Slow Bar

Slow Bar has been getting a lot of good press recently in regards to the Slow Burger, and although it's not my favorite burger in town, it is a damn good one.  There are arguably two schools when it comes to burgers, the first I like to refer to as a "classic" burger, Portland restaurants that serve a killer "classic" burger are, Skyline, Stanich's, Red Coach and Yorgo's.  These burgers are usually cooked on a flat top, preferably one that has been passed down many generations and has never been cleaned, they usually have Lettuce, Tomato, Onions, Pickles, a spread of some sort and American or Cheddar Cheese.  The other type of burger is the "fine dining" burger, this is the burger that appears on the Lunch or Happy Hour menu at a nice restaurant, this burger is despised by line cooks who inevitably have to cook one for some regular customer that just wants a damn burger for dinner and yes, I have cooked my share of these burgers.  There have been Chef's over the years that have tried to bring the burger in to the fine dining world and to me, it's just a gimmick, take the Fleur de Lys in Vegas, their burger is made with Kobe Beef, Foie Gras, Black Truffles and more Truffles on Brioche!  Now Burger King holds the record for the Most Expensive Burger, so if you are in London and want to drop $200 on a burger, go see The King!  So anyway, the Slow Burger falls in to the fine dining burger category and although it's a bar, don't be fooled, there is some good food coming out of that kitchen, the menu reads well and there is obviously a Chef hiding back there somewhere.  The Burger is on a Brioche Bun, it's a 1/2 lb. of Strawberry Mountain Natural Beef and is topped with Gruyere, Relish, Butter Lettuce and a couple of huge Onion Rings, oh yea, and the fries are good too!  So if you are in the mood for a tasty "fine dining" burger, but you don't want to hit NW 23rd or the Pearl for it, go to South East and try the Slow Burger.

Slow Bar

533 SE Grand Ave.

Portland, Oregon

503.230.7767

www.slowbar.net 

Podnah's Pit Barbecue

As far as Portland Barbecue goes, Podnah's is OK, it didn't make me mad like a couple of other so called "BBQ" places do, but it certainly didn't "take me home" either.  I have been there a couple of times and it's consistently decent, this last time I had the Brisket Sandwich with Potato Salad, the Beef was tasty with a nice smoke ring, made with quality meet and the Potato Salad was a good side dish.  There were 2 sauces on the table, one of which seemed to be kind of a Virginia, North Carolina style sauce, also known as garbage, I didn't try it, but I'm not a fan of those types of Sauce.  The other sauce was a tomato based "Texas Style" sauce that was pretty damn good.

The menu reads "Texas Style" and although I didn't see Frito Pie or Blue Bell Ice Cream on the menu, I do think it resembles more of a Texas style than other BBQ spots in town.  Next time I will try the Chili and the Pecan Pie, then we will see if it is truly Texas Style.

Podnah's Pit Barbecue

1469 NE Prescott

Portland, OR 

503.281.3700

www.podnahspit.com

Haagen Dazs Fleur De Sel Caramel Ice Cream

THE BEST ICE CREAM EVER!  Nothing else to say.

Best Baguette

After driving by Best Baguette a few dozen times, I finally decided to stop and I'm glad that I did!  It isn't what I expected at all, it's mostly Asian Sandwiches that are served on a Baguette.  The menu is huge, there are probably 30 sandwiches on the menu, most of which are served on a Baguette, there is everything from Ham and Swiss to Pate and Head Cheese.  I went for the BBQ Pork Baguette, it was really simple and delicious, Chinese BBQ Pork, Mayo, Marinated Carrots and Daikon Radish, Cilantro and Jalapeno.  Everything is really fresh, the bread is baked daily and everything is super cheap, my sandwich was $2.65.

Asian sandwiches are my new favorite thing and the word on the street is there are quite a few of these sandwich shops in town, I think it is required that you be in a sketchy location to serve these sandwiches, we will see!

Best Baguette

8308 SE Powell

Portland, OR 97266

503.788.3098

www.bestbaguettesandwiches.com

2008 Honduras Cup Of Excellence

This week was the on-line auction for the Honduran Cup Of Excellence coffee that I helped judge a few months ago.  This was the 5th COE event in Honduras and year to year, the coffee prices are going up, the #1 Honduran coffee this year sold for $16.65 per pound (green).

