Portland: A Morning Walk, Blue Star Donuts, and Going Back to Tasty N Alder

The Missus had worked quite hard in the weeks up to our trip to Portland. I'm a terminal early riser, so I decided to let the Missus get some additional shut-eye, while I took a morning walk.

Much like Seattle, Portland seems to rise late.....it was still a bit dark when I started my walk at the Paramount Hotel.

I headed out for The Pearl, we'd walked around the area a bit the day before and really enjoyed ourselves, and were probably headed here later in the morning, so I thought why not? Though I'd been up this way before, I'd never been up NW 13th Avenue.

A former street full of former warehouses, turned into restaurants, shops, and businesses....I really liked the transformation.

A few streets over, I went to check out Jamison Square. The modern totem public art sculptures called the Tikitotmoniki Totems have always served as a landmark for me.

For some reason, the area seems much more developed than when I last visited.

Walking down Burnside past the North Park Blocks, I descended on the area known as Old Town and Chinatown. Things seemed to have changed a bit since my last visit; it's much cleaner, less (though still a bit) gritty....there seemed to be quite a few bars and art galleries, so I'm certain that additional gentrification might be coming up.

Looking up NW 6th Avenue; I was surprised to see Union Station was a few blocks away! On previous visits; Union Station just seemed much farther away.

Perhaps all those "death marches" with the Missus (I calculated I walked 9 miles on this day...stay tuned) has changed how I calculate distance?

Anyway, walking into Chinatown, I saw that The House of Louie was still there!

And of course, one of my favorite signs....... Hung Far Low. The restaurant, once the oldest restaurant in Chinatown (opened in 1928), is long gone. But I guess there's something, well, unique and special about the sign....it is without a doubt a landmark, and the sign has been preserved. I understand that the city even contributed to making sure that Hung Far Low kept on hanging, high and proud in Chinatown.

Walking past the Chinatown gate, I received a text from the Missus. She was up and about, so I headed back......not directly mind you, there was one stop on the way.

I do wish some of the food carts on 10th and Alder were open for a substantial breakfast....but like their customer base, they seem to wake much later as well.

Seeing food carts in Portland always brings me back to this wonderful post  from which Portland Food Carts site was established in 2007. Lizzy Gaston is no longer involved with the little empire that is Portland Food Carts, but I will never forget. 

Heading down Washington Street, I came across the SW Portland location of Blue Star Donuts. The Missus isn't a big fan of Voodoo Donuts, so I thought I'd get something from here as a wake up treat for Her.

This was the most folks I saw in one place at this time of the morning in Portland!

The artisan donuts here use a brioche base.

I bought three for the Missus. I don't have a big sweet tooth, but thought the cinnamon and vanilla sugar was the best; the Missus agreed. The raspberry filled with peanut butter powder was our least favorite.

You can read about the North Portland location of Blue Star in Mary's post.

Blue Star Donuts
1237 SW Washington St
Portland, OR 97205

*** Tasty N Alder has closed

So after some donuts, the Missus decided where She wanted to eat Her breakfast.......it  was Tasty N Alder again!

So we waited until just before 9am and walked the couple blocks up to Tasty N Alder.

Our Server was the same......so wonderful. She welcomed us back and we explained that we came back for the Radicchio Salad. In a very nice touch, she brought us some coffee cake, telling us, "this is on the house....welcome back...and thanks!" Wow, really?

And so the Missus got Her Radicchio Salad.......half portion ($6)

Of course the Missus loves eggs.....so I decided to order the Cast Iron Frittata ($10).

Good sized....not too big, loved the nettles, the caramelization helped to smooth out the bitterness and develop the sugars, the caramelized onion brought some sweetness, and the asparagus was present in a restrained amount. A nice, light, frittata.

And $16 for a breakfast for 2? And that coffee cake? Priceless......

Tasty n Alder
580 SW 12th Ave
Portland, OR 97205
Hours:
Sunday - Thursday 9am - 10pm
Friday - Saturday 9am - 11pm

We chose a rather light breakfast, because we had our sights set on lunch..........before that; there was a need for some coffee.

Stay Tuned!

Comments

[Sage]

Hah, again, similar experience – our last entree at Tasty N Alder came out like 5 or 10 minutes later than they felt it should have, so we got comped for that entree. Amazing service there. Left a fatty tip and a nice note.

[kat]

that sign makes me giggle...

[ken]

Yea! The hungfarlow sign. The first time Anita and I saw that, we just laughed our asses off. It's like the punch line to a bunch of old jokes from when I was a kid. Thanks for reminding me.

[Jason]

Nice breakfast! a donuts appetizer seems like the perfect way to start a morning breakfast.

[Kirk]

We loved the service too Sage.

I always smile when I see it Kat!

Hi Ken - Yep, really brings out the immature jokes....I always laugh because you can't really help it!

Good point Jason....breakfast appetizer....need to remember that one.

[caninecologne]

Your PDX posts make me want to go back and try all the places that popped up since our last visit. I like the Hung Far Low sign. There is another Hung Far Low in the SE quadrant but their sign is plain, not fabulous like the one in Chinatown. :)

[Kirk]

It's time for another visit CC!

[Ange]

Those artisan donuts look so good! That Hung Far Low sign is so kitschy...love it. I have never been to Portland but hope to visit.

[Kirk]

I think you'll like Portland Ange. It's kind of funky, but people are quite nice. And that sign always makes me laugh.

[Ed (from Yuma)]

My dad had a matchbook from Hung Far Low when I was growing up. Oregon legend/tradition, I guess.

[Kirk]

I guess Ed......quite funny.

[Kyle]

House of Louie was the first place I ever had General Tso's chicken. Tried to talk the waitress into making some harm ha roast pork but no go. She said to stink.

[Kirk]

LOL Kyle - Harm Ha Ong Choy....a favorite of mine.

[Mary]

Ahhh, your posts make me miss Portland. Loved the no sales tax and the food there.

[Kirk]

Great food Mary. Unpretentious, but quite good. And yep, no sales tax.