Townshend's Tea Company, Portland

Portland is known for its coffehouses, but what people don't realize is that tea is just as popular.  I'm not a big fan of coffee. In fact, I've never really drank coffee and am not into coffee culture. So when my friends invited us out to tea at the popular tea house, Townshend's Tea Company, we were excited to check it out.

I went with three of my local friends who raved about it and my friend whom I was traveling with, Corey. On this Sunday night, it was pretty busy, but luckily there wasn't much of a line.  Townshend's has a really nice, laidback feel to it and it felt very calm in the main dining room.

The menu is incredibly extensive -- we're talking pages and pages of teas and descriptions of what effect they may have on you. Since I don't drink tea much and I completely avoid caffeinated drinks, it took me a while to decide which tea I wanted to try.  One of my friends recommended one of the Body Tonics designed to restore and bolster the body's systems over time. That sounded great to me.

We headed downstairs to find a big table. Eventually, our teas were brought out and I absolutely loved mine. I ordered the Circulatory Blend, which was cayenne, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, licorice, marshmallow root, and rooibos. "This fiery tonic warms the center, aids digestion, and increases energy."  That it did.

So we sat downstairs and enjoyed tea and discussed our discoveries in Portland.  I also had the opportunity to try their Brew Dr. Kombucha and loved it as well. They have some great flavors.

What a great way to end the night. I even bought some tea to take home with me so I could continue to enjoy Portland tea even once I am home in DC. Townshend's is a great place to hang out and enjoy great tea in Portland.

Townshend's Tea Company
2223 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
(503) 445-6699

Homegrown Smoker, Portland

On our last day in Portland, we decided to check out the infamous Homegrown Smoker, a vegan BBQ food truck. I knew the food wasn't exactly on the healthy side, but I had heard so much about it that I had to try it.

This food truck is located in one of many food truck parks in Portland -- in Mississippi Marketplace, complete with seating. From sandwiches and BBQ platters to chili mac and chili cheese fries, they offer a wide variety of unhealthful meals. But, regardless, I wanted to try their most famous sandwich of all -- the SloSmoMoFo. This sandwich was overflowing with applewood smoked soy curls on a Killer (Dave's Killer Bread) bun with chipotle slaw and maple bourbon BBQ sauce. It was all the badness I wanted and more. I thought it was pretty good, but needed more sauce so I doused it with some more of the sauces I found at the cart and then it was perfect. The soy curls were smoky and soft and represented the typical pulled pork in this meal, Carolina-style. Complete with a grilled bun and crispy coleslaw, it is just like your mom used to make. I also ordered the Mac Nocheese, which was awesome, and the stewed greens because I felt I needed something healthy to counter this meal.

I have to admit though, that I actually liked Corey's sandwich better. He ordered the new Buff Chik'n Sammich, which was made with smoked Beyond Meat chikn on a Killer bun with salad greens, grilled peppers and onions, jalapenos, Buff sauce, and Ranch dressing. Although you really can't see it in this picture, it was delicious.

I also had the minted lemonade, which was sweet and refreshing.

Homegrown Smoker has been a long-time staple in Portland and is worth a visit if you are in town. Just be sure to pair whatever you order with the Mac Nocheese. You won't regret it.

Homegrown Smoker
4233 N. Mississippi Avenue
Portland, OR 97217

Taco Pedaler, Portland

Vida Vegan Con, the vegan blogger conference, held a gala on the second night to benefit an animal sanctuary.  There were two food carts invited to serve food and one of them was the Taco Pedaler. The Taco Pedaler isn't a food truck, rather it is a food cart on the back of a bicycle. How inventive is that?!

The owners have tasted tacos from the coast of baja to the border of Belize and brought these wonderful tastes back to Portland via a traditional Mexican tricycle.  They always offer vegan and gluten-free options. 

On this particular night, they were offering a vegan taco meal for $6.50. The coolest thing was watching them take a ball of dough, press it out round, then cook it on the grill to make fresh tortillas!  From there they topped two with fresh pinto beans, mixed grilled veggies, and guacamole along with shredded cabbage and cilantro. They were as good as bike food is going to get!  I wasn't a big fan of the chips, but the salsa was pretty good too.

Follow them on Facebook and Twitter to see where they'll be next!