Needless to say, this is a huge event for a country that is struggling and for the farmers that might normally only see a dollar per pound if it weren't for COE!  It was a privilege to be a part of the International Jury of Judges that helped rank these coffees for auction.

While drinking beers in Honduras, my buddy Russ and I chatted about bidding together on a Lot of this killer coffee that we were judging and thats exactly what we did.  Portland Roasting and Fratello Coffee bought the Cup Of Excellence coffee from the Las Amazonas farm in Chinacla, which is in the La Paz region of Honduras.

If you have never tried Honduran Coffee, you need to drop what you're doing and head to your local Specialty Coffee Roaster and pick some up.

Honduras

15 00 N, 86 30 W

Bacon + Chocolate?

Yes, that's right, Apple Wood Smoked Bacon, Alder Wood Smoked Sea Salt and Milk Chocolate!  This is Mo's Bacon Bar by Vosges Haut Chocolat and if your aren't familiar with Vosges, you need to check them out, they make some crazy chocolates, such as the Kalamata Olive and Venezuelan White Chocolate,  Coconut Curry, and Ginger Wasabi with Black Sesame Seeds. I've always said "if you add bacon to anything, it will make it better" and damn, it looks like I was right on!  Bacon + Chocolate is awesome!

www.vosgeschocolate.com

I think summer Is finally here!

So with this weekends heat wave I think that summer has finally hit Portland.  I'm not a fan of the hot weather, but I am a fan of busting out the Grill.  It is now a Sunday ritual, we usually swing by Otto's and grab an assortment of Ground Meats, Sausages or Steaks and hit New Seasons for a sack of Vegetables.  I'm done messing around with Store bought burger buns, they all suck!  Even if you go to one of the awesome bakeries in town, its hard to get a good fresh bun.  It took me a few dozen failed attempts, but now I have the perfect burger bun recipe and I wont ever go back to store bought buns.

Halibuts

The only bad thing I ever hear about Halibuts is that it's expensive, well, it is kind of expensive.  When I go for lunch, I get a half order of Halibut and Chips and a bowl of Clam Chowder and it's about $15, but it's totally worth it.  The menu has a ton of different types of Fish and Chips, everything from Copper River Salmon to Jumbo Prawns and everything that I have tried is worth the price.  The Fish and Chips is certainly on my top 5 list and as of now, I can honestly say that the Clam Chowder has taken over the #1 spot for Portland Clam Chowder.  They have opened Halibuts II next door that has live music 6 nights a week and a full bar, and if you go to Halibuts you will most likely meet the owner, I have never eaten at Halibuts and not had a conversation with him, he's a super nice guy and they are doing an excellent job.  So, if you dig Fish and Chips or Clam Chowder, head on over to North East Alberta and give Halibuts a try

Halibuts

2525 NE Alberta Street

Portland, OR 97211

503.808.9600

Tattoo Update - Session 4

So this was my 4th session with Jason at Oddball and the Japanese piece he is doing on my right leg is really coming together.  Jason kicks ass and I'm really stoked that I asked him to do this tattoo, it has turned out better than I expected, he designed a great piece and in about a month, it will finally be done.

He worked on the Koi this week and we decided to go with a Black and White spotted Orange Koi and he did an amazing job, I know he's good, but this fish is really amazing.  Next time he is going to do the color on the Snake and touch everything up, I am looking forward to finally being done with it, I guess what I'm really excited about it starting to think about my next one.

I have already started talking about my next tattoo with Jason and am starting to picture it a bit so I am curious what his take on my idea will be, if it's anything like this Japanese piece, I know that I will be stoked.  I am going to do a photo story about Portland Tattoo Shops this summer so if you have any Artists or Shops that you dig, let me know.  

Oddball Tattoo

2716 SE 21st

Portland, OR 97202

503.231.1344

www.oddballstudios.com

The Last of the Honduran Food

Honduras was great, the food was OK at times, but now I'm back in the swing of every day Portland life and looking forward to taking the Nikon out and snapping some Food and Tattoo shots.  So this meal was at a hotel on a lake in Santa Barbara, everyone recommended the fish, so that's what I ordered.  I think it was Talapia, I was told there were Talapia in the lake so I can only assume thats what ended up on my plate that day.  It was fried with a thick crust and served with, you guessed it, Plantains and Beans, it also had some pickled Onions on the plate, a pretty typical meal for Honduras.

