Exclusive interviews and Q&As with our favorites in food, drink, travel, and culture.
The fact that we even have Bridgetown Comedy Festival today can be owed to comedian Matt Braunger (and co-founder, Andy Wood). Braunger, who was born and raised in northeast Portland, describes himself as “…a lightning-rod of awkwardness…” in one of his specials. His humor is grab-a-beer-with-a-friend relatable, and he bursts with energy on stage.
San Francisco chef Richie Nakano is as widely known for his opinions as he is for his ramen. An online biography describes the cocksure chef as “the expert of kitchen trash talk”, his regularly updated Twitter feed peppered with sideswipes at everything from local regulations to “Best Of” lists.
I arrived in this weird Pacific Northwest city back in the early 2000s, settling into a house in Portland’s then-undesirable Northeast neighborhood. I remember being pretty dismayed with the food options in the area, venturing out one night, determined to find a great restaurant nearby. Thankfully, I stumbled upon a dimly lit corner spot on Fremont Avenue, where the menu at Acadia pulled me in, full of seafood and Cajun spices, and I stayed for both dinner and dessert.
The guidance and training a chef receives within the kitchen – particularly during those early years – often dictates the tone of his or her career, from knife skills and spices to business acumen and demeanor.
Books that cook have really evolved over the last few years. A few – like David Chang’s tale in the Momofuku cookbook of fighting anger and shingles – plunge even deeper into the cooking/storytelling vein, revealing the heart of the kitchen where memoir and measuring cup collide.
The Multnomah Whisk{e}y Library, the long awaited cocktail destination from Alan Davis of Produce Row Cafe, is everything you’ve heard it to be. The selection of over 1500 pours from around the world, handpicked by resident whisk(e)y expert, Tommy Klus, is breathtaking, lining a full wall six shelves high. A rolling ladder is used to access it all, bottles of every color and size flooded with a warm yellow light that draws your attention despite the beauty and detail of the entire room. Every gathering around a table is punctuated with plush and leather seating, couches and chairs, tall custom drink trays awaiting your next choice off the extensive menu.
I blame Kevin Sandri for my appreciation of the food cart. My first year in…
Soulfully eclectic, musically magic, LA-based Fitz and the Tantrums has taken the music scene by storm – and singer Noelle Scaggs couldn’t be happier.
I cannot think of a better week for the Bridgetown Comedy Festival to arrive. Portland will welcome heaps of comics of all varieties this weekend, at a time when it feels as though we could all really use a good laugh.
Chris Martin and Chris Phillips of IAMDYNAMITE were still kids when they met, fusing their musical talents together in a various assembly of southeastern Michigan bands before finally honing in on the two-man magic their current IAMDYNAMITE collaborations produce.
When I first went to Firehouse in North Portland, I was only in it for…