I'm Baaaack! Well, at least I thought I'd try...

 I stopped writing in this blog format close to 6 years ago.  I don't know why.  I guess it was faster, quicker, easier to just do what everyone else was doing and post my quick pic of food and drink and fun on the 'gram.  I stopped taking the time and energy to find the right words to describe my joy and just focused on the insta-joy.  I felt pangs of self-doubt and discouragement.  I compared my work to professionals and figured 'why bother?'.  I'm supposing it just wasn't fun anymore but that's not really true.  I loved writing.  I loved drinking. I loved eating.  I loved writing about what I was eating and drinking.  I didn't get paid for blogging.  I don't have aspirations of becoming America's darling food critic like I did back in my 20's.  That was when I would type out reviews and send them in to various local  news outlets hoping to catch the publisher's eye. The most I received from my Blogger writing days was the occasional extra pour or tickets to a beer fest and it was so worth it. Because I loved it.  And I think I'm going to try doing it some more.  Writing conventions, rules of grammar and Covid 19 be damned.  I just want to sit down and type out some praise and some prose and share with whoever is bored enough to take a few minutes and read about what makes me happy.  Which is what I think might make them happy.  Which is really what makes me happiest.  

Let's start with Breakfast.  I'm getting older and the hustle and bustle of the Brunchtime crowd in Portland has lost it's allure for me.  Plus...Covid...I'm not looking to jump into a super-spreader event but I do still like to go to restaurants that are still open (sadly, so many have closed these past couple of years).  In my heart I had planned a day of gluttony and food hopping.  In touch with reality, I chose to simply have breakfast at a locally famous diner and get there at the crack of dawn in an effort to avoid any crowds.  K and I perused menus and decided on Milo's City Cafe.  We had never been there and the thought of some delicious brunchy food and an outstanding build your own Bloody Mary sealed the deal.  

We arrived at  Milo's City Cafe moments after opening at 8:00ish which on the plus side pretty much gave us the place to ourselves and thwarted potential 'rona exposure but also thwarted some of our build your own Bloody plans.  As our very kind server gently explained, the kitchen wasn't quite ready for the day and so many of the options for the BYOBM were not available.  Regardless she poured us a fabulous drink and grabbed some bacon from the kitchen to zhuzh it up for us.  I ordered my drink with mild spice as I am wary/weary of not being able to finish a too spicy Bloody and this one came out perfect. She made me one with just enough spice to keep it real but not so much to cover the flavor of the vegis and vodka.  

The deliciousness of the Bloody Mary helped soften the blow when I ordered a Crab Benedict but found out that they were out of crab...ok...this is not a new unexpected occurrence.  It's not even one that is synonymous with Covid and our present supply chain issues.  Dungeness Crab is enormously popular and gets 86ed from server boards all the time, everywhere.  I can handle this...OK.  I'll have the Salmon Benedict and K will have the Chicken and Waffles.   

The Chicken and Waffles were good, maybe better than good. I'd even say delightful.  Topped with a crispy leek frizzle and served with whipped butter and a super yummy maple reduction (also known as syrup), the Belgian waffle was standard fare and the herb encrusted chicken fingers on top were  crispy, juicy, herby goodness.  I may have enjoyed them more than K did. 

I may have enjoyed his Chicken and Waffle more than I enjoyed my own choice of Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict.  *Heavy Sigh* Let me just start off by saying that nothing kills my EB vibe faster than a weak English Muffin.  The muffin for an Eggs Benedict should be toasted.  Crispy.  Not burnt, but at least crispy. The muffin is the base of a structure that holds all of that gooey, eggy, creamy deliciousness together. It should be crisp. I'm not sure my muffin saw the toaster.  That being said the top of my SSEB was all that and more.  Lemony, creamy hollandaise poured over a perfectly poached eggs cradled gently by some fairly decent alder smoked salmon.  It had all the right components in all the right places.  It was salty, it was sweet, it was creamy and rich.  It was all sitting on top of a cold, un-toasted english muffin.  

Now, I'm not going to write off  Milo's based on my english muffin experience.  I know that as I grow older I grow more particular about how certain things should or should not be and I have learned to leave space for providing grace in situations that may be less than ideal.  It may be a while before I get around to Milo's again because, well, Covid.  We just don't get out that much anymore and I like to spread the wealth, so to speak.  

But I'm still planning on getting out.  I'm still planning on eating and drinking and sharing my thoughts.  So there, even from behind a mask, this BiGMoUtH is getting back to it. 

