Recap: Truck Stop in The Quarters

We usually avoid organizing What the Truck?! events in July because of how busy the Edmonton event calendar gets in the middle of summer, but the Boyle Renaissance Plaza venue was too good to pass up. It was an opportunity for food trucks to animate an area that should be more visible and appreciated, and we were happy that Edmontonians responded with a good turnout, in spite of several concurrent festivals.

Perfect weather for food trucks!

Though we estimate that a total of 1,000 people came through that evening, about 100 took a tour of the new facility, explored the community centre and learned about the programs offered by the YMCA.

Boyle Street Plaza

Those who attended may have noticed some coloured coupons floating around that day. The Boyle Street Community League had stepped up to purchase vouchers that were distributed to low-income residents and community members so that finances would not be a barrier to partaking in the event. We were floored by their generosity and inclusivity.

Gorgeous green space

City of Edmonton staff were on hand to provide face painting to children and adults alike, and Virgin Radio provided the soundtrack for the evening.

Mindy Cooper of Virgin Radio

Mack and I also made sure to line-up before the crowds gathered (good thing too, given three of the trucks sold out!). We were able to share the green curry chicken sandwich from Swich and the pulled pork poutine from La Poutine. Yum!

Green curry chicken sandwich

Pulled pork poutine

Thanks to everyone who came out! We’ll be announcing the details of our next What the Truck?! event taking place in August next week. Stay tuned!

Capital Excess at K-Days 2013

Mack, Amanda, Felicia and I headed to K-Days last Friday. Though I’m in favour of the “K” being “Klondike” (despite Northlands trying to leave the door open for any and all interpretations), for reasons of the name, weather or otherwise, Edmontonians flocked to the festival in the highest numbers since 2006, the year it was rebranded “Capital Ex”.

I won a prize on my first try at Bowler Roller!

The gold rush theme was back, most noticeably in Klondike Park. The gold panners lined the Chilkhoot Goldmine attraction (some looking mighty serious while doing so), and there was even a couple parading the area in period costume.

Gold panning

Our period costume

Inside the Expo Centre, The Farm display wasn’t new, but it was the first time we took the time to wander through. We probably got a bit too photo happy.

Felicia or the egg?

A real garden!

Amanda loves groceries just that much

A new exhibit this year was Our Alberta. Though it seemed like an extended promotional vehicle for Travel Alberta, I loved it. I thought it was very well done, from the walk-through replicas of a grain elevator and the Dunvegan Bridge, to the interactive elements like rock decorating, and the past and present photo displays. I hope they bring this back in the future!

Our Alberta

Amanda checks out the decorated rocks

Edmonton photo display

Dunvegan Bridge

But – the real reason for our visit: the food! For a second year in a row, Mack and I were fortunate to have been given the opportunity to overindulge at KDays for free. Bringing two additional eaters along for the ride, given their insatiable appetites, and well, youthful metabolisms, just seemed to make sense, especially since “healthy midway food” is somewhat of an oxymoron.

Our makeshift table on the Boardwalk

An improvement from last year was the availability of a coloured map indicating where the new food items could be found. That said, the map was somewhat incomplete – Northlands’ offerings were left off, and had I not read about it in advance online, I wouldn’t have known to look for it.

Located in the Expo Centre, Northlands was serving up A Taste of Canada, new this year. The dozen or so items represented some of the best value we encountered at the fair: heaping portions of food (the vast majority not deep fried!) for the price of a jumbo corn dog outside.

A Taste of Canada

We ordered several dishes to sample: a lobster roll from the Maritimes, a duck confit panini from the East, and the pulled bison sliders from the Prairies. I would have added the West’s Okanagan peach cobbler to the mix if the plates being handed to me didn’t make me doubt whether or not we’d even make it through three servings. Each plate also came with a side of either salad or chips.

Of the three, the duck confit panini was the most successful. The duck and cheese were plentiful, though the blueberry didn’t come through as much as it could have. I would have also preferred the sandwich to have been more than just lukewarm.

Duck confit panini

The lobster roll was filled with a generous amount of lobster and imitation crab, but the roll had likely been sitting uncovered in the cooler for hours on end, and resulted in stale, rather hard bread.

