![]() ![]() It’s a really special place and a natural playground with fallen old-growth tree trunks to climb and tide pools to inspect, which our girls loved to do. If there’s one image I’ll never forget it’s this: a line of breathless dogs tired from play, crouched along the shore waiting for their surfers to return from the waves. ![]() After a short drive and hike, you end up in a soft sand Pacific cove with massive pine trees and loads of surfers and happy beach people. The keeper at the inn where we stayed suggested we check out Short Sands Beach. An-hour-and-a-half drive put us in Manzanita, a small northern beach town. We spent the next couple of days on the Oregon coast. Another thing about Portland that’s good to know is that it’s really hard to get lost downtown the east-west street names are alphabetical - Everett, Flanders, Glisan - so you can always seem to find your way. And zipped up and down the Japanese and Rose Gardens in Washington Park. We were always comfortable (no humidity) and loved having sunlight into the evening. Summer mornings in Portland are cool and temps peak in the 80s, but not until late afternoon. Planning restaurants was a great way to get to all of the different neighborhoods since finding good food on a particular street also meant good everything else: beer, shopping, vintage stores. The food scene is truly insane, and so culturally rich! We met one friend for ramen dinner two blocks from our hotel took carry-out Thai barbecue to another friend’s home for dinner the following evening and would go to the local shaved-ice counter often enough that the girls each grabbed a punch card. ![]() Historic buildings and docks along the Willamette River hint at the gritty industrial hub the area once was, but a lot of those buildings have been turned into offices and lofts, breweries, boutiques, coffee shops and restaurants. Staying somewhat central in the Pearl District made it possible for us to cover several neighborhoods in a short time. (Links listed at the end.)ĭowntown Portland is very walkable with lots of options for public transportation. ![]() And it’s an amazingly beautiful city with easy access to both mountains and ocean. Over our years together he often remembers biking through Forest Park, or grabbing a coffee and something sweet on those (many) rainy mornings. This summer was the right time to go for a family vacation, and I think we all pretty much fell in love with it from the start. It’s such a friendly laid-back town - no one honks their car horns and dogs go everywhere with their owners. Tim lived there for some time when he was single and worked at Wieden + Kennedy. Only in Portland this appetizer can be found as Boxer Ramen’s gem.We’ve long discussed visiting Portland. This reminds me of my childhood where I often accidentally mixed ingredients that’s unconventional and would turn out delicious. My impression of okonomiyaki tots is that it is another creation that is simple, yet full of culture. Maybe it is an accidental creation that turned out to be perfect and unique. I found myself eating more of it and I had to force myself to stop before I end up in a food coma□. All I know is that fried tater tots topped with Bonita flakes and its sauces was simply decadent. I don’t know if it is because I’m a lover of tater tots as it was staple in my household growing up. It was different but it did not disappoint me. It is not a pancake with lots of veggies but a bunch of tater tots. Okonomiyaki tots is not the typical one you see at a Japanese restaurant. It normally consists of a wheat dough cooked on a griddle and with anything you like to put on it but never in my mind that someone would think of using tater tots. Okonomiyaki, which means “grilled as you like it” in Japanese, is traditionally a pancake with any mixture of meat, seafood, and vegetables you like. Every restaurant has one or more on the menu that sets it apart from the others….a competitive advantage that makes customers drawn to the restaurant.īoxer Ramen in downtown Portland was brave enough to create an appetizer that no one else would probably have thought of….an okonomiyaki fusion made out of tater tots, Bonita flakes, and its special spicy sauce. ![]()
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