Prasad, Portland

After three days of non-stop eating in Portland, we thought it would be nice to take a local yoga class, then enjoy a nice healthy meal. So, my friend, Corey, and I took a class at Yoga Pearl, then dined in their inhouse cafe, Prasad, in the Pearl District of Portland.

Prasad is "an offering of sustainable organic cuisine to nourish and heal the mind, body, and soul." As an almost vegan, organic cafe, Prasad serves some of the healthiest food in Portland, in my opinion, and I was delighted to discover it.

Prasad serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For lunch, they serve salads, soups, and bowls along with juices and smoothies. The menu sounds simple, but is actually pretty complex as there are a lot of options. We stood at the front counter for quite a bit of time trying to decide what to order. I ultimately chose a bowl and a smoothie.

The cafe is actually in the same building that houses the yoga studios so it is pretty low-key. Most people were reading a book or working on laptops as they ate their food. We found a seat at one of the many tables near the window.

I ordered the Melody juice made with kale, cucumber, spinach, apple, lemon, and ginger. It was a sweet juice that finished with a kick of ginger.

For my meal, I ordered the El Dorado Salad. This huge raw bowl was filled with spinach and mixed greens, yam rice, walnut taco crumbles, avocado, sun dried tomato, scallions and cilantro. It also came with two sauces -- a jalapeno cashew cream and a red chili vinaigrette.  I can honestly say this is one of the best salads I've ever had. The jalapeno cashew cream made this dish as it brought creaminess and spice to a healthful bowl of greens. The walnut taco crumbles were oh-so-tasty and the yam rice was great too. I was so pleased with this dish.

Corey got the Dragon Bowl filled with greens, quinoa, beans, sea vegetables, avocado, sesame seeds, scallions, and red cabbage. It was great as well.

I liked it so much that I decided to return to Prasad five days later. On this trip, I wasn't feeling so great so I started with the Wellness Shot -- a blend of ginger juice, lemon, cayenne, and echinacea.

I also ordered the juice special that had turmeric root, carrot, apple, and beet. So good.

For my entree, I ordered the Chili Bowl. It was filled with quinoa, their housemade roasted garlic chili, steamed greens, avocado, cilantro, scallions, and garlic tahini sauce. It was healthy and delicious.

After 6 days in Portland, I have to say that Prasad was my favorite lunch spot while Blossoming Lotus was my favorite dinner spot.  At $9 per bowl, the price is great for all organic, healthy fare. I'd highly recommend putting this at the top of your list of places to eat in Portland...oh, and do a little yoga while you're there too.

Prasad (inside Yoga Pearl)
925 NW Davis
Portland, OR 97209
(503) 224-3993

Back to Eden Bakery, Portland

During the Vida Vegan Con conference, I had the pleasure of dining at the Portland Breakfast Showcase, which featured small samples from local vegan businesses in Portland. After trying all of the samples, I determined that the savory pie I got from Back to Eden Bakery was the best item there, which made me want to seek out this bakery.

And, lo and behold, there it was right next to Townshend's Tea Company on Alberta Street! Back to Eden is not just a bakery -- they also serve some savory items like quiches, soups, and salads. But, what really makes Back to Eden unique is that not only is it completely vegan, it is gluten-free as well. So all items are vegan AND gluten-free...and they are good too! Imagine that.

I can only eat so much so I just decided to buy one thing when I stopped by the bakery. With an extensive menu of sweets including donuts, cakes, cheesecakes, and pastries, it was hard to choose. I went for the Marionberry Coffee Cake and saved it for breakfast the next day. It was spectacular. The fresh marionberries melted in my mouth as I enjoyed the sweet, moist coffee crumb cake surrounding them.

I also had the opportunity to try one of their cookies, which was pretty good as well. They obviously have some talented chefs at Back to Eden. Next time I'll come for lunch and stay for dessert as well.

Back to Eden Bakery
2217 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
(503) 477-5022

Portobello Vegan Trattoria, Portland

The last time I visited Portland, I left with fond memories of one of Portland's nicer vegan restaurants, Portobello Vegan Trattoria. So it was on the top of my list of restaurants to hit for dinner on this trip.

My friends and I arrived around 7:30 p.m. on a Friday night with reservations for four and were promptly seated. It is a small restaurant with a fairly simple decor featuring local artists' works on the walls. We all started with some drinks. With it being my first day in Portland, I felt it appropriate to start with a Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley so I went with the only one you could buy by the glass on the menu -- Tyee from 2009. It was very good, but highly priced at $14 per glass. My friends ordered some cocktails.

