Portland Vegan Food Tour 2017

The great Pacific Northwest — breathtaking views, an energetic yet calming atmosphere, and some of the most delicious food we’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting. A few weeks back Jasmine and I set out on a road trip with our sights set on Portland, OR. From there, we made our way up to Seattle, WA, and then back down to Los Angeles, CA. We are here to outline our trip, including the Portland vegan food adventures we enjoyed, and everything else…so let’s go!

Jasmine and I departed from LA around 3 am, and with full day of driving ahead, we brought along some of our favorite snacks to keep us satiated. This included Beanfield’s chips, fruit, and energy bars. As per a newfound tradition, we made our first stop at the famous Anderson’s Pea Soup to stock up on two large bowls of, well, you guessed it…pea soup! Their soup is so filling and delicious as well as oil free and vegan! We definitely recommend it if you ever find yourself driving up north from SoCal. We arrived in Salem, OR around 6:30 pm for dinner and to stay the night before driving up to Portland in the morning. For dinner we got food from a restaurant called Marco Polo Global Restaurant. While it was awesome to find a place with such extensive vegan options, as a whole the food wasn’t our favorite and was not so memorable.

The morning after, we wanted to grab something quick for breakfast. Still being in Salem, the options were a bit limited (especially for breakfast), but I found a place called Oregon Crepes that offered both savory and sweet vegan options. I got the savory crepe of the day that was filled with dayia cheese, and veggies. Again, I wasn’t impressed, but still pretty rad they offered vegans options at all! Jasmine opted for some oats and fruit 😛 Looking back, I wish I had that as well.

At last, it was time to head to Portland! This was both of our first times visiting, so the anticipation has been building for quite sometime. We arrived late in the day, and after a long drive, we were feeling a bit lazy to go out. We ordered food from The Bye & Bye to our room and chilled out a bit before heading out. I order the Weeping Tiger Sandwich  (Tofu cutlets, lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado, jalapeño, Sriracha and miso mayo on Grand Central bread)

and Jasmine got the Southwest Bowl w/ Avocado (of course) (Nutritional yeast tofu, brown rice, red beans, collard greens with chipotle ranch sauce). We also shared a side of pretzel knots w/ house made cashew cheese and stone ground mustard. Everything was super tasty, and we were very impressed with everything we had (especially the sandwich).Funny enough, later in the evening we ended up going to the actual restaurant with a friend for some drinks. The atmosphere there was super chill and the outside patio was dog friendly, so Berry was pleased! We both recommend going if you’re in town!

Afterward, we walked down to Back to Eden Bakery where Jasmine and I shared a vegan sundae called “The Mt. Hood” (Soft Serve, Ginger Cookies, White Chocolate Chips & House-made Caramel Sauce) it was a stellar choice if I do say so myself!

DAY 3

The next day was an extra special one. Why you ask? It was my birthday! My goal for the day was to eat as much food as possible! That morning, we started our day at A.N.D Cafe where I got the Feast Waffle, which was a savory waffle stuffed w/ sausage, hashbrowns, vegan mozzarella and topped w/ country gravy and herb tofu. Talk about deeelish! Jasmine took the more traditional route and got the blue corn waffle topped with fresh fruit. Both choices were good ones, and we definitely recommend grabbing a bite there for breakfast or lunch if you are in PDX!

After our breakfast, we took a hike with Berry to the Witches Castle, which was a steep and kind of muddy trail, but with beautiful scenery and real history. It was much needed after that heavy breakfast (at least for me). After our hike, it was time to start eating again!

For lunch, we made a trip to the infamous Homegrown Smoker. I ordered the SloMoMofo Sandwich and a side of Hush Puppies.

I enjoyed the sandwich, but wish I opted for some type of mac and cheese wrap. Shortly after our visit, we were informed of the sad news about their food truck catching fire and burning down ???? The silver lining is that they are in full gear to open a brick and motor restaurant this summer, so we are excited to visit when it opens!

Jasmine went to Baked Roots Bar for lunch, which is a french fry bar that just opened in Portland. It features different baked fry dishes inspired from different countries. She got the “Bill of Rights” which is the American inspired dish with buffalo cauliflower and drizzled with a creamy ranch. The best part is, the restaurant is health focused and features a 100% oil-free vegan menu. I tried a bite of Jasmines and really enjoyed it! We both recommend checking this place out if you’re ever in the area. It’s a brand new restaurant that deserves some serious shine ????

Finally, it was time for dinner! I think this was the food highlight of our short visit! We were fortunate enough to get to try the elusive Virtuous Pie a few days before it opened. They opened their first location in Vancouver, BC last year and just opened their second location in Portland.

They made us 4 different pizzas to sample – SUPERFUNGHI (Cashew Mozzarella, Herbed Potatoes, Wild Mushrooms, Truffle Almond Ricotta, Rocket) CURRY MILE  (Butter Chickpea Curry, Mint Raita, Roasted Cashews, Pea Shoots) MEATBALL + CHEVRE (San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Baerlic Brewing Chorizo Meatballs, Creamed Spinach, Lemon Herb Chevre, Basil, Fresh Parm) THE CATALAN (Smoky Romesco, Patatas Bravas, Tarragon Requéson, Charred Scallion, Asparagus, Saffron Aioli) It’s hard to choose a favorite, since everything was so fantastic in its own right, but if I had to choose, I think the Meatball and Chèvre was the winner for that night. We also got to try some of their homemade turmeric black pepper and coffee + donut ice cream— both super unique and delicious. The turmeric black pepper definitely surprised me with it’s subtle, yet satisfying taste, and you already know the coffee and donut flavor was bomb!

Afterward, we stopped by Sweet Pea Bakery, an all vegan bakery that offers an array of baked goods and sandwiches which are to die for. 

Aaaaand then it was off to Seattle!

Side Note: I was back there a few weeks ago again for work, so I was able to try a few more awesome vegan things ???? Here’s a list of our must try restaurants in no particular order (some mentioned above, others I tried on my last visit):

Jasmine will be taking over with all of the Seattle vegan eats in a blog post coming soon!