Portland Magazine's Country Brunch and Bloody Mary Smackdown

Ok, We've gone over this all before.  Several times.  I love Brunch.  Mainly because I love breakfast foods, eggs being one of the most perfect foods in the world. Then add the delicious elements of lunch and dinner to it and that's it.  I'm done.  Lightly done, like an overeasy egg.  Cooked to perfection.  Sorry, I'm come back down to earth now.  I want to tell you about my experience from last Sunday.  It was glorious.  A fabulous  little known brunch held once a year and sponsored by Portland Monthly. After the first Country Brunch in 2012, Portland Monthly then joined forces with Zenger Farm.  It makes so much sense.  Celebrate our Urban Bounty.  The amazing food and sense of community.  Raise some money for a most beautiful cause, the Zenger Farm Urban Grange, a community space promoting urban farming education, small business incubation and communal growth and grace.  I really can't think of anything better right now. 

Although only three years old, this is no Toddler Brunch.  This is a full blown, grown up delicious intro to some of the best restaurants, bartenders and chefs Portland has to offer.  Six delectable Brunch bites + six outrageous Bloody Marys= One happy girl in Portland.  Or make that hundreds of happy girls and boys because the event sold out pretty early and for so many good reasons.  

  

Castaway: warehouse turned fabulous event space

Next year, I will be logging in early to buy VIP tickets.  VIP gets you into the venue an hour early and grabs you a bag of goodies.  General admittance tickets, although still a fantastic experience, leaves you in a pretty intimidating line around the building if you don't arrive early.  Consider yourself forewarned.  

The layout of the room harkened to barn dances and farm fests.  

Immediately transported to a delicious time and place. MC'd by the warm and wonderful Poison Waters.  Delightful sounds by Foghorn Stringband.  

So basically, you check in and get a brunch card.  Similar to a dance card, you only get to try each dish once.  And each beautiful Bloody Mary once.  Safe choice.  After trying all six Bloody Marys you have consumed the equivalent of three full sized drinks.  6 "brunch bites" of food plus the freebies provided by New Seasons and Whole Foods and I was stuffed.  Here is a wrap up of how and why I left fat and happy:

First stop, Smallwares, for a breakfast style Congee with Chinese sausage.  Basically egg, oatmeal, scallions, and maple flavored ponzu.  Others at my table shunned it for it's consistency.  I was strangely addicted to it and used their cards to enjoy more.  

You know of my love for Lardo, right? Well they brought it big-time with a buttermild biscuit topped with Pork Belly, fried quail egg, and a rich and creamy hollandaise.  Lardo brought a Biscuit Benedict at it's best.  Sign me up.  If we were able to vote on best dish, this did it for me.

 Another delicious savory/sweet breakfast sanny was the The Bohemian from Urban Farmer.  A stroopwaffle served with bacon jam and eggs and a bourbon maple syrup.  Don't ask me what a stroop waffle is.  I'm not sure.  It was simply yum.  I will go to Urban Farmer for more of their Breakfast/Brunch menu. Oh wait.  Wikipedia tells me this:   A stroopwafel (Dutchpronunciation: [ˈstroːpʋaːfəl] ( listen)) (English translation: syrup waffle, treacle waffle, or caramel waffle; lit "syrup waffle") is a waffle made from two thin layers of baked dough with a caramel-like syrup filling in the middle.^[1][2] They were first made in Gouda in the Netherlands. Large versions are sold in the streets as a snack.

Other delicious items included Ataula's Albacore Tuna Sandwich (coca bread, mango, arugula, and tuna sashimi) Pictured here with Doug Fir's award winning Antidote.  (Candied Bacon Bloody anyone? )  Very delicious but not my favorite Bloody Mary of the Day. That honor goes to Broder who boasted an ancient Danish secret.  Basically infused vodka with citrus and spice. Curry, cumin, fresh dill, toasted fennel, celery.  Bringing it as close to an Aquavit Bloody Mary as possible.  So dreamy.  

Another refreshing twist on the Bloody Mary came from Radar with their Voddie Mary: Tomato, peppercorn, roasted garlic, tapatio, lemon-lime and a Rainier- Celery soda shot.  I just dumped that little baby shot in there and enjoyed.  I recommend you do the same. 

The Bloody Mary Garnish Skewer pictured here includes beet pickled hard boiled eggs, saffron dipped mozzarella balls and summer sausage from Olympic Provisions.  Well, certainly.  

Along with this American Beauty from Irving Street there were warmingly yummy entries from La Bistro Montage and the Imperial.     Other bite delights included a smoky tempeh and polenta dish from Harlow and TenTop's miso soy ginger bagel with bulgogi beef and kimchi schmear (difficult to handle but oh so good to eat).

Truth be told, there wasn't a bad dish in the room.  It was a wonderful experience every way you looked at it.  Just wish it happened more than once a year, but then, where is the joy in anticipation.  Next year, VIP, for sure.