I just returned from a weekend in Portland.
My Faves in local fare and relaxation...
THE FOOD:
1.
VOODOO DOUGHNUT is a MUST on NW 3rd Avenue. I had the Voodoo doll, my friend had the Mexican Chocolate (with a bit of a spicy kick at the end). It was great at the end of a Friday Night pub crawl around the corner on NW 2nd Avenue. I could've spent $10 just tasting all what they had to offer, but it was so much to handle when you've been drinking.
2.
NINJA PLATE LUNCH food cart on SW 3rd and Ash. The Kahlua Pork plate with the rice and macaroni salad was soooooo good. (again, needed to soak up the alcohol), I highly recommend, it's making my mouth water as I think about it!
3. Food carts are big in Portland (we should get more of those in SF)...My third favorite was
SMOKIN' JIM'S BARBECUE FOOD CART located
Ala Carts cart pod – SE 102nd and Stark. I had the 3 rib plate (which he ended up giving me 5 ribs because it was so so slow on a Sunday), the plate came with a scoop of yummy potato salad (it looks orange from the paprika) and cole slaw for my sides. Totally worth my budgeted money.
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THE RELAXATION:
1. We went to
THE SALT GROTTO on NW 14th Ave. Only $25 for a 45 minute session (Or you can buy a package of 5 sessions for $115 so you can fully feel the effects) in a room full of salt from various places of the world. Salt is on the walls and on the ground, and you have to put on hospital booties over your shoes to walk in there. You sit in these comfy chairs and breathe in the goodness of the salt, they turn off the lights and turn on the music. Pretty cool and kinda European. It was a great way to detox from the weekend partying. They gave us magazines and a book light, but even after reading and chatting for the full session, we walked out of there fully relaxed and rejuvenated (plus we had the magnesium water afterwards, it helped).
2. Hiking at
MULTNOMAH FALLS off the I-84. I was lucky that it's springtime and that the trail was open (the ground gets frozen in the winter and they close the trials).We made it to the 7th of 11 trails that take you to the top of the waterfall, it's beautiful, and warm and people broght their dogs and kids...Even me, who is scared of heights, enjoyed every minute (coming down was tough on my knees though) only because the slim trails were covered by so much greenery that you couldn't see how high you were. There's a point where you can see the Columbia River and Washington State on the other side. After reaching the bottom, we wanted a snow cone - but they don't start selling those until June, so we settled for Italian Soda.