We started with a couple of appetizers. Out of all the things we ate for dinner, I think the best tasting item was the Beet Tartare appetizer.  It was made of cashew cheese topped with chopped roasted beets tossed with carrot aioli and capers served with olive oil and garnished with chopped parsley. It was thick, creamy, and deliciously satisfying on the sliced baguette. And did I mention how beautiful it looked?! I think I ate like four slices of baguettes generously topped with this tartare.

We also ordered the Asparagus Fries, which were coated in tempura. Everyone loved these although I found them to be quite oily. I guess I'm just not a big fan of fried food. I did love the cashew-based sauce they were served with though.

The seasonal menu of entrees is quite short with only two burgers, six plates, and several pizzas to choose from. Still, I had a hard time deciding what to order. Ultimately, I went with the English Pea Ravioli with Morels only because morel mushrooms are my favorite and I love fresh pasta. It is difficult to get fresh vegan pasta, especially ravioli, because most restaurants use eggs and/or dairy in the preparation of pastas so I was particularly excited. When I tried the ravioli, I thought it was quite good, but not as mind-blowing as I had expected it to be. The ravioli was stuffed with peas, shallots, and mint and served with morel and cremini mushrooms in a light sauce with mint. It had a bit too much mint for me that I didn't think went well with this dish.

I ended up switching dishes with one of my friends and finishing his instead. He ordered the Gnocchi with Spring Vegetables. These handmade potato dumplings were sauteed with snap peas and asparagus and served with a parsley pistou. This dish was quite good.

Another friend of mine ordered the Portobello Burger. This burger was actually a roasted portobello cap  served with greens and a red marinara sauce with cashew cheese. It was fine, but I didn't find it to be anything special.

My other friend ordered the Portobello Roast, which sounded kind of boring, but turned out to be very good. The sundried tomato polenta was cooked into a patty and served with slices of roasted portobello and sauteed greens with a roasted garlic cashew cream sauce. I really enjoyed trying this dish.

By dessert time, we were all glad we had ordered the smaller portions of each dish because we had to try the desserts.  And we went a bit out of control by ordering three desserts. Hey - we were on vacation - no judging.

We started by trying their famous tiramisu -- a dessert nearly impossible to find vegan. This dessert made with housemade lady fingers soaked in coffee, Marsala-spiked vegan mascarpone cheese, dark chocolate, and a dusting of cocoa was very satisfying though not as good as I had remembered. The cake layers were soft and the cheese was a nice texture, but it really didn't blow me away the way that I had remembered.

Next, we had the Hot Fudge Sundae, which was amazing. It was made with coconut milk-based salted caramel ice cream and topped with toasted pine nuts, chocolate syrup, caramel, and vegan whipped cream.

But, most amazing of all was the Chocolate Caramel Bomb. This mousse-filled chocolate shell was topped with the same caramel and chocolate sauce as the sundae and with a praline sauce made in house. It's a party and an explosion in your mouth all at the same time.

All in all, I'd say my experience at Portobello Vegan Trattoria was a very good one. Of all the dishes, the beet tartare, gnocchi with spring vegetables, and chocolate caramel bomb were my favorites. At only $12-$14 per entree, the meal was a bargain. And the service was great. In the end, I think I just set my expectations way too high and was a bit disappointed. The food is very good, but this is not a 5-star restaurant. If you are looking for a great take on Italian entrees with a vegan twist, you have come to the right place. It isn't fine, upscale dining, but they do serve great food.

Portobello Vegan Trattoria
1125 SE Division Street
Portland, OR 97202
(503) 754-5993

Voodoo Doughnut, Portland

Ever since my last visit to Portland, I have dreamed of Voodoo Doughnut's vegan doughnuts.  Only Mighty-O Donut in Seattle has ever rivaled Voodoo in terms of vegan doughnut deliciousness. (I should mention that I have not yet been to Dun-Well Doughnuts in NYC--soon!) There is just something exciting about being part of the donut craze here. Voodoo is open 24/7 and at nearly any time of the day, there is a line to get in. Why? Some may call it hype while others call it good donuts. Either way, it generates a stir and makes people even want them more. You can't help but notice the iconic pink box being carried by people all over the city.

So we decided to go to Voodoo Doughnut that is less busy, Voodoo Doughnut Too, outside of the downtown area. And on this Tuesday in the afternoon, it appeared we hit the jackpot. No line! Last time I came here, I waited like an hour for a donut. I was so excited.