Lobster roll

Amanda didn’t mind the pulled bison sliders, but both Felicia and I noticed a sourness to the meat. It left us with an unpleasant aftertaste. Perhaps it was just a bad batch?

Pulled bison sliders

Also in the Expo Centre was The Grand, the K-Days equivalent of a multicultural food court. One of the highlighted items was aloo tikki from Bob’s Bombay Curry N’ Hurry. I was lucky to snag the last two potato cakes, and paired with the tamarind and hot sauces, it was a well-spiced snack.

Aloo tikki

Felicia couldn’t resist picking up a package of milk and cookies, being sold as a fundraiser for the Edmonton Food Bank and the Northlands Agriculture Scholarship Fund.

Felicia’s happy with her milk and cookies

Back outside, we hit up Rib Fest. It was one of my favourite food attractions last year, so I was happy to see they brought it back. Though its location was a definite improvement, being situated near a music stage, its overall square footage seemed to shrink, and seating was definitely at a premium.

Rib Fest

I love the friendly competition between each smokehouse, each of them with display tables overflowing with their past winnings. Even better are the staff, hawking their accolades at random intervals.

Yeah!

We shared a half rack of ribs from Boss Hog’s. The sauce was enjoyable, smoky and slightly sweet, but the meat was on the dry side.

Ribs from Boss Hog’s

Given the lack of tables in Rib Fest, we wandered over to the Boardwalk Beach and Beer Gardens next door to try our luck. Of course, given the free flow of alcohol here, it was even busier. It was easy to maneuver around however, and folks seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Boardwalk Beer Gardens

Beach volleyball court

On the midway, Mack made a beeline for his annual corn dog. I convinced him to try something new, and he selected the double bacon corn dog. The hot dog had been wrapped in bacon, then coated and fried. The “double” part came in with a disappointing side of bacon bits and a container of maple syrup. Needless to say, it made us wonder what made up the triple bacon hot dog.

Double bacon hot dog

One of the most novel items was the chimney cake, presented as a traditional Hungarian snack. Dough is wrapped around a steel cylinder and cooked over charcoal, then dipped in cinnamon sugar. Felicia, having visited Budapest last year, remembered it from her travels, although there, it was coated in sugar alone.

Chimney cake

Given most midway food is prepared away from prying eyes behind glass, it was refreshing to be able to watch the chimney cakes cook over the fire in front of us. Each cake took about ten minutes to make, as it was slowly rotated and browned over the coals.

Over the coals

The final product wasn’t as sweet as my palate would have liked, but would have been perfect paired with a cup of coffee. The texture was also notable, as the dough had a nice springy consistency. Best of all, we were told by the vendor that the chimney cake would last a few days on the counter (unlike those beloved mini doughnuts), and I am happy to say – he was right!

Much to my companions’ dismay, I was eager to give deep fried butter (you read that correctly) a try. It’s been on my radar since it was introduced at fairs in the deep south, but I hadn’t yet had the opportunity to sample it myself.

Oh, the anticipation

I learned that this preparation would see butter wrapped in pastry dough, deep-fried, then sprinkled with sugar.

Mack humours me

The verdict? Mack was the only one who ended up with an explosive bite (the butter, of course, liquefies), but the rest of us, after draining out most of the excess, figured it was just like eating butter-brushed pastry.

Deep fried butter

We also tried the deep fried caramel apple pie from the same vendor. Earlier in the festival, it had won the K-Days new food contest, enticing judges with its scratch made pastry. With the soft serve ice cream (which was particularly good), we enjoyed the turnover enough, though by that time, we were starting to reach our fill line.

Deep fried caramel apple pie

We capped of the night with Those Little Doughnuts (what else?), and waddled our way home.

Mack’s favourite treat

Thanks again to K-Days for the opportunity to eat our way around the festival!

You can check out the full photo set here.

On the (Alberta) Avenue: Shop Smart and Avenue Goes to the Dogs

Though the city’s fabric is enriched by long-standing events like K-Days, Folk Fest and the Fringe Festival, I’m really attracted to less established festivals like Deep Freeze and Illuminite. Someday, these events might come to be regarded in the same light as the “big boys”, but for now, I love their grassroots nature, charm and inclusive feel.

