The City of Roses
A Few Notes on Portland, OR for (Future) Travelers
Following my Substack post on revisiting Honolulu, here comes another article for travelers. The Third-Culture Lawyer’s spotlighted city today is Portland, Oregon.
All Hail, Nature!
Nicknamed the “City of Roses,”1 Portland boasts beautiful nature all around. To me, this is the most attractive aspect of Portland: you get the convenience and other benefits of living in a city (though Portland is definitely nothing like NYC, Tokyo, or Hong Kong) and concurrently get to enjoy a generous amount of nature in a way that most places cannot easily beat.
My all-time favorite is Washington Park, an 458-acre public urban park that contains the International Rose Test Garden (which has a gift store and an amphitheater), Japanese Garden (containing a cute Japanese teahouse named Umami Café, for which I suggest making a reservation ahead of time due to its popularity), Oregon Zoo, Hoyt Aboretum, and other scenic attractions. While obviously tourists would likely visit at least one or two of the above, locals also frequent the park. Washington Park has a free shuttle that regularly takes everyone in between the various attractions, public tennis courts, playgrounds for children, as well as other cool places such as picnic tables and an archery site. There are nice hiking trails in various parts of the park, making it a great place for a workout. You can choose how intensely you want to hike, or jog. We even sighted an owl in broad daylight one time!
A few words on each of the main attractions:
Rose Garden: Absolutely stunning when roses are blooming; features a wide variety of roses in various sub-sections of the garden, including a Shakespearean garden. Grab a rose-flavored drink from the gift shop, sit at the amphitheater seating area for a while, stroll around the impressive rows and rows of roses with fascinating names and colors, and look for a clear view of Mount Hood on a sunny day…
Japanese Garden: One of the most beautiful gardens in town, and probably one of the most cherished Japanese gardens in the U.S. It features a bit of everything in traditional Japanese gardens, including bonsai collections, koi, teahouse, etc. A unique feature is that this garden is at the heart of the overall Washington Park, meaning that the Portland Japanese Garden feels like a curated garden within a very expansive natural area, perfectly combining human-made aesthetics with nature itself. There are some cherry blossoms in late-March.
Zoo: My previous Substack post on Honolulu has a specific section on the Honolulu Zoo. It’s worth comparing that to the Oregon Zoo, which has its own unique charms by virtue of being part of the Washington Park and being quite big. Both zoos are great. The Oregon Zoo has a myriad of featured animals (including sea otters, a personal favorite since I visited Monterey, CA in college!), and the overall ambiance is family-friendly and laid back.
Hoyt Aboretum: Lots of different trail options of varying levels of difficulty. It’s quite awe-inspiring to have an expansive space like this in an urban area!
Public Tennis Courts: Although not part of nature, the courts are surrounded by flowers, including cherry blossoms in early spring and roses in the summer, and bushy greens. These courts are located between the Japanese Garden and Rose Garden. Although the Portland Tennis Center is nice and allows reservations ahead of time, the Rose Garden courts are complimentary and much more scenic.
Also decently close to, though a bit further from, the city center is Forest Park, one of the largest urban forests in the United States. I’m less familiar with Forest Park, but enjoyed the time we were there for a long walk. I also recommend the Stone House and nearby creeks (Lower Macleay), as well as the hike to Pittock Mansion from Nob Hill (Upper Macleay/Wildwood Trail). Portland is truly fortunate to have so much nature close to home. For sunset, Council Crest offers a memorable view.
To the north, Sauvie Island is a summertime favorite, especially when the sunny blue sky graces the rainy Pacific Northwest area with its presence. The corn maze at the Pumpkin Patch isn’t difficult to navigate, but plenty of fun for a weekend date. Its name suggests, unsurprisingly, that there are pumpkins during harvest season — just in time for pumpkin carving at Halloween. It’s nice to grab a hot dog/burger and some farm-made drinks, sit at the picnic tables around wildflowers, visit the farm animals, enjoy a hay ride, and shop for local produce. Sauvie Island isn’t far at all from downtown Portland, but the few times I’ve visited, I seem to temporarily forget that I’m in a city and immerse myself in the relaxing lifestyle for a few hours, before catching a ride back to the city.
On the east side, which we visit less frequently, I especially like Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden (the Canada geese remind me of Cambridge, MA — oh, nostalgia!; there are also lots of ducks/other bird species), Leach Botanical Garden, and Mount Tabor (another sunset spot). The Grotto is an interesting place to visit as well, suited for quiet meditation.
