PNW FOOD (+beverage) GUIDE

We ate (and drank) a ridiculous amount while we were in the Pacific Northwest.

Here's where we went, and what we thought:

Oregon (Portland)

Salt & Straw - The Stumptown Coffee & Bourbon ice cream was unreal. Oh, and the chocolate with gooey brownies? Heavenly. Totally worth the wait in line.

Fireside- Fried spiced chickpeas are the best snack on earth. Michael's farro salad was pretty solid too. Outdoor seating is excellent people watching since 23rd Ave is busy!

Bamboo Sushi - Even if you're not a vegetarian you must get the Green Machine roll. Tempura asparagus, avocado, sweet chili cilantro aioli. Nom. Also awesome people watching on 23rd. 

McMenamin's Blue Moon Tavern- We went late night for drinks & cajun tater tots. Oh, and the boys got hot dogs. They're classy like that. Fun, busy atmosphere. Super casual.

Lompoc Tavern- We loved everything about this place. Great outdoor seating, great homemade beer, great food. Michael loved the Bleu Piggy fries & the Cubano, and my strawberry salad was a perfect summer meal. If you go to Portland, this is a must-go!

Cafe Nell- Brunch is a culture here. Fig & goat cheese flatbread with honey? Sold. I can get down with brunch with that kind of food available. Michael got some kind of hash. I was too busy downing my flatbread.

Besaw's- Brunch, again. More Hash. Lots of Coffee.

Stumptown Coffee- Portland does coffee well. I'll give them that.

Blue Star- Sea Salt Caramel Donuts. That is all. 

Rocket Fizz- This candy store has everything you could ever dream of, especially vintage candies & sodas. Clearly I just got an obscene amount of Salt Water taffy...

Washington (Tacoma, Seattle, Woodinville)

Net Shed #9- We stumbled across this place in Gig Harbor & it was fantastic! Right on the water with a goregous outdoor patio. My veggie & hummus sandwich was the best vegetarian sandwich I've had in a long time. 

Dirty Oscars Annex- We checked out this place because it was on Diner, Drive Ins, and Dives. The Tacoma Tea was delish, and the Parmesan Tots were so effing amazing. Everyone drop what you're doing and drive there right now and get some! M's Tasso Tacos were awesome- but unfortunately my Smoked Cheddar nachos were less than stellar. If you go here, just skip those!

The Original Starbucks-Touristy? Yes. We got a Pike Place roast, since we were at Pike Place and all...

Michou (Pike Place Market)- For the love of all that is good, go here an get a Bomboloni. Look kind of like a donut- but much bigger with a bigger hole. Covered in sugar and heavenly. My mouth is watering right now thinking of them. Gah. 

7 Seas Brewery- MUST visit- serious gem hidden in Gig Harbor. We did a sampling- and the Rude Parrot IPA was by far our favorite. Best craft beer on our trip!

Harmon Brewing Co.- This spot in Tacoma had okay beer and okay food. Nothing too special.

Rock Bottom Brewery- Definitely not a place I'd visit again in Seattle. Bad beer, bad service.

Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery- While the customer service of the lady doing our tasting was lacking, the wine was great, and the estate was completely stunning. 

Red Hook Brewery- People, you MUST go for their $1 tour of the place. You get to sample a bunch of their beer and if you're lucky like we were- you'll get a great tour guide. When you go there, ask for Sophie to do your tour. We learned a lot about the brews, as well as the history of RedHook. If we went back to WA, we'd do this tour again for sure.

Forecasters Pub- RedHook Brewery has a full restaurant in it- with awesome food. The meal-type food was great- but the pretzel with beer cheese dip was the BOMB. I could eat it every. single. day.

So, if you're planning on going to the PNW, take this guide with you- or pass it on to someone you know might be traveling there!

Been to OR/WA and have a cool place you'd like to add?

Leave it in the comments for others to find!

xo, lp

PNW - TAKE 2

So as you saw Monday, the first leg of our trip in Portland was success!

We headed off to Washington next...

1. We stopped in Olympia first to check out the State Capitol Building. Nothin' compared to Wisconsin's cap building...but I'm pretty biased.

2-4 Turns out Sea Fair was going on in Seattle which meant every hotel on earth was booked, so we ended up staying in Tacoma. I'm glad we did too, because while searching for a hotel we got to see a lot of awesome things around town! We explored the waterfront & the Tacoma Glass Museum, and had a great date night at Dirty Oscar's Annex. Diner's Driveins and Dives was right- it was delicious!

5. The next morning REALLY early we headed downtown Seattle. First stop? The Original Starbucks! 

6. We spent a ton of time walking around Pike Place and watching the guys throw fish around. I wish we lived in Seattle and had access to that amazing market daily!

7. The Post Alley Gum Wall- we just had to do it. We just HAD to.

8. Rock Bottom Brewery beer tasting. Totally sucked. Don't go there. For realz.

9. Fremont Troll- you just have to Google it, such a crazy cool "statue".

10. Oh come on, you didn't really think we wouldn't do the Space Needle, did you??

11-12. After one of our days in Seattle we headed to Woodinville, WA to do a little wine tasting and brewery touring. Chateau Ste Michelle had great wine- but the chick serving us clearly thought that because we are young we didn't know wine and pretty much ignored us. Major bummer. To forget her, we went to Red Hook Brewery where we had the most fantastic tour guide. The beer was DELICIOUS, we learned a ton, and we ate&drank at their brewpub afterwards. I may have gotten tipsy. Oops. Sorry Michael!

13&14. The next morning we headed to Gig Harbor, WA- cute little sea town on the Puget Sound. I bought even more taffy and we checked out yet another brewery (seeing a theme?). By far best beer of the trip.

15-16.  Finally, we spent our last day in Washington visiting Mt. Rainier. Holy shit it's gorgeous up there. The trees, the waterfalls, the mountain- completely stunning. I now see why crappy scent companies try to create the smell "mountain air". Ahhhhh.

17. Our car for the trip? A Chevy Spark. Aka the clown car. Aka the worst car ever.

18. Just kind of a pretty drive back to Portland... these PNW states love their bridges, I tell ya.

So that's the second leg! We packed a ton of stuff in, and Washington was a stunning state...I already want to go back!

Have you ever been to Washington? What was your favorite part?

If you're planning a trip please email me, I'd love to give more details!

xo, lp