Park Avenue Café

Of all the cafés  I have visited in Portland, there is one for me that feels like home more than any other. Located on the corner of Park Avenue and Market Street near Portland State University, Park Avenue Café has become something like a second home to me. The past two years I have spent many hours in there studying, hanging out with friends, drinking coffee, writing and just thinking about where to go next in life. It is the place my wife and I were drinking coffee one hour before my son was born and the first place we took him when we left the house the next day. The baristas know me well enough that they often have my drink ready when I get to the counter. The other day, instead of waiting in a long line, I sat down to write a little to wait for the line to clear. While I was sitting there, Jodine, one of the baristas, brought me my drink without even ordering. She made my day. 

Look for the red umbrellas

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The Honorable St. Honoré

I went back to explore Portland’s “Trendy-Third” (23rd Ave) area this week. When I had earlier asked for café recommendations, one of my MIM classmates (Badih) recommended the St. Honoré Boulangerie. Had my French been a little better, I would have realized that it was more of a bakery, but since they have coffee available, it’s close enough for me.

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Caffè Umbria

With its high ceilings, large windows, hardwood trim and modern chairs, Caffè Umbria fits in well in the heart of Portland’s Pearl District. The modern coffee bar, decked out in brushed stainless steel, contrasts with the antique pottery sitting on top of it. These elements, modern and antique, combine to give the café an new-world feel with just a bit of the old.

At the corner of 12th and Everett

Caffè Umbria is a Seattle-based coffee company that has “invaded” the Portland coffee scene.

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Nor'West Coffee

My quest to find good coffee took me outside the city limits the other day. I traveled up the I-5 corridor from a city who’s catchphrase is “Keep Portland weird!” to a city that likes to say “Keep Vancouver normal.” While the cultures of the two cities are very different, one thing they share (besides the rain) is good coffee. Before any Portlanders reading this get upset, I want to make it clear that I’m not implying the two are coffee equals. So far, Portland has a clear lead. In fact, until the other day I didn’t even know that Vancouver was competitive.

However, yesterday a friend of mine from Vancouver, Tim Downing, introduced me to Nor’West Coffee and I found that there are a few coffee experts in the state to our north as well. Nor’West is a café that has been around for nearly three years. After roasting his own coffee for about seven years, Mike McGinness, the owner, began roasting commercially three years ago under the name Compass Coffee. The company has three retail outlets—one in downtown Vancouver (Compass Coffee), one in North Vancouver (Nor’West) and one in Beaverton (Java Nation) that it acquired three months ago.

Nor'West Coffee

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Extracto

If you happen to be out walking along Northeast Killingsworth Street someday, and the breeze is blowing just right, you might find yourself drawn to a small, white building with red trim and a couple tables out front. From that building, a rich, toasted-sweet aroma pours out onto the street, an aroma so attractive that you cannot help but want to find the source. There is no sign outside to tell you where you are, but you will have just found Extracto, one of Portland’s famous micro roasters.

A humble exterior

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