Alberta Avenue has really been a pioneer in this front, with the aforementioned Deep Freeze and Kaleido both setting the bar high for other communities hoping to employ festivals as a catalyst to revitalize the neighbourhood.

A few weeks ago, we heard about a launch of Alberta Avenue’s latest retail campaign called “Shop Smart”. Building on the coalition behind “We Believe In 118”, the drive reminds consumers to avoid questionable retailers and to shop locally. They have also launched a petition that advocates for the creation of a by-law that will regulate the sale of weapons.

The launch took place on July 11, 2013 with a small street party on the corner of 118 Avenue and 87 Street. With food trucks and a passport for prizes activity (involving visiting businesses displaying the “Shop Smart” decal to collect stamps), we thought it would be a fun way to spend the evening.

Shop Smart event

The timing, from 4:30-6:30pm, was curious, because it wouldn’t have given those that don’t live in the community much time to reach the event and participate. It also didn’t seem to be as organized as it could have been – one of the most prominent businesses featured on the passport, location-wise, was Handy Bakery. It wasn’t even open for the last part of the event.

That said, it was a good opportunity for us to finally visit businesses we’ve walked past dozens of times, but never had the excuse or time to check out.

Wall of guitars at Mhyre’s Music

Some businesses took the launch more seriously than others, as a chance to positively engage with new customers. Wee Book Inn, for example, handed out free tote bags and offered an in-store discount.

Mack at Wee Book Inn

Others, like Saffron’s Carribean Delight, seemed less than happy to be a part of the event. Granted, the server probably just felt overwhelmed, but the lack of welcome or even a smile didn’t make me eager to return.

The event was also an opportunity for us to try S*wich for the first time. S*wich is fairly new to the food truck scene, but sets itself apart in the sandwich category by baking its own bread. They also feature popsicles and ice cream sandwiches from THIS Place (affiliated with the truck). Mack and I are happy to say that the sandwiches do live up to its reputation, especially the bread!

Montreal smoked meat sandwich

Mack with a smoked turkey club

In the end, the prize we earned from collecting the minimum ten stamps was another tote bag with some information about the Avenue’s businesses and a few coupons. I’m not sure what we expected, but it was a fitting souvenir for the evening.

The following Sunday, we returned to the neighbourhood for Avenue Goes to the Dogs, an annual celebration of dogs. The festival, at Eastwood Park, began as a way for community members to meet one another, as many residents have dogs. Though we don’t have a dog ourselves (living in a pet-free building doesn’t help matters), we love dogs!

We ran into Pancakes, The Act’s loveable mascot

The festival lucked out with the weather – early morning showers gave way to overcast but dry skies. The crowds were also modest at the start of the festival (I was reminded of the rabid hordes at Toronto’s Woofstock earlier this year), but everyone had such genuine love for their pets that it more than made up for numbers.

Dog meet-up!

The real draw of the festival for me was the dachshund races. I missed the same kind of event at Woofstock, so this was a chance for me to watch this at home! There was a solid turnout of more than a dozen dachshunds and other long-bodied dogs, including Pancakes. Even Mack got in on the action, volunteering to hold Pancakes at the starting line.

Ready, set…

Go!

It really was the cutest thing, even if some of the dogs were less than cooperative!

See Spot run

Pancakes really had a bit of an unfair advantage due to her size, but some of the little ones gave her a run for her money, including the absolutely adorable Ellie, an 18 month old dachshund.

Ellie

Avenue Goes to the Dogs was much less commercial in nature than Woofstock, and felt very community and information-oriented, with displays that included City pet licensing requirements, the Edmonton Police K-9 Unit, and pet adoption societies.

Adopt me!

We had a great time, even sans dog. Kudos to the organizers for a great job, and for giving us another reason to visit the Avenue.

K-Days 2013: New Food at the Fair

It’s that time again! One of our summer traditions is heading out to K-Days and soaking up the sights, smells and sounds of the midway.

Though it’s been years since we’ve taken in the rides, we’ve always reserved the right to indulge in Those Little Doughnuts and for Mack, a corndog or two.

