request for Portland info.

[cassidyrose]

I am performing at FatGirl Speaks in Portland in June and we are making a family vacation out of it. We are planning our trip and I don't have as much time to spend researching the area as I normally would prior to visiting so I am looking for suggestions about things to see/do, places to eat, etc. from those of you who have lived or visited there. The specifics/our requirements are as follows:

• We will be in Portland for four nights. The show eats up one day, so with travel we will have three full days and one partial day. We will be there over a weekend.
• We will have a car and will be near downtown (very near the Lloyd Convention Center
• We would like suggestions about things we shouldn't miss (other than Powells, duh!). I've never been to Portland and we want to do as much as we can while there. We are especially interested in things to be done outside. I love photographing and exploring nature. Of course, queer places to visit are also on the top of our list. Places where we can walk around with the baby are highly desireable.
• I'd love to know what attractions are not worth it and that we should pass on.
• We would like suggestions for infant-friendly and vegetarian/vegan-friendly restaurants. By this I mean places where we can bring a nine and half month old, set him up in his booster seat, feed him and no one will be bothered. We need restaurants where we can get quick service and are casual, preferably ordering at the counter, though casual restuarants with quick table service are OK as well. I am thinking of casual middle eastern (falafel shops), lard-free taquerias, sandwich shops, etc.
• We will need to make a grocery run and would like suggestions for good grocery stores with plenty of organic produce.
• What else should we know about Portland before our trip?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Comments

[anmorata.livejournal.com]

Some friends just returned from Portland for Convergence.. I don't know about infant friendly, but for veg-friendly, they loved Pizza Schmizza. They also checked out Voodoo Doughnut. I'm not familiar with either, sadly.

If you're going to be there over a weekend, I suggest you check out Saturday Market.

Public transit is very clean, and very efficient, if that suits you. Portland has a light rail (the Max) and an excellent bus system. I don't know if they still have the "fareless square", but there used to be an area of Portland around Pioneer Courthouse Square that was free. Actually.. it looks like they do!

You didn't mention when you're going to be there, but the Rose Festival starts on the 31st. There's also the Rose Gardens and the Chinese Gardens.

Ooh, just stumbled upon this.. it might be a good reference. :)

I miss Portland dearly, and I haven't been there in over a decade. Have fun, and enjoy the city.. it's a beautiful place.

[cassidyrose.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much!

[anmorata.livejournal.com]

PS - print this and take it with you. It looks like it'll be a big help. :)

[rmjwell.livejournal.com]

I e-mailed your post to my sweetie in Portland. She is tres cool and knows all the nifty stuff up there. :-)

[windsea.livejournal.com]

Portland is lovely! I'd take a day and go out to the coast, though. The Oregon coast is stunning. Ask kightp for detailed recommendations :-).

Mount Hood is also gorgeous; I remember a fabulous dinner at the Timberline Lodge, and many good short hiking paths. The Lodge is all local food, and I believe they do breakfasts and lunches -- might be worth checking in to see if they're baby-friendly. The dinner I had there was one of the most memorable of my life. It's a stunning building, made entirely of logs -- ever see The Shining, with Jack Nicholson? It was filmed there.

HAVE FUN!

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Did I hear my name?

By all means, if you have transport and a free day, hit the coast. Basically, take an of the major routes west, stop when you get to the ocean, explore. The entire Oregon coast is owned by the public, up to the high-water mark, and there are state parks with parking and restroom facilities every few miles. You can't go wrong, although I personally like the area between Depoe Bay and Yachats (roughly known as the Central Coast) best.

I don't spend a ton of time in PDX, but can recommend:

tom McCall Waterfront Park (http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?action=ViewPark&PropertyID=156). Free, spacious, kid-friendly, sprawling park with a view of the Willamette River, and a great place to get a feel for Portland. If you follow the broad walkway far enough to the south you get to Riverplace, a shopping/eating area, but it's a bit on the trendy-and-spendy side. I wouldn't recommend it (or indeed, anywhere nearby) if you were going to be there during Rose Festival, because it becomes a *zoo*, but it should be fine when you're in town.

Since your event is at PSU, you'll be near the Park Blocks, a pretty, tree-covered urban park that's a nice place to take breaks if you don't mind the occasional homeless panhandler.

Washington Park (http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?action=ViewPark&PropertyID=841&c=38308), with Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, Hoyt Arboretum and Oregon zoo (http://www.oregonzoo.org/), is wonderful.

Grocery wise, I've heard good things about Wild Oats, but their stores appear to all be out in the 'burbs. There's a Trader Joe's on Glissan between 22nd and 23d that has a decent selection of organic produce. But I suspect people who actually, you know, live in Portland could point you to any number of co-ops, given the kind of town it is. (-:

[amythis.livejournal.com]

The zoo!

[dangerpudding.livejournal.com]

Ok... so, I lived in Portland for a few years, but it's been a while. I'll try to give accurate information.

-Old Wives Tales is tasty, veggie/vegan friendly, and *very* family friendly. If you eat all of the ingredients, I strongly recommend the hungarian mushroom soup.

-Peanut Butter and Ellies is focused on kids/family and healthy food. Fun!

-Finnegans is my favorite toy store. Their stuffed animal and puppet selection is great.

-OMSI is lots of fun. They have a wee kids section, too.

-CM2 (the childrens museum) is lots of fun, as is everything else up at Washington Park.

-If you have free time on a Saturday or Sunday, Saturday Market is fun.

-My favorite breakfast place is Zells, but I'm not sure I'd do it with a wee one on the weekends - it can be a wait.

-Saint Cupcake is not to be missed. Yay Cupcakes!!

-Portland Farmers Market happens often and is fantastic.

And, actually, most stuff in Portland is veggie/vegan friendly, and lots of it is kid friendly. I think this is most true in SouthEast (fewer hipsters). Lots of parks, lots of nifty shops (Hawthorne!).

That's, er, probably enough, eh?

[datagoddess.livejournal.com]

Old Wives Tales is fabulous - Mia and Ryan took me there on my first trip.

cassidyrose, I'll point them at this post to give you recommendations. They'll probably be at Fat Girl Speaks - Mia's a Cupcake dancer and they've been asked to participate.

[lightning-rose.livejournal.com]

You could go downtown and them roll up the sidewalks at 6:00 pm.

[datagoddess.livejournal.com]

We were out at 2 am Saturday night and there were people EVERYWHERE downtown, not even taking Convergence into account.

[jb98.livejournal.com]

Darn, I won't be down there until the following weekend :(

Have fun!