Foodie Town
Prior to arriving in Portland, I didn’t quite imagine Portland to be a huge foodie city and was pleasantly surprised. A bit of research informed me that Portland is one of the best cities for foodies in the U.S. and one of the up-and-coming places when it comes to various culinary styles. There are several James Beard Award winners who are based in Portland, and overall, I can tell that this city is serious about good food. This article will name just a few restaurants I especially enjoyed and/or found particularly interesting. I won’t spoil too much and am not a professional food critic, but will share a few quick notes for each place.
Salt & Straw: Yes, Salt & Straw is from Portland! Why am I starting the food section with an ice cream place? Because it’s amazing. Probably the best ice cream store ever, and they use local ingredients. The waffle cones are delicious too, and they recently introduced milkshakes — a bit too many calories in my view. Anyways, I love the honey lavender flavor and visit whenever there’s a chance. There are multiple locations in Portland, including Nob Hill, Division, and Alberta (original). To avoid a line, use ChowNow, the online ordering system, though you wouldn’t get samples of flavors you want to try. There are some creative/weird flavors like Thanksgiving turkey (speaking of birds, they also introduced a flamingo flavor), but I usually stick with one of 3 flavors. A different ice cream store that’s also pretty good is Cool Moon (highly recommend the Mexican vanilla flavor).
Papa Hadyn: I originally visited because I saw their enticing cake menu and photos online. The desserts are good indeed, and the Pacific Northwest salmon/some other entrées are also fantastic. There are 2 locations. I like the Sellwood one because of the beautiful outdoor patio with colorful flowers, especially in the summer. Downside: the bees are a bit scary.
Stammtisch: nice German restaurant. Nice to drink German draft beer (though Portland’s local draft beer is also famous and tasty). The freshly squeezed orange juice is great, and the schweinshaxe is available during dinner time.
Expatriate: check out their website (http://expatriatepdx.com) and you’ll instantly see how hipster this place is, e.g. “special economic zone,” “time and place,” “context,” “compatriots.” The cocktails are spy-themed with creative names. The atmosphere is also worth a visit. It’s located in the Alberta Arts District, which deserves at last a couple hours of adventure.
Huber’s: the oldest restaurant in town. Very old-school feel. The Spanish coffee is made in front of the guest who orders it, so you can get the whole experience and see the flame right in front of you. Thanksgiving’s turkey is a specialty.
Andina: Peruvian fusion. On the pricey side but worth a visit. I especially like the pan de yema and the corazón dishes. Lovely chocolate dessert as well. Service is always excellent.
Eem: the chef is quite famous. This Thai restaurant on the east side of town blends BBQ with Thai cuisine. The portion felt a bit small for the price, though, but very tasty. Because of COVID-19, it was pretty much self-service via an online ordering system when we went.
Rimsky Korsacoffee: this one feels very Portland — pretty hipster/fun. Rumor is that it’s haunted. The décor in a Victorian house makes everything more interesting. Most tables have a collection of postcards, old documents/pictures, etc. to add to the weirdness. There is live classical music performance of Rimsky-Korsakov’s chef-d’œuvres. Re coffee: sadly, I can’t handle much caffeine and accordingly, can’t quite comment on the coffee situation in Portland, but heard it’s very good, e.g. the famous Stumptown Coffee. The desserts at Rimsky are sumptuous, with lots of whipped cream and chocolate. Try the raspberry fool. And remember to venture upstairs to check out their eccentric bathroom that’s much discussed on Yelp.
Café Nell: I initially went there for a work lunch and later discovered their brunch veggie Benedicts. Awesome Benedicts, served with a delightful amount of baked potatoes! Nice outdoor seating area for the pandemic.
Murata: maybe my favorite Japanese place in town, though Momoyama is also fantastic (Momoyama is a bit more upscale/pricey/fusion-y, vs. Murata is very popular for a workday lunch and is located in downtown). Pretty filling and authentic lunch sets. Sushi chefs wear ties. Overall an old-school place where (nearly?) all servers/chefs are from Japan.
Farmhouse Thai Kitchen: modernist, trendy atmosphere, almost like a nightclub with the colorful decorations and lighting (the cocktails parallel that design scheme, with names like Cloud 9 and ingredients like cotton candy and edible butterflies). I love most spicy curries, and this is no exception. The mango sticky rice dessert is pretty tasty as well. They also have California locations.
Toki: very interesting Asian fusion. The bao burger and bibimbap are awesome! Haven’t tried too much beyond that — went for brunch once.