When you go inside, you see the spinning trays of beautiful donuts. The top tray is all vegan and features at least 20 varieties. It is overwhelming. While it has become easier to get vegan cake donuts with several Whole Foods now producing them in house, it is not as easy to get the yeast-based donuts.

Interestingly enough, the lady who worked there said that the donut itself is the only thing that is different between the vegan and non-vegan varieties meaning that the cream and frosting they use on all of the donuts is vegan. The vegan donuts use soy and egg-replacer instead of dairy and eggs in the donut itself and that is the only difference. Interesting.

I decided to try both the yeast- and cake-based varieties so I went with a plain glazed donut and a chocolate cake donut.  I just chose simple flavors, but if you want to go all out, they have donuts with cookies and cream, fruit loops, sprinkles, triple chocolate penetration with coco-puffs, and so much more.

So the first one, the chocolate cake donut, was a fine donut. It seemed to get better as it melted in the car as I liked the way it tasted later on in the day.

I was most impressed with the glazed donut as it had been a while since I had had one and it was just as good as I remember glazed donuts being. This donut rocked my world.

My friend, Corey, did something really interesting in that he chose the chocolate cream-filled donut in vegan and non-vegan varieties and tried to determine which was which. He ended up choosing incorrectly! He thought the vegan donut was creamier and richer than the non-vegan donut and thought it was the one with real cream! (This was before we found out that the cream used in both is the same.) How funny is that?!

Before I left, I used the restroom and was disturbed by the creepy donut monster that lurked inside. Beware.

Oh, Voodoo, you always rock my world. Please let me know when you decide to open a shop in DC. Better yet, stay over there. I'm not sure I could deal with you being so close. Keep rockin'. And remember, the magic is in the hole. Till next time.

Voodoo Doughnut Too
1501 NE Davis St.
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 241-4704

The Bye and Bye, Portland

In 2009, I left Portland with fond memories of the vegan bar, The Bye and Bye. Now three years later, I got to return to that bar to see if it was how I remembered it to be.

The bar has a cool setup with a lot of outdoor seating both in the front and back as well as an open air dining room, which I assume has some sort of window that will close it off in bad weather. On this particular day, it was quite chilly, but in Portland, you have to take the sun when you can get it so the dining room was open to the elements.

It was a Monday afternoon and I was meeting four friends at The Bye and Bye. In the bar area where I was seated, there did not appear to be table service so I grabbed a table, then headed to the bar to order a drink. I asked if there was a spicy drink on the menu. They told me that there was just a ginger drink that had a little kick so I went with the North Williams made with Rebel Yell bourbon and Blenheim's spicy ginger beer in a pint. I also ordered pretzel knots with a nutritional yeast-based cheese sauce to start.

By the time I sat down, everyone had arrived and they eagerly awaited my pretzel knots. Yikes - I didn't realize there were only two. The pretzels were good, but the cheese left much to be desired. Regardless, they didn't last long and were a good starter.

The bar has the laid-back Portland feel to it with tattooed bartenders and limited table service. We enjoyed people watching and taking it all in. I wasn't all that excited about the menu. For some reason, I remembered having a great faux chicken sandwich several years ago. This time, I didn't see anything like that on the menu.

I went with the Weeping Tiger Sandwich. I felt like I had taken a step back in time when they brought out nutritional yeast-coated tofu cutlets on white bread with lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado and jalapenos with sriracha and vegan mayo. You don't see nutritional yeast-based sandwiches much anymore, but that kind of made eating here fun like back in the day. I enjoyed the sandwich, but not the bread so much as I'm not a big fan of white bread. I subbed the chips and salsa for a side of smokey collards, which I enjoyed.

My friend ordered the Samarai bowl, which had the same tofu with carrot-cabbage slaw, brown rice, and miso chile sauce. I found myself wishing I had ordered that as I liked it better. Oh well.

Overall, I enjoyed my time there and will be sure to come with different expectations next time. The Bye and Bye is a fun, laid back vegan bar. If you come for the atmosphere, you will love it. The food is so-so and more what I would deem bar food. The drinks are okay too. So, come with your friends, hang out, have a few vegan small plates, and enjoy a mixed drink. And realize that there really aren't that many vegan bars in this country.

The Bye and Bye
1011 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
(503) 281-0537