Notes from Feast Portland 2019

I was excited when the second weekend of September finally arrived, because that meant it was time for Feast Portland and my fourth year volunteering.

It’s always fun to see what the Feast Portland Team has come up with for the festival and try as much food as I can. There are dinners and fun-size events all weekend, but the first big event was East Coast vs. West Coast at the Rose Quarter. The theme was a little confusing, because chefs, despite where their restaurants were located, represented either the east or the west coast.

Even though the Sandwich Invitational has been retired for a couple years, there were still a number of sandwiches on the menu.

The best thing I ate, was the very first thing from Laurelhurst Market - pork belly with sweet corn and tomatoes, perfect for the end of summer and very tasty. Bunk Sandwich had a really creamy eggplant parm sandwich. And Lardo had a White Castle Burger. It was a good burger, but I don’t really know how it compares to White Castle, since I’ve never actually eaten an authentic White Castle burger.

It was a beautiful clear night and more warm than I expected.

Friday Night was Pan-Asian themed Night Market at Zidell Yards. After rain on Thursday night, there were some interesting puddles and muddy spots in some areas, but it ended up being a great evening.

My favorite bites of the night were Bollywood Theater’s Papri Chaat, which was kind of like an Indian Nacho and Frankie & Jo’s Oat Milk Ice Cream.

The Night Market is always crowded, and the food ran out fast this year, but it’s a great party atmosphere.

I had a ticket to Smoked on Saturday Night at The Fields Park in NW Portland. This is my favorite event and the setting is lovely in the park. We were all fortunate, to have a beautiful non-rainy evening.

During Smoked, every chef has a grill, so there is lots of cooking to watch while waiting in line and walking around. I was also excited to see some movement away from huge hunks of beef or pork, like the long beans from Fish & Game (Hudson, NY), tongue for tacos from Suerte (Austin, TX) and red snapper from Quaintrelle.

Since I was attending this event, I had the opportunity to stand in as many lines as I wanted and take my time. Chris Cosentino’s Flambadou Octopus was particularly interesting to watch and pretty tasty too.

My favorite bites of the night were Scallop Chowder from Ox, Frito Pie from Sammich, and Pollo Norte’s Elote.

There was a massive lack of dessert, with 1927 S’mores Company being the only one. Fortunately, it was really good, and totally hit the sweet spot, with a Pinot Gris Marshmallow layered between Smoked Honey Grahams, with manchego and apple butter. A super sticky, delicious mess to eat.

And finally Sunday morning, the skies finally let loose and it poured rain all day. Brunch Village was in a new location at The Redd on Salmon, which worked out pretty well with the wet weather. It was half inside and half outside.

After the savoriness of the previous evenings, Brunch Village with all its sweet brunchiness was a welcome change. The theme was breakfast around the world, which I think some were more successful with than other, but I had many great bites, from Lauretta Jean’s squash quiche, a charcoal pavlova from Proud Mary, french toast ice cream sandwich from Salt & Straw, a tomato tart from Little T Baker, scallion pancake with pork Belly from Beeswing, and pesto egg sandwich from Fried Egg I’m in Love.