Lardo PDX is open!

Lardo, the food cart, has received accolades from Willamette Weekly and Sunset Magazine. High praise from local food bloggers to Oprah magazine. It was a cart destined for greatness, and like many carts that I have enjoyed in the past, (Violetta/ Salt and Straw...)it was also destined for a brick and mortar store front. A real, true place to call home. I admit, I hadn't tried Lardo's cart fare. Just never made it down to it's location on Belmont. Today, though, as I was browsing through various foodie websites and monitoring Facebook I noticed that New Deal Vodka had posted about Lardo finally being open. They posted a copy of the menu.

I had to go. I was concerned about going to such a high profile opening day. I dreaded long lines and longer ticket times. I didn't give K the time to say "not today". We hustled down through rush-hour traffic to the defunct Winchell's Donuts building right across Hawthorne Blvd from my favorite cart pad, Cartopia! Although the fresh, picnicky patio area was crowded with happy diners, there was only a few people in line ahead of us in the restaurant. A large chalkboard behind the counter confirmed what FB had told me earlier. I was in for the long haul! What to try first? The Meatball Banh Mi? The Grilled Mortadella? I settled on the Pork Belly Egg and Cheese while K ordered the Double Burger Pork Belly. We decided to split an order of Lardo fries, parmesan, fried herbs, house-made ketchup. Although they have a full liquor license and some tasty looking specials on the drink board, I stuck with beer. And then came the wait. The seating inside has a little to be desired. Although attractive, not terribly comfortable. Fine for a fast food joint when you need a quick turnover but when the real wait is for the kitchen, I'm looking for something a tad more cozy. As soon as a table opened up outside Kieran and I bolted for it. And we waited some more. With all due respect this was their first night. They were extremely busy for the size kitchen they have. The staff remained cheerful and patient, why shouldn't we? I'm so happy we were patient. I know it's a cliche' to say something is worth the wait but please indulge me this...it's worth the wait. First off, the fries. When the person behind the counter asks you if you want them "Dirty" please reply with a resounding YES! The addition of pork scraps and marinated peppers will have you wondering why you hadn't done dirty before now. These fries alone are reason to return but let me tell you about the sandwiches. The Pork Belly is smoky, sweet deliciousness served on a crusty soft Fleur de Lis bun. Accented with a fresh, golden fried egg and the peppery bite of arugula and caper mayo. I have to pause quietly between bites to wipe the tears from my eyes. Nothing short of amazing. K's burger was also a crowd pleaser, fantastically flavorful and topped with Pork Belly and the now famous Lardo sauce. Simply fabulous. I won't wait to return.

NAOBF 2012: Saving the planet, one beer at a time

I'm going to come right out and say it now, The North American Organic Beer Festival is the best beer festival in Portland. OBF folks, take note. There are many reasons why people will tell you this is their favorite festival of the season.

Great venue: The view of P-Town from Overlook Park is awe-inspiring. The park is home to one of the prettiest trees in all of Portland. I can't be there and keep from thinking how much I love where I live. Just enough space to give you elbow room but cozy enough to make you feel like your simply at a friend's backyard bbq.
 Great volunteers: Now I believe the volunteers at all of the Beer and Wine Festivals are awesome so maybe it's just the general feel of this festival that puts people in such a great mood. They run short, fast lines without making you feel rushed. There doesn't seem to be a large ensemble of DB's looking to get drunk on PBRs and puke on the lawn and so the people here are just happy to take some time and talk about good beer and what that entails. Of course, "the more I drink, the more I think" is sometimes the logic as stated by the man wearing the bright yellow Caution! My awesomeness can cause blindness t-shirt.
 Great food: I have to admit, I'm a big fan of Violetta, the little cart that could. Nut Love! otherwise known as Family Tree Nut Co. serves up my favorite beer snack, Apple Rosemary Roasted Hazelnuts. This year, we also tried some fare from Zuppa! Yummmy curry and masala but lacking a little of the "heat" that I require when going for Indian. The addition of Bottles pulled pork sliders was a good call.
 Great music: Caught a couple of the acts on the Roots stage and they were a sweet addition to the day. Left Coast Country's brand of bluegrass was extra tasty but the festival likes to mix it up a bit and you'll hear anything from Acoustic Blues to Rock/Soul to Zydeco.

OK, so we all know it's a great festival. Craig Nicholls and his amazing crew work hard to make it so. Let's talk about the beer. Great beer. Organically and Sustain-ably produced beer.
 Ambacht Brewing out of Hillsboro, OR brought a couple of tasty treats including the Bourbon Barrel Aged Honey Triple 8.6% ABV. Sweet, floral, rich and tasty. I enjoyed this one and I am sad I didn't go in for the Golden Rose Farmhouse style. Yes, I did go for the Bison Organic Beers Chocolate Stout 5% ABV. It is, after all, one of my first loves in the organic beer world. This and the Honey Basil Ale 6% ABV are a given for me at NAOBF. Every year.

 I've been waiting to taste some brew from Captured by Porches out of St. Helens. This weekend, I got to try two. The first was the Bavarian Hefeweizen 5.7% ABV. Yummy, fruity, light. Followed by the Invasive Species IPA 6.3% ABV, one of my favorite IPAs. Not overpowering, hoppy malty balance. Enjoyable.

The Commons Brewery offered up an Oat Saison, Haver Bier 5.6% ABV. Creamy and delicious, this is one of my new go-to styles. I like the slightly sweet spice of the malt which makes for good drinking whatever the weather. For warm weather drinking only, I would maybe recommend the Eel River Acai Berry Wheat out of Fortuna, CA. It was super light, not too fruity and boosts a "great taste that is great for you". Had to smile at that one. Another fun addition to the festival was the Elliott Bay Olde Burien 600 Malt Liquor 7.4% ABV. Sweet, smooth, lageresque. Is this really Malt Liquor?

Oh! I just came across my notes for the Finnriver Farm Ciders, Chimacum, WA. Both the Dry Hopped Sparkling Cider 6.5% ABV and the Black Currant Cider 6.5% ABV have one simple word jotted down next to them...YES! I guess I liked them but as I recall the Wandering Angus Dry Oaked Cider 7.5% ABV was delicious as well...time to admit I'm a fan of cider.

 At one point during the day I asked Craig what were the "must try" beers of the weekend. He had mentioned the Belgium imports, Brunehaut Amber and the Brunehaut Blonde which I, regrettably, did not get to. Not sure why I was saving the 3-token tastes for the end but by the end, I didn't have the 3-tokens. Poor poor planning on my part. Why am I so cheap with the tokens? Craig also pointed me in the direction of the Logsdon Farmhouse Ales, Hood River, OR. The Seizoen Bretta 8% ABV was a delicous Saison style. Crisp, spicy, dry, keg-conditioned with pear for that sweet, sparkly finish. One of my favorites as well, thank you Sir. The Kili Wit 5.5% ABV, an organic White, had a sour/soft mouth-feel that I really enjoyed. Fuggles hops, barley malt, wheat and a coriander kick made for a very unique beer. I'll have another. Another brewer touting Fuggles Hops this year was Lompoc. Now I'm usually a fan of anything Lompoc but I didn't really care for the Cluster Fuggles IPA 6% ABV that they were offering. It had a strong metallic aftertaste that actually had me wanting to rinse out my mouth after tasting. I don't usually like to rinse after beer.

 At this point, I may have been a little sleepy so I opted for the Mateveza Brewing Co. and their Yerba Mate IPA. Yerba mate is a South American herbal tea that holds a slight caffeine kick. Brewed with organic Cascade, Centennial and Simcoe hops and you get a fine, dry IPA with a minty herbal bite. I like. I've probably told you about my love/hate relationship with McMenamin's Brewerys. I love their style, their venues, their golf courses, pool tables, hotels. Their food is so-so and their service is ridiculous to the slowest level. I still love their beer. I hate the fact that I can never find a good pint of brewer Dan Black's Purple Haze when I want one. I love the fact that they have several brewmasters at various locations and they aren't afraid to compete with themselves. This time around they offered no fewer than four different brewery offerings. Concordia, Crystal, Oak Hills and Old Church. I settled for two. Old Church's Dark Knight Dunkelweizen 5.3% ABV was dark and delicious and everything I want in a dark beer. Spicy, sweet, malty. Dessert in a pint glass. McMenamin's Concordia Brewery showed up with my favorite name for a beer, School's Out IPA 7.2% ABV. A really refreshing IPA that enchanted a few of my friends with it's crisp evergreen high notes and citrus/ fruity undertones. Super summer drinkable. Of course there were many other delicious offerings with the catchy organic names we all anticipate~ Rockbottom's Dirty Hippy 5.3% Kolsch and Upright's Reggae Junkie Gruit 5.3% ABV to name a couple. Some were hot, some were not. I found myself writing "meh" on my notepad a few times.

 All in all, another amazingly fun and delicious way to introduce yourself to some new brews, re-introduce yourself to some old favorites, and spend another fantastic Portland day in a fantastic Portland way. Enjoy!