visiting Portland next month, any advice?

[LSyd]

hello,

i'll be visiting Portland next month for work for a week, staying downtown.

any advice on things to see? weird street art, comic book toy stores, wholesome grit, things to avoid, etc?

[ThatDarnSacramentan]

I suppose the first question is, what do you like to see when you travel? And the second question that I always ask people visiting Portland for the first time: do you want the Portland experience or the Portlandia experience? Because those can be two very different trips.

[OakAngeles]

^^^ I agree with Sacramentan, it can depend a lot on personal preference, but in the meantime, heres a few suggestions

1)For street art, the area around "Memory Den" has a lot of the 'sactioned graffitti' spots.That area also has the Night Market if it lines up with your trip

2)The Mox Boarding House near Providence Park is a big game spot for stuff like D&D, Stumptown Otaku & Kunokuniya are the local weeb shops & Rose City Comics is a cool spot in the Mississippi neighborhood.

3)If you are looking for a drink, Teardrop Lounge & Driftwood Room are my faves Downtown (Momos is also good for a more "industry" bar.)

4) For good food, youre pretty damn set wherever but Tanaka was always a favorite of mine. Nongs is a Portland Classic & Break Bread is fantastic for a great sandwich. For coffee, I highly recommend Spellas

5) The Keller Fountain & Portlandia Statue are also great for a photo op, and Waterfront Park is beautiful. If you can make it to the Saturday Market thats about as Portland as you can get

Do you think you'll have any time to venture outside of Downtown or see attractions that take up more time or are you just planning for free time between work obligations?

[downtownpdx]

For food carts, a quintessential Portland thing, Cartopia and Hawthorne Asylum are right next to each other at SE Hawthorne/10th-12th Aves. Midtown Beer Garden is right downtown at SW 5th/Harvey Milk. Pioneer Square, the city’s “living room“ has several carts as well plus a new bar, a good people watching spot (SW Broadway/Morrison). As mentioned Saturday Market is right on the waterfront and a fun visit on a nice day. Have fun!

[LSyd]

thanks for the suggestions

Originally Posted by ThatDarnSacramentan

I suppose the first question is, what do you like to see when you travel? And the second question that I always ask people visiting Portland for the first time: do you want the Portland experience or the Portlandia experience? Because those can be two very different trips.

1. military history, street art, grit, observation decks/high levels. i know there's a PT boat being restored that's by reservation only so i'm looking to do that on my last day.

2. Portland experience

3. any really unique food? like German/Japanese fusion in a Munich basement restaurant level unique

Originally Posted by OakAngeles

Do you think you'll have any time to venture outside of Downtown or see attractions that take up more time or are you just planning for free time between work obligations?

i have Monday and Saturday (mostly) free if everything goes to plan; i've thought about going to visit Mt. St. Helens but not sure if it's worth the trip to only spend an hour or two near the mountain, especially if i can see it from Portland

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[twofiftyfive]

Given your avatar, I assume you're aware that the USS Blueback is at OMSI on the east bank of the Willamette River.

[dizflip]

Originally Posted by LSyd

1. military history, street art, grit, observation decks/high levels. i know there's a PT boat being restored that's by reservation only so i'm looking to do that on my last day.

Best observation view of Portland is Pittock Mansion or the Portland City Grill lounge. The Oregon Military Museum is way out in Clackamas in Camp Withycombe, free admission but far. Just as fascinating is the Oregon Historical Society at the South Park blocks and the Japanese American Museum of Oregon in Old Town.

Originally Posted by LSyd

2. Portland experience

The Portland experience is going out in the neighborhoods. Recommend either NW 21st/23rd Ave, NE Alberta St, or N Mississippi Ave for your first time.

Originally Posted by LSyd

3. any really unique food? like German/Japanese fusion in a Munich basement restaurant level unique

Portland is a dining city, but I'm not sure of any gimmicks like that. I've been obsessed Guay Tiew lately.

[OakAngeles]

1)I'll second Pittock Mansion/ Portland City Grill for the views. Metropolitan Tavern across the river also has a great patio facing the skyline & the top floor of the parking garage on 9th & Morrison has some good views if youre not against some mild trespassing

2) I'll add Sunnyside/Hawthorne to the list of cool non Downtown neighborhoods. Checked out Foxtrot on my last visit & was blown away. The area around Hawthorne/34th is also packed with great stores/restaurants

3) I feel like Portland has leaned so far into fusion cuisine thats its just kind of standard for all the food now. I would recommend Javelina though which features indigenous foods fused with classics from other cultures like 'frybread tacos' or 'elk shoulder benedicts'. It's near the airport so probably worth hitting up on the way in or the way out

There's also Kann which is a Haitian fusion spot that got featured on a bunch of cooking shows but it is SPENDY & probably hard to get a rez for this late in the game

Kilo DCofi is Downtown and features spiced Mexican Coffees mixed with more standard espresso drinks

Other than that, just go to a food truck pod and you will find something great and unique. The Korean BBQ burritos from 'Korean Twist' at the Midtown Beer Garden were always a go to for me.

4) If you have Saturday off, I 1000% want to reiterate the Saturday Market which takes place near Ankeny Plaza/ Waterfront Park every Sat morning into early afternoon. Probably the spot to get the most consolidated Portland experience in the least amount of time

[ThatDarnSacramentan]

WonderLove is a food cart pod in the industrial Eastside that has a shipping container observation deck looking at the skyline. There's also the OHSU aerial tram; it's a short ride, but has great views of the city, especially if you have clear skies.

I second Hawthorne Asylum and Cartopia, you don't usually see two great pods so close together. There's one restaurant I recommend to anyone and I try and take all my guests there if their visit aligns with their opening days: Swiss Hibiscus. Probably Portland's only Swiss place, charming little place, I dream about the paprika schnitzel sometimes.

Seconding the Saturday market, but if you want some real good, fresh eats on Saturday, you'll want to hit up the Portland Farmer's Market at PSU's campus (which is downtown). If you want to see mountains, if you have a car, go up to Council Crest. It's the highest public point in Portland, and if it's really clear, you can see Hood, Adams, St. Helens, and Rainier.