Newport + Beer & Cheese + Kettleball = Weekly Love
As PDX Beer Week came to a close this week, it’s a been a fun mix of beer and exercising to counterbalance the beer.
This Week:
Kettleball workout – I tried a kettleball workout for the first time this week (Lululemon had a free class at Skogg Kettleball gym at NW 10th/Everett). Intense! Fun though, I’ll definitely be trying it again. It was the kind of workout that you think, “I don’t think I can do this!” because it’s an 18 pound weight. But then you can, and you do, and it’s awesome!
Evoe – finally stopped in to Evoe/Pastaworks for a sandwich. Mighty fine.
Lardo – I’ve been hashtagging #sandwichgram on Instagram this week. Every time I’ve wanted to try Lardo (at the Good Food Here food cart pod), it seems like they’re closed. Finally, I got to try the tuna melt. Delicious!
Newport – We spent Father’s Day weekend at the coast with my parents. It’s always fun exploring Newport — sea lion spotting, walking the port, looking at boats, finding hilarious unicorn signs (above), and lunch in Nye Beach. Plus, the mildly scary, but exhilarating Harley ride with my dad!
Portland Beer & Cheese Festival – cheese, glorious cheese. And beer. Two of my favorite things! More photos of this later. And now I really need to go to a kettleball workout again.
What are you happy about this week?
Pedalpalooza + PDX Beer Week = Weekly Love
June is a such an awesome collision of Pedalpalooza, PDX Beer Week, and almost summer-ness (still waiting!). There’s always something fun to do…
This Week:
Pedalpalooza – it’s three whole weeks of bikey fun this year! I went on the Hot Socks ride on Saturday. What’s that? Everyone wears awesome socks and we rode to both Sock Dreams in Sellwood and Sock It To Me in SE. I wore same of my favorite argyle socks, and I won a pair of socks on the ride! (And yes, the ride was crashed by naked bike ride folks wearing only socks. There’s a reason the World Naked Bike Ride happens under the cover of darkness. My poor eyes.)
Oven & Shaker – another new restaurant I’ve been wanting to try for happy hour, because the pizzas start at $7. They also had a great Sazerac.
PDX Pop Now Compilation release show @ Holocene – If you donate to PDX Pop Now! in the fall, you get to go to the CD release show for free. First time hearing Wild Ones — enjoyed.
friends winning stuff! – Bike n’ Hike had a benefit party for the Alpenrose Velodrome. It was $5 to get in and you got a free raffle ticket, and free beer from the ever-stellar Hopworks. I won a hat. Whatever. But a friend won one of the Hopworks bikes! Crazy! Then we went to celebrate at Spirit of ’77.
10 Barrel Brewing at APEX – I was excited to see that 10 Barrel Brewing Co was going to be at APEX on Saturday, pouring for another PDX Beer Week event. They’re from Bend, so instant love, in my book.
Kure Juice Bar – Finally made it over to Kure. I’ll be recreating their kale, almond butter, coconut smoothie at home. So delicious.
Waterfront Park – I’m always glad to wave goodbye to the Rose Festival that sets up shop in Waterfront park every May. I’ve been avoiding the park all month just because it’s a hassle to go through, but I did ride through on Sunday to get a glimpse of the Navy ships from the Steel Bridge and see the spectical that is the CityFair. Until next year Rose Festival!
Listening: Wild Ones, Fiona Apple
What are you happy about this week?
Salt & Straw + Tram Views + Amnesia = Weekly Love
June is one of my favorite months of the year — for it brings summer, the longest day of light for the year, and a few months of less rain. Oh, and my birthday.
This Week:
Salt & Straw Ice Cream – naturally, I had to order the pear with blue cheese (Rogue Creamer’s Crater Lake) from Salt & Straw. It was fantastic.
Mt Tabor – my grandma came for a short visit, so we went to one of her favorite restaurants — Ya Hala, followed by a stroll around Mt Tabor. I also took her on the Tram from OHSU to the Waterfront. :) Some of my favorite views of the city.
The Box Social – stopped in for one cocktail at The Box Social, another fairly newish place that popped up on N Williams this year. Although they’re of the $8 variety, the Cynar Manhattan was complex enough that I only wanted one. And I love the name, although it seems like it should be a to-go picnic supply shop. :)
Amnesia’s Single Hop Fest – We biked up to Amnesia for their Single Hop Fest over the weekend. I love beer fests that are pay as you go. So much better than buying a silly cup and a gazillion drink tickets! My favorite beer was the Double Mountain Clusterf#*k IPA. Now if only the Portland Beer & Cheese Fest (cheese by Cheese Bar!) in a few weeks was pay as you go too.