Roaste Chocolate House: if you are a chocolate-holic like me, you’re in luck. A relatively new place that opened during COVID-19 is Roaste in the Pearl District. They make everything in-store from ethically-sourced beans and offer several options based on the geographic origin of the beans. Their chocolate beverages are richer than most places (reminding me of L.A. Burdick’s in Cambridge), so a warning is that you might get a sugar high pretty fast. I personally find myself more social than ever when I drink rich chocolate like this. And their pastries are wonderful — chocolate tarts (including a new s’mores flavor), brownies, chocolate mouses, etc. If I re-read this article, I might have to avoid this section to avoid chocolate cravings…
With regards to Chinese food, I have to say I’ve been overall disappointed. There’s a lot of Americanized Chinese food options, but maybe I’m more picky about Chinese food than other cuisines. Many Chinese restaurants serve the standard overseas Chinese food menu despite their region-specific names and lack some personality. It’s sad that many Chinese places are expected to be priced lower and be more geared towards takeouts (seems like that was the case even pre-pandemic?). That being said, I did find a few places to be pretty authentic from Grubhub/Caviar: Chin’s Kitchen (for northeastern food), Din Tai Fung (not unique to Portland obviously), and Wei Wei.
Arts and the Environment
Portland’s arts scene is pretty cool. Apart from the Alberta Arts District I mentioned above, the Portland Art Museum is pretty nice/bigger than I envisioned. There was a Frida exhibition, and I enjoyed the impressionist paintings they have. Oregon is known for its zero sales tax, making Portland attractive to duty-free shoppers, but it does tax residents an annual arts tax. At $35/year, though, the arts tax is a relatively modest amount and emphasizes the city’s attention to the arts.
Oregon is known for its attention to sustainability and environmental conservation. Think about Portlandia, the TV series. I’ve only watched a few minutes of YouTube videos from the show, but it’s memorable nevertheless when a character shocks everyone at a grocery store in Portland by failing to bring his own shopping bag (the reality, at least to me, is that it’s not really the case and most supermarkets provide paper bags). Portland offers very convenient transportation tools. In addition to the streetcars, Portland’s Nike bikes (Biketown PDX is the ride-sharing program) and electronic scooters (e.g. Lime, Bird, Spin, Bolt) are pretty widely available. Both of these options operate on Apps similar to Lyft/Uber, and some are available via Lyft and Uber. There are also car sharing programs that are visibly available around town, though I haven’t driven in Portland. The city is also overall pretty good about categorizing different kinds of trash.
Societal Issues
Unfortunately, the picture is far from rosy in the City of Roses (weather aside; I don’t really like the cold/rainy weather much, but summer has the potential to be glorious), especially in recent years.
Homelessness is very serious and visible in many parts of Portland, sadly, and the crime rate has been rising, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic started. Locals I’ve met almost unanimously commented on the decline of the city with sadness (usually along the lines of “Portland used to be really safe and amazing in all respects, but in the past couple years, that’s not the case anymore”), although some of these issues that are worsened by the global pandemic are common in various U.S. cities. It is very scary to look at the crime stats and news reports, as there are many instances of gun violence/murder incidents pretty much year-round in Portland. As this article focuses on providing traveling insights, however, I will not dwell at length at these aspects (or politics in general) too much in this post, but I suggest noting the more dangerous zones in the city before visiting and remaining vigilant.
And so this concludes my brief write-up of Portland, OR. Feel free to add your own observations of the City of Roses in a comment below or ask me anything you’d like related to this article! If you enjoy my travel series, let me know if there are particular places that the Third-Culture Lawyer should feature in the future and check out my previous post on revisiting Honolulu if you haven’t already. Stay safe and take care!
P.S.: For people looking for reciprocal clubs, the Harvard Club of Boston, for example, has 2 reciprocal clubs in town: the Multnomah Athletic Club (MAC) and the Arlington Club. If you have the opportunity to visit the MAC, I’d highly recommend it; it’s gigantic, consisting of many floors and many fitness options (Peloton bikes and treadmills with great views of Providence Park, group exercise classes, organized hikes to Oregon and Washington destinations such as Mount Saint Helens, 3 swimming pools of varying sizes and temperatures, etc). The MAC’s restaurants (the Bistro is outdoors, the Sports Pub is indoors, and there’s a more formal/classy place too) and snack bar (great for milkshakes/smoothies and quick bites post-workout) are amazing.
Bonus for fellow bibliophiles: Obviously, check out Powell’s City of Books, an independent bookstore that’s nationally renowned for the expansive selection of used and new books. The Multnomah County Library’s e-book selection is also pretty impressive if you’re especially germaphobic during the pandemic. In terms of books on Portland, I recommend The Portland Book of Dates: Adventures, Escapes, and Secret Spots and Portlandness: A Cultural Atlas. Regarding food in Portland, Eater.com’s Portland section is well-curated in my view.
Portland is also known as the “City of Bridges.” True to its name, it truly has a lot of bridges.
Portland is a wonderful city, despite the challenges it faces (including the homelessness problem you mention). I lived there for a year during my clerkship, and I always enjoy visiting (which I'll be doing again in October). Thanks for the great write-up, which made me nostalgic!