship IPA), Into The Backwoods We Gose, Pecan Pie Porter, Imperial Maple Porter, and the Dreamsicle. Sierra got the Spanish Coffee cocktail which was really delicious, although quite a strong drink. With tip, our drinks came out to $24. Although we didn’t try any of their food, the menu looked incredible so we are definitely planning on coming back.

• • • • Back Pedal Brewing: Another great place located in the Pearl District, this brewery also has a couple of cider options if beer is not your thing. The bartender suggested the Flockahops IPA which did not disappoint.

This place is a fun place to hangout where you can play some of the many boardgames that they provide. They do not serve food at this brewing company but you are more than welcome to bring in some from neighboring restaurants. They also partner with BrewCycle where you can enjoy booze on wheels!

“Keep Portland Weird” Tip: The Pearl District located in NW Portland is famous for its many delicious breweries and restaurants. If you are thirsty make sure to definitely stop by this district. Just remember to drink responsibly!

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Food

• Pine State Biscuits: If you are looking for some delicious hearty breakfast, look no further than Pine State Biscuits! With a few different locations around Portland, there are plenty of different biscuit options and you can build your own biscuit breakfast as well. Be sure to arrive early or during a weekday as lines on the weekend to get inside to order can take between 45 minutes to an hour! Either way it is definitely worth the wait!

We both got the reggie deluxe which is a biscuit with fried chicken, bacon & cheese topped with gravy (mushroom or sausage) and an egg. Jonah made his spicy by having the chicken dipped in buffalo sauce. It was quite filling and really delicious! We also each had a glass of the fresh squeezed orange juice, which was really good (Organic Columbia Gorge OJ). For 2 biscuits and 2 OJs, we spent about $40.

“Keep Portland Weird” Tip: Portlander’s love waiting in lines… Some might find this crazy, but locals do not mind waiting in long lines to try some amazing local food! So if you see a long line outside of a restaurant, the locals approve!

• Voodoo Doughnut: You can’t come to Portland and not go to the iconic Voodoo! Now there are a few different locations in Portland, but the original location is the one located on 22 SW 3rd Avenue. Voodoo is quirky and cool, just like Portland, and their doughnuts are delicious.

It is open 24/7 so you can go whenever! They used to only accept cash but thankfully they now accept cards as well.

They are definitely on the sweeter side so if you’re not a huge fan of that, just a couple of them will suffice. Some of our favorite doughnuts are Oh Captain, My Captain, Dirt, Bacon Maple Bar, Portland Cream, Maple Cream and Voodoo Doll. The average doughnut costs $2.

• Blue Star Donuts: Another great place to grab some donuts is Blue Star. There are several locations in Portland, even one in the airport if you miss stopping by while on your trip. Their flavors are very unique and donuts balanced with sweet and sour.

We tried 6 different kinds: Valrhona Chocolate Crunch, Hard Apple Cider Fritter, Raspberry Pistachio, Raspberry Rosemary Buttermilk, Blueberry Bourbon Basil, and Meyer Lemon & Key Lime Curd. Each one was delicious and bursting with flavor. For 6 donuts, 1 coffee, and a hot chocolate it came out to $35.10. 

• Mo’s Chowder: Since 1946, Mo’s has been serving up delicious food to Oregonians. With their original location in Newport, OR, they have since expanded to have 8 locations, one of them being inside the Portland Airport.

For only $25, we got Clam chowder, fish and chips and 2 drinks. Delicious food and very reasonable pricing for seafood, especially at the airport!

• Killer Burger: There are a few different locations in Portland but the original Killer Burger is in the Hollywood district. You know a burger is going to be good when their guarantee is that “Every Killer Burger is 1/3 Pound 100% Beef and includes: BACON!
  French Fries included with every Killer Burger”.

Our 2 absolute favorites are the Fun Guy burger (bacon, Mushroom, swiss fondue, house sauce, grilled onion and pickle) and the Teemah (bacon, bleu cheese fondue & crumbles, house sauce, grilled onion & pickle). For 2 burgers with fries and 2 ciders we paid $47. 

• Mama Mia Trattoria: While walking around downtown one day, we could not decide what we wanted to eat. We just happened to stumble across Mama Mia Trattoria and we were so glad we did!

We shared a house salad for our appetizer and then for our entrees, Sierra had the Manicotti and Jonah had the Lasagna Classico. Everything was fresh and service was quick and friendly. We were also really impressed with the portion sizes and the house-made pasta.

We were way too full to even attempt to eat a dessert but their selection looked really good. With the bottle of wine we got, our bill came out to $86, including tip.

• Huber’s: Portland’s oldest restaurant, Huber’s has been around since 1879. Not knowing this coming in, we thought it was a really cool fact. We had been told to try this place out for their Spanish coffee (which we did try).

For our appetizer, we thought that we would try the calamari and it was delicious! For our drinks we had a bottle of wine.

Jonah got the half & half which was a combination of turkey and ham served with dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce.

For our dessert drink, we shared the recommended Huber’s Spanish Coffee (Kahlua, Cruzan 151, Bols Triple Sec, and coffee). It is really cool because they catch it on fire right at the table and then top it with whipped cream and nutmeg! It makes for a really cool display and the drink is super yummy. Click here for a link to the video.

• Salt & Straw: If you’re looking for some delicious ice cream, look no further than Salt & Straw! There are definitely some unique flavors that we weren’t brave enough to try so if you are feeling adventurous, this is the place for you.

There are 4 different locations in Portland. Our favorites are the sea salt with caramel ribbons and the ‘I oat you one’ which tastes just like an oatmeal cookie. You can also get the ice cream in a house-made waffle cone.

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So why not explore Portland and help Keep Portland Weird? With many more places to eat, see, and explore in this amazing city we will consistently be adding more to this post! Let us know in the comments below what some of your favorite things about Portland are!