Blue Pig Cafe

The Blue Pig Cafe is near the corner of 50th and Division in the old Gramma Lucy's spot.  They are doing Breakfast and Lunch 7 days a week and by the looks of the menu, I'm sure they will be packed.  A buddy of mine and I went for breakfast last week and I had to go for the Biscuits and Gravy, I have been known to judge a restaurant on the B&G and never return because they sucked, but that wasn't the case at the Blue Pig.  By buddy went for Pancakes, Sausage and Poached Eggs, also tasty and huge.  I haven't been back for lunch, but I expect Lunch will be just as good as Breakfast.

Blue Pig Cafe

5026 SE Division St.

Portland, OR 97206

503.231.2775

www.bluepigcafe.typepad.com

Honduras

So this is the typical food that I was eating while in Honduras.  This particular dinner included grilled Beef, Chicken and Chorizo, some sort of fried Fish, Shrimp, Beans and Rice, Plantains, Salsa and Cheese.  At this restaurant, the Chorizo was incredible, the best that I had all week, I wish that we had gone back to this place rather than going for "Italian" one night. 

The two beers that I drank while in Honduras were Salva Vida and Port Royal, I preferred the Port Royal and luckily for me, one night at the hotel, they were free until midnight.  My buddy Russ and I decided to drink as many as we could that night and over the course of the evening I think we each had at least fifteen of these golden jewels and ended up at a Karaoke Bar drinking with a bunch of Coffee Farmers.  I almost missed the bus to Copan the next morning.  Needless to say, I don't recommend drinking fifteen beers if you have to ride for three hours on a bus the next day.  

Hotel Copantl in San Pedro Sula, Honduras

I know that Honduras is kind of far from Portland and there certainly aren't any tattoos, I have only seen a couple of tattoos and haven't seen any on the locals.  But for the next few posts, I will be sharing my food experiences that I am having in Honduras.  I am currently in the city of San Pedro Sula and the photo above is from the open air restaurant on the seventh floor of the Hotel Copantl where I am spending my nights.  They brought a grill to the table that was piled high with Chicken, Beef, Pork and Chorizo, it came with a Baked Potato, some nice soup and some interesting salads.  They brought a fondue to the table that consisted of  Refried Beans and a Sour Cream type of Crema.  They also brought some Salsas to the table that were a great addition to the meal, one of them resembled Chimichuri Sauce.  A meal in Honduras wouldn't be complete without Port Royal Beer and  I had many that night, if you ever make it to Honduras, I recommend the Hotel Copantl for some outdoor 7th floor dining .

Hotel Copantl

Residential Los Arcos

Blvd. Del Sur Fte. a Mall Multi Plaza

San Pedro Sula, Cortes Honduras, C.A.

Pambiche

Pambiche is a killer Cuban restaurant on Glisan near 28th and it's one of my favorite places to go for lunch.  I am a sucker for Cuban food and Pambiche does a great job.  A few must haves are the Empanadas, the Jamon Croquetas, Rabo Encendido, and my favorite sandwich, the Croqueta Preparada. and if you dig dessert, you must try the Tres Leches, but if you aren't in to that, there are about 15 other desserts to choose from.  This place fills up so get there early or plan on sitting outside, they are open late so you can hit Pambiche after cocktails. 

Pambiche

2811 NE Glisan

Portland, OR

503.233.0495

www.pambiche.com

Salvador Molly's

Salvador Molly's is a funky little cafe in a strip mall over in Hillsdale, their menu is huge and all over the place.  There are dishes from Africa, Hawaii, Mexico and New Orleans on the menu, from Chimichurri to Catfish, the menu is kind of weird!  The strangest thing about the menu is that its pretty good, everything that I have had has been pretty tasty, not everything is authentic, but the flavors are nice.

Last time that I was at Salvador Molly's they had a spread of new menu items out and I tried the Cactus Salad, some sort of Sweet Potato Dahl, Short Ribs, Grilled Shrimp, Cuban Sandwich and some tasty Pork, I wasn't disappointed.  By far the best thing I tried and the main reason that I will go back is for the Jalapeno Margarita, oh my, what an unexpected find.  It's worth the drive over just to check the place out, have a nice bite and a delicious drink.

Salvador Molly's

1523 SW Sunset Blvd.

Portland, Oregon

503.293.1790

www.salvadormollys.com