I can smell them already…

K-Days usually tries to entice diners by introducing new items each year, and this time is no different. Here’s what I’m looking forward to at the festival, which runs July 19-28, 2013:

Home Grown Alberta: Based on our experience in 2012, I’m a little disappointed they decided to axe the Fusion 53 Lounge, given that was some of the best food we had during our visit, and it was meant to showcase locally-sourced products. This year, K-Days will feature a showcase area called Home Grown Alberta, where “local Alberta home grown producers will sample and sell their product.” This could mean many different things, but hopefully it works out to be an opportunity of great exposure for these businesses.
New Midway Delights: Last year, Capital Ex outdid itself with cricket pizza, so I was expecting to see deep-fried butter on this year’s menu (the “freak” food of choice at the Calgary Stampede). While the menu is much tamer than I expected, I’m intrigued by items like the chimney cake (sweet dough baked around a roll and dipped in sugar). It’s a little curious why items like pad Thai and Chinese noodle boxes would be featured so prominently (hasn’t our food culture normalized some ethnic foods?), but I suppose when most midway fare is battered and fried, I suppose it’s a step beyond that.
A Taste of Canada: For those looking for something more refined than the casual midway bite, a variety of dishes representing the different regions of Canada are available in the EXPO Centre. They include a lobster roll from the Maritimes, Montreal smoked meat sandwiches and duck confit paninis from the East, salmon wraps and Okanagan peach cobbler from the West Coast and from the Prairie, pulled bison sliders and beef & barley soup.
RibFest: I’m so happy that RibFest is back! Last year, we received our first taste of a Southern barbecue competition, with several vendors competing for our vote. Four trailers will be present this year offering up ribs and great atmosphere.

RibFest 2012

See you on the grounds!

Truck Stop: Boyle Renaissance on July 25, 2013

It isn’t by accident that our What the Truck?! events have taken place only in centrally-located, mature neighbourhoods. We knew early on, for a grassroots festival like ours, we needed to choose areas of high residential density and ideally, areas which also boasted high levels of foot traffic. Given we had a promotional budget of $0, we needed to encourage the chance that visitors could stumble upon the festival.

Of course, our secondary reasoning for the venues we have chosen in the past relate to our desire to animate underutilized spaces by showcasing their potential, and encouraging the use of alternative modes of transportation by ensuring pedestrian and transit accessibility.

This is why our upcoming event The Quarters is so exciting. The area has fallen into disrepair over the years, but the City has a grand vision to breathe life back into the area, which will include parks, a direct connection to the river valley, and new commercial and residential developments. One development, the Boyle Renaissance, is well underway, and can be seen as the herald of change in this neighbourhood.

Boyle Renaissance

Located just east of downtown, the completed first phase not only includes both affordable and market housing in the Welcome Village, but also a community centre. Mack and I toured through the facility in March, and were really impressed by what we saw. The building houses the Boyle Street Community League and also functions as its multi-function community hall – a gym, meeting rooms and even a kitchen can be rented through the league. We’ve been told that certain choice times in the gym have already been fully booked for the year by sports teams.

Welcome Village

The YMCA occupies the second floor of the building, and runs several programs out of the facility, including a family resource centre, child care centre and a collective kitchen.

We also appreciated some of the aesthetic features, including built-in projection equipment to allow art or films to be showcased just behind the glass walls, and a communal table that will be installed in the outdoor courtyard.

Community centre

When the City approached us earlier this year about organizing a Truck Stop event at the Boyle Renaissance, we knew it was the perfect fit. Though it may not have the foot traffic of Downtown, Oliver or Old Strathcona, we hope that through events like this, more Edmontonians will be exposed to up-and-coming neighbourhoods like The Quarters.

Join us on July 25, 2013 for our next Truck Stop in The Quarters!

What: Truck Stop: Boyle Renaissance
Where: Boyle Renaissance Plaza, 103A Avenue & 95 Street
When: Thursday, July 25, 2013
Time: 5-8p.m.

Expect children’s activities, music, a movie projection and tours of the new facility. And of course, food!

We are thrilled that four of the food trucks that debuted this year will be joining us that night. This will be one of the best opportunities to try food from several of the newest trucks in town, all in one place!

Menus will be posted at the What the Truck?! website on July 18, so check back then. Hope to see you there!

Recap: Heritage Chinatown Night Market

When I heard that the Chinese Benevolent Association was organizing a night market, I applauded the effort. After visiting the Waterfront Night Market in Toronto last year, I started thinking about how something similar could be replicated here – though we don’t have the same level of density or Asian population numbers, Edmonton makes up for that lack in spirit!

What I didn’t know was that the CBA was planning to pull this inaugural event together in just over a month, after the idea came up at the Chinatown Unveiled Conference that took place in May (something I’m more than just a little sad that I only heard about after the fact). As a result, I didn’t know what to expect as a final product, but I’m happy to say that the results should be commended!

Heritage Chinatown Night Market

I was among forty or so volunteers who helped on the day. We were all given (and proudly wore) “I (heart) YEG Chinatown” t-shirts. It will be interesting to see whether or not others embrace this logo as readily as others have taken to “I (heart) #yegdt”.

We love Chinatown

102 Avenue from 95 to 96 Street was closed for the event, which ran from 4-9pm. The Lingnan Express anchored the west side of the street, and offered location-appropriate spring rolls, pork dumplings and crack chicken.

More than a dozen vendors lined the rest of the street, selling wares ranging from art, jewelry, tea, and small toys. On that scorcher of a day, I’m sure tents would have offered a welcome reprieve from the beating sun for both merchants and shoppers alike.

Vendors

A stage was set-up on the east end of the street, and a continuous program offered five solid hours of performances, including martial arts demonstrations, Chinese dancing, choir songs, and spoken word poetry entertained the solid crowd.

Choir

Dancers

And ever the scene-stealer, there was not one, but two lion dances! I’ve seen my share of lion dances, but they always manage to stop me in my tracks – I love the spectacle of noise, colour and drama.

Lion dance!

The event also managed to incorporate a bit of history, with photographic displays of Chinatown past and present. Though organizers had to scrap the walking tours due to the short lead time, they did distribute pamphlets for self-guided walking tours of notable locations.

Displays

As a first time event, I think the Heritage Chinatown Night Market was very well attended! It was especially wonderful to see many generations on the street – Chinese and otherwise! Given the plethora of Canada Day attractions available in the city and beyond, it was a coup that so many chose to stop by the market – I think it speaks to the need for more events like this!

The crowds

As my fellow volunteer Kathryn pointed out though, events at that very site won’t be possible in the near future. With Downtown LRT Connector construction set to start as early as 2015, organizers intent on this night market becoming an annual one will have to contend with some location pains.

With my fellow volunteers Olivia and Kathryn

Bravo to the Chinese Benevolent Association for a well-executed event! For those who may have missed out, you may be interested to know a few of us are working on a follow-up night market to take place later this summer. Stay tuned for the details!

Recap: Ginger Beef Throwdown

Last Friday, we kicked off our 2013 What the Truck?! season with a Ginger Beef Throwdown. Partnering with the Royal Alberta Museum , the event was organized in conjunction with the current Chop Suey on the Prairies exhibit, which examines the history of Chinese restaurants in our province in the twentieth century.

Although we knew the event would draw a crowd, we never anticipated the sheer number of early birds that staked out a place in line well before the start time. The glorious weather definitely helped, as did the scheduling just before the long weekend, but most of all, I think it speaks to the fact that Edmontonians love food trucks!

The line

I have already written about the rationale for our food ticketing system and the “intentional bottleneck” that we created, and in spite of fielding many complaints, I don’t think we could have done it any other way. Given the constraints of the museum space, as well as a desire to streamline food access to enable sampling of multiple dishes, we were happy with how things worked out overall. That said, we could have done a better job in communicating the reasoning behind the system – hopefully those that left hungry and frustrated will give future What the Truck?! events another chance.

Controlled chaos

It also bears saying that the trucks just rocked it that night. They pumped out servings like nobody’s business, and continued to push the limits of their capacity. Thanks to The Act , Bully, The Lingnan Express and Smokehouse BBQ for a memorable start to the season!

The trucks

As for the food, while we didn’t vote ourselves (The Lingnan took home the crown), we were able to sample Bully’s BLT and The Lingnan’s traditional ginger beef. After the craziness, they really hit the spot! For a more comprehensive look at the dishes that night, check out Teresa and Diane’s posts.