Bolt – Considering a sewing project this month. We shall see if that gets accomplished.
What are you happy about this week?
Favorite Places + Biking + Rain = Weekly Love
Have I mentioned yet that it’s good to be home? I covered a surprising amount of ground in the last week — visiting some of my favorite Portland places like Rum Club, 12th/Hawthorne food carts, Laurelhurst Theater, Boke Bowl, and the farmers market. I also got to check out a few new places. Home, sweet, home.
This Week:
Luc Lac Vietnamese Kitchen – I found my new favorite Vietnamese restaurant in Portland.
Bishop’s Close – I love discovering new [to me] parks in town. We went to the Elk Gardens at Bishop’s Close this weekend and it’s like a quiet, free version of the Japanese Gardens on a sprawling grounds overlooking the Willamette. I’ll definitely be back for more salamander, duck, and giant tree spotting.
Brewery biking – Felt almost like summer biking to Hair of the Dog & The Commons Brewery, before biking up to North Portland just before an epic downpour… Yes, I said almost like summer.
Portland Farmers Market – I love my Saturday morning routine of the farmers market.
The Drift Inn – one of my favorite restaurants on the Central Oregon coast, I usually always stop in when visiting my family at the coast.
The Old Gold – I’ve had The Old Gold in North Portland on my Yelp bookmarks since it opened, and finally made a point to go on Sunday. Cool place. If I lived in the neighborhood, I’d be here all the time. It’s also good to be back to Oregon prices on tasty beer.
Portland food carts – My first week back I of course hit two of my favs: Pyro Pizza & Perierra Creperie. I also tried the New Taste of India cart downtown. $6 for the veg lunch, I’ll be back to this one too.
What are you happy about this week?
Dali Museum + Tapas + Slow Travel = Weekly Love
After working remotely from Hawaii in March, I was a little worried that following up with a month in Florida would be a bit anticlimactic. That’s the beautiful thing about expectations though…
I loved living less than a mile from the beach, and just like anywhere I’ve ever been for more than three weeks… I started to see myself in how I would live there (… of course, once I did, I’m sure I’d promptly feel like leaving). Slow travel is like a little window into another version of what your life could be like. And the more you travel, the more you see how many different lives you could live — and still be equally happy. So just like the Cyclades islands in Greece, and New Zealand, and Marseilles, and Kailua, and Morocco… I loved this little experiment in Olivia’s life “the Florida version”.
This Week:
Buddy Brew Coffee – I like to think every city has at least one decent, er awesome coffee shop. It just took a bit more time to find in the Tampa Bay area. Finally, a lovely latte — from Buddy Brew!
Dali Museum – The Dali museum in St Pete is $10 after 5pm on Thursdays (usually $21 — yikes!). The building itself is a masterpiece. We also caught the second half of the free guided tour, which was a nice way to learn about some of the pieces. I’m not the biggest Dali fan, but totally worth $10.
Ciro’s Speakeasy & Supper Club – let’s start with discussing required valet parking. Dislike. So after parking across the street, and feeling much smugger, we were on with our evening. When they slid open the little window on the door and asked if we had a password, saying “no, we’re just here to get a drink” seemed to do the trick. Sooo mysterious. ;) The drinks were good though and a fairly chill, but friendly atmosphere (I imagine this place gets a little slammed on weekends though). I got a sazerac & we split the duck fries (no not fries made of duck, just cooked in their delicious fat). Maybe I should change my blog name to Powered by Duck Fat?
mid-day swims – there was a pool at our condo building in Florida. We finally got into the habit of going for a swim at lunch during our last week. Took a while, I know. :)
tapas party – yay tapas!
blue cheese & caramelized onion burgers – for our last supper living on Treasure Island, we made my favorite burgers. So good.
Goodbye, Florida – I will miss the evening walks & runs to the beach at sunset, and the weather, and new friends, and the beach, and exploring a new [to me] city.
Hello, Portland – As much as I love traveling, nothing beats coming home for a while. I love my city. I love flying in and seeing all the green and the Columbia, and the rain. It’s also nice to wake up in my own bed, and cook in my own kitchen (hooray for lemon zesters, blenders, and juicers!), and getting a decent latte (sorry Tampa). And I’m looking forward to riding my bike, trying to visit all the new restaurants that sprouted up in the last couple months, and laughing at my kitty! :)
What are you happy about this week?
Things I ♥: travel, food (I'm a pescatarian), the Pacific Northwest, bikes (I ride an orange mixte), beer (IPAs), summer, coffee, lists, and kittehs. Travel enthusiast, dabbler, and product manager at BootsnAll Travel Network.
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