One thing that’s been so much fun for me since moving to Portland this past summer is connecting with other people who love food. There are so many fantastic food bloggers here and I’ve really enjoyed getting to know many of them over the past few months hrough our paths crossing at various events. That’s why when I got an email last month from Little Green Pickle (the masterminds behind Feast!) about a Food Crawl, I jumped at the opportunity!
The LGP Food Crawl took place last week, and included stops at four different restaurants here in Portland. Our group of food bloggers was shuttled around the city in an awesome old school bus complete with karaoke machine, which was a lot of fun! It was a night filled with amazing food, great drinks, and being able to take pictures of what you’re eating without feeling awkward because everyone around you is doing it too, ha! It was also an awesome way to try out some new-to-me restaurants as three of the four stops on the crawl were places I had never been to before.
{Our amazing karaoke school bus}
Our first stop was Oso Market; this is a cute space located in the industrial area of SE Portland. It’s actually an interesting concept because it’s a combination of restaurant and specialty market that has a really great selection of wine and other things. It was a perfect place to start of the night!
We were greeted with glasses of cava to start the night!
We were served a variety of delicious small plates which were all excellent…
Tails
& Trotters Chorizo-Stuffed
Dates
wrapped in bacon with cumin honey and sage oil
Cremeux
Montadito
with fig, honey, arugula and balsamic reduction served on Little T
focaccia
Bresaola
Montadito
with tomato-mint jam, Parmesan and basil served on Little T focaccia
Baked
Mortadella Montadito
with tarragon mustard, peperoncini, & micro greens on
Little T focaccia
Overall, Oso Market had a great atmosphere that's trendy but also laid-back. I loved the modern industrial vibe with the decor and the close-in location in SE Portland makes it a really convenient spot to meet up with friends. I'll definitely be coming back here for sure!
Next up, we visited Levant; their French-Arabesque cuisine is quite unique and I really enjoyed all the delicious Middle Eastern dishes we got to try!
Fried
Halloumi
with honey and walnuts
Fava
Bean Falafel with
zhoug and tahini
Grilled
Beef Kofta with
barberries, pine nuts, herb relish and Sumac yogurt
Feta
and Armenian Cheese ‘Cigars’
with dried mint, garlic, lemon zest and Aleppo chili
I tried the Root Down Daisy cocktail which was a delicious combination of Cognac, Ginger Liqueur, Carrot Reduction, Lemon, Egg White, and Vanilla Salt 🙂
I loved the open fire in the center of the restaurant as it not only made for a cozy atmosphere, but it also clearly demonstrates an important cooking method for the restaurant's cuisine.
I thought the ambience of Levant seemed very warm and inviting. I really enjoyed the food and think that it's a unique menu, so this is definitely somewhere that I'd go back for a nice dinner!
Next, we went to The Bent Brick in NW Portland!
This was another place I had never been to, but I loved the charming atmosphere! I also really appreciated their creative cocktail menu, and I had a hard time deciding on one. I ended up going with the "Fall Back" because I thought Butternut Squash Whiskey sounded too interesting to pass up.
Their food seems like traditional comfort food with a modern twist that focuses on high-quality ingredients. I really enjoyed all the dishes we tried here as well!
Meat
Board
featuring house made country pate, house made coppa rillette, wigwam
and Finchville country ham with pickled vegetables
Rye
Sourdough Spaetzle
pan fried with mushrooms and caramelized onion, topped with Tabasco
pickled shallots.
Deep
Fried Beef Cheek
with fried egg aioli
Finally, we ended the night at a restaurant I had tried before (awhile ago though) - Urban Farmer! They have a beautiful restaurant in the Nines Hotel and it was the perfect place to have dessert!
Our final drink of the evening was an
Elixir
Bianco,
which is vodka, Calisaya, Cocchi Americano aged thirty days in oak barrels
and served up with a lemon twist. It was delicious! The Calisaya (a liqueur) is actually made in Eugene, OR!
Urban Farmer treated us to so many amazing desserts, I was in heaven!
Butterscotch
Sundae
with warm brown butter blondie, cherries, praline and toffee chip
ice cream
Honeycrisp
Apple Doughnuts
with apple butter and rosemary ice cream
Woodblock
Chocolate Pate
with dried fruit compote and olive oil ice cream
Seville
Orange Souffle for Two
with creme fraîche chocolate sauce
I don't remember exactly what the name of this dessert, but I do know it featured candycap mushrooms which gave it a delicious maple flavor.
Our final dessert of the evening was
a Carmella
Affogato
with cremeux and Hairbender Stumptown espresso. All the desserts were so great, but this was definitely my favorite. Something about the flavor was just incredible, I already want to go back and to have to go back and order it again.
Overall, it was a really fun night - thanks again to Little Green Pickle for organizing it!