Bully’s BLT and The Lingnan’s ginger beef

Partnerships have been vital to What the Truck?! from the beginning, so we appreciated the opportunity to work with the Royal Alberta Museum for the first time. With over 400 people who checked out the exhibit that night, it was counted as a definite success for the RAM!

Without question, this was our most labour-intensive event to date, as we not only had to facilitate the food tickets, but also drink sales. Because of these responsibilities, we could not have run the event on our own, and were indebted to the generosity of our volunteers. Thanks to my Mum, Dad, Felicia, Caleng, Linda, Phil and Robyn for all of your help!

Lastly, thanks to everyone who came – we hope you had fun! We are already in the throes of planning for the next What the Truck?!, which will take place south of the river in June. Stay tuned for more details next week!

Truck Stop: Ginger Beef Throwdown

It’s finally starting to feel like summer, and you know what that means – food truck season! Mack and I are still in the midst of finalizing the What the Truck?! calendar for the year, but we’re excited to announce our first 2013 Truck Stop, taking place next week!

What: Ginger Beef Throwdown
When: May 17, 2013
Time: 5-8pm
Where: Royal Alberta Museum, 12845 102 Avenue

Our Pulled Pork Throwdown was so well received last year that we didn’t hesitate when the Royal Alberta Museum approached us earlier this year with an idea to partner on an event.

To celebrate the RAM’s newest exhibit, Chop Suey on the Prairies, this Truck Stop will serve up different versions of ginger beef-inspired dishes, a staple on Chinese restaurant menus across the prairies in the early twentieth century. The Act Out & About, Bully Food Truck, The Lingnan Express and Smokehouse BBQ will be throwing down the gauntlet and doing their best to earn your vote. Four trucks, four dishes. You decide who made it best.

The Lingnan’s ginger beef

The museum will be open until 8pm that night so attendees can visit Chop Suey on the Prairies. Admission will be by donation (the rest of the RAM will be closed). This Truck Stop will be a great opportunity to not only taste some unique interpretations of a classic Chinese-Albertan dish, but to also explore some of the roots of our ethnic Prairie cuisine.

Check back on the What the Truck?! website on Monday for menus. Hope to see you there!

Recap: The Urban Craft Beer & Food Festival

While Sherbrooke Liquor Store has organized beer tastings in the past, The Urban Craft Beer & Food Festival was their first event to incorporate food trucks into the mix. Held last Friday at the Alberta Aviation Museum, the event was a fundraiser for the Urban Spirits Rotary Club, with proceeds supporting youth at risk in the Edmonton area. Admission tickets were $25 plus service fees, with sample tickets to be purchased separately on site, for $1 each.

At the Aviation Museum

Mack and I arrived early to avoid the crowds, which paid off on the food end of things! Little Village, Bully and The Lingnan Express were on hand in the food truck “corral” outside. The Aviation Museum restricts the use of open flame in the building, which helped to rationalize the location of the trucks, but I think they should have been more prominent somehow – the trucks and their menus weren’t even included in the program.

To the food trucks

It was also unfortunate that it had snowed earlier in the day, as it turned the dirt pad into mud. Tarps and wooden boards provided some separation, but it was less than ideal.

Food truck corral

Still, the trucks soldiered on, and we picked up a great spread – it was one of the first times Mack and I have been able to do so, given we are usually otherwise occupied during What the Truck?! events. Bully seemed to be the only truck to truly pair beers with their food, as all five of their dishes incorporated a different beer being poured in the tasting room.

Sliders from Little Village, mac and cheese from Bully, spring rolls and crack chicken from The Lingnan Express (all for $20!)

After dinner, we perused the beer vendors. Although we appreciated that the event was a fundraiser, samples were priced at 2-3 tickets each. As a result, we ended up only sampling a few beers, partly due to the fact that it would have been quite costly otherwise (we wondered if the organizers might consider including 5 sample tickets with the price of admission to get people started).

Mack queues up for Alley Kat

For my sake (as a non-beer drinker), we chose to try a few beers featuring fruit. My favourite of the bunch was Alley Kat’s Summer Squeeze Grapefruit Ale – it was even more fruity than their Aprikat, full of citrus flavour.

What the Huck from Fernie Brewing, featuring a huckleberry finish

Mack also tried Alley Kat’s Udderly Vanilla Milk Stout, which tasted more like spiked coffee to me, but Mack enjoyed the combination of coffee and vanilla.

As were were principally there to support the food trucks, we didn’t regret our decision not to imbibe in more beer tastes. But if this event does take place next year, I’d recommend attendees budget in advance, knowing the price of sample tickets. Kudos to the organizers for involving food trucks though – hopefully more events do so as well!

Portland: On the Road

Though we spent the majority of our vacation in Portland in the city proper, we did rent a vehicle one day to explore the area immediately outside PDX.

St. John’s

This first stop is a bit misleading, as St. John’s is a neighbourhood in Portland, and we took the bus to get there. However, it was the furthest outside of the city centre that we reached during that vacation, and truth be told, St. John’s seemed more like a separate town as opposed to a suburb.

The lure to St. John’s was the second annual River Fest, which I spotted on a tourism website that same week. It seemed like a good excuse to check out an area of Portland we hadn’t heard much about before. It took us an hour to reach St. John’s via public transportation, and when we did, it wasn’t entirely evident where the festivities were located.

We eventually made our way to the banks of the river (after passing by numerous film trailers parked in preparation for the shooting of a Grimm episode), and found not a rousing festival scene, but a small collection of tents. River Fest turned out to be geared mostly towards families with small children (based upon the entertainers that were seeking an audience).

River Fest

Regardless, it was still a good opportunity to walk along the shores of the Willamette. It was more industrial than picturesque, with numerous factories dotting both sides of the water, but the best discovery was St. John’s Bridge.

St. John’s Bridge

The only suspension bridge in the Willamette Valley, the Cathedral-like appearance of the towers made it easily my favourite of Portland’s bridges.

From Cathedral Park

A note of caution for pedestrians, however – the bridge is much better viewed from below than it is from above – we crossed it and found it a rather dangerous walk, given the narrow sidewalk, 35 mile an hour traffic and four lanes of traffic. Guardrails would be highly recommended for city officials to look into!

On the bridge

Before returning to downtown Portland, we did some shopping in St. John’s main street. The stores were charming, and included antique and vintage shops, gift stores, and a specialty food shop.

If you have some extra time in Portland, I would highly recommend spending a half day in this neighbourhood!

Vista House

With the vehicle, our first stop was Vista House. Located on the Colombia River gorge, it feels like it is on the edge of the world.

Vista House

The placement of Vista House (intended to be a rest stop for those making their way down the Colombia River Highway), takes full advantage of the valley and waterway views.

View of the Gorge

Wahkeena and Multnomah Falls

Down the tree-lined Oregon byway, scenic with views of the Colombia River, we first stopped at Wahkeena Falls. It was a good build up for the waterfall to come, smaller but refreshingly misty.

Wahkeena Falls

Further down the road, the picturesque Multnomah Falls awaited us. The highest year-round waterfall in North America, it was especially striking because of a bridge spanning the lower section of the falls.

Multnomah Falls

Multnomah in miniature

Multnomah must be one of the most photographed sites in all of Oregon. We even saw one tourist recording a video on his iPad of all things as he hiked the trail up to the bridge.

At the Falls

Hood River

Our next stop was the town of Hood River, just in time for a late lunch.

Hood River

We chose the pub run by Full Sail Brewery, an independent business that celebrated 25 years of operation in 2012. It was a gorgeous patio day, so we sat outside, basking in a view of the River.

Patio day!

Instead of the usual cod, haddock or even halibut, the pub used salmon for their fish and chips and fish sandwiches. We opted for an order of each. Their portions were beyond generous (neither of us were able to finish our plates), though the fish and chips were the better choice – it was difficult to eat the sandwich topped with such a watery slaw.

Fish and chips

Fish sandwich

Cascade Cliffs and Cathedral Ridge Wineries

One of the reasons we wanted to get outside of Portland was to visit some wineries. Cascade Cliffs was identified as a winery located in downtown Hood River, so we were initially confused as to where this urban winery could be found. It turned out not to be field of vines, but a tasting room operated by the winery.

The Cascade Cliffs line