11 june/july days on the west coast

correct me if i’m wrong, but it seems like in your 20s and 30s your vacation plans seem to generally revolve around weddings (thanks to everyone who came to ours in mexico!). we were invited to a wedding in san francisco and instead of our usual long weekend trip out west, we decided to do a west coast “tour”, if you will. this included lots of eating, drinking, and seeing a bunch of babies that had recently been born but we had not yet met (and our cutie niece whom we can never see enough).

oakland

i love when we can go home to the bay area and see/do things that are new and surprising. apparently west oakland has had something of a renaissance in the wine and beer scene (which of course my family has already figured out) and we spent a delightful sunny saturday checking out a few of the offerings.

to eat/drink:

rosenblum cellars: this tasting room is pretty well hidden, but it’s worth it when you find it on a sunny day. we sat outside for some flights and snacks and watched the ferries come and go.

brooklyn west: of course we would find a winery called brooklyn. my parents first visited it the week before and of course joined their wine club which you can stop by for a free tasting whenever you want.

original pattern brewery: bring your thirst! bring your babies! there’s good beer here, and there’s a food popup at the entrance.

portland

for some strange reason, i’ve been to oregon multiple times yet had never been to portland. being a west coaster for essentially my whole life, people were generally surprised by this fact. mat has been on more than one occasion, but because he’s nice he agreed to break our “no places one of us has been before” rule for vacations. we went and stayed with friends for a couple days in the northeast and then the downtown marriott for a couple days to be closer to the action. the weather was spectacular and our friend caitlin took us on a wonderful drive on her day off and now i see what all the portland fuss is about.

to eat:

voodoo doughnut: yes, we waited in that line and got too many (3 for 2 people) doughnuts. highly recommend the ol’dirty bastard and the memphis mafia (which were pretty similar but equally delicious). definitely ate part of one 2 days later and it was still good.

shalom ya’ll: this was the best food we had in portland. tasty cocktails with delightful names (i had the bar spritzvah) and amazing happy hour dishes (labneh! hawaij fries! falafel!) and i wish i could go back to portland just to eat there again.

andina: naturally mat found a peruvian restaurant for us to check out. while we both agreed it was a bit overpriced for portland standards (but we’re from new york so sticker shock is pretty much nonexistent) the food was very good. i was pleased they had hongos saltados (a vegetarian spin on a popular meat dish).

the cookie dough cafe: on the way back to the hotel from andina we wandered past this place and someone (mat) insisted on getting dessert. we had not yet indulged in the “cookie dough served like ice cream” trend because the place in nyc always had a line around the block. it was very good but also very rich and one scoop would have been more than enough to share.

blue star donuts: yes, these are lighter and fluffier and probably better than voodoo. there’s an outpost at the portland airport, so if you need a sugar break but don’t want to miss out, just grab a dozen before heading to your next destination. and try not to eat all of them on the plane.

to drink:

multnomah whisk(e)y library: a literal library of alcohol (see above). we walked by it several times before figuring out where it was. get there early or go put your name in and then go around the corner to shift drinks for a quick nip while you wait.

shift drinks: an oddly large and quiet place but it has happy hour all the time and I can’t remember the last time I paid that little for 2 glasses of wine.

deadstock coffee: do you like coffee? do you like sneakers? best of both seemingly unrelated worlds.

white owl social club: it’s kind of in what looks like a middle of no where part of town, but this place is huge and has good music being spun, good drinks, good food, and apparently is off the hook for pride.

to do:

washington park: i wish i had known how large this space was and had dressed appropriately (meaning not in sandals and pants and carrying a huge purse). you can walk all these beautiful trails between the japanese garden and rose garden and see the mountains. there is a shuttle that will take you to all those places for free though

portland japanese garden: so peaceful. so tranquil. it was sunny when we went which was wonderful but i have dreams of going back on a foggy and cool morning when no one else is there and just watching those giant koi glide through the water while listening to the waterfall and forgetting what it’s like to be sad about anything ever.

international rose test garden: you’ll definitely want to stop and smell all of them. and you should. just plan to go when they’re in bloom and have a lot of time and a picnic lunch.

multnomah falls: if you’re going for a drive and would like a beautiful break, pull over here and witness the glorious mulnomah falls. we weren’t able to walk across the bridge due to flood damage, but it’s worth the photos and the view.

mt. hood winery: we were so lucky to have a warm, clear day on which to sit outside, drink wine, and stare at mount hood (see photo below). views+wine= amazing.

powell’s books: if you’re a book person, leave yourself an entire day to see this store (they literally call it a “city of books” and they’re not exaggerating). we only had a short amount of time so we did a very quick wander, but it is IMPRESSIVE.

seattle

i spend my first year of college in seattle and now one of my oldest and best friends lives there, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. if i could i would visit every year because pike place market and broadway street never get old for me.

to eat/drink:

the crumpet shop: this place is real touristy but so yummy and worth the wait. we prefer the sweet crumpets, but they all look delicious.

oddfellows cafe and bar: in my old neighborhood by seattle university, it was really fun to go here and see how the area has changed. it’s so hip now! i feel like it used to be more grungy (a verb created in seattle, in my opinion). i made everyone walk past my old dorm and showed them my window, and then we wandered over here for a great dinner with good wine and good friends.

the london plane: we went here for lunch and it’s bright and airy with great food and good wine. it’s also located in jackson square which is a fun area to wander and is close to the water.

salt and straw ice cream: the line here was crazy long but we just went inside and bought pints which allowed us to skip it and just enjoy at home. we opted to buy one go-to flavor (salted caramel) and one funky flavor (beet and humboldt fog cheese). The go-to was amazing, the funky one was…interesting. our friend kevin summarized it perfectly: “like eating a salad…but it’s ice cream”.

to do:

olympic sculpture park: it’s free and beautiful and we saw a corgi named buttercup and she was so friendly so that visit was obviously a real winner.

chateau st michelle: if you have a car and feel like going for a drive, woodinville has a lot of beautiful wineries, this place being one of them. we brought a picnic and bought a bottle of wine in the shop (which was packed, not surprisingly) and it was an incredibly pleasant way to spend a day, even though it was a cloudy one.

pike place market: yes it’s also touristy as hell, but i’ll love wandering among the rows of flowers and craft vendors forever. i remember coming here in the winter in college and there were only dried straw flowers which weren’t as nice, but when spring came a friend bought me tulips and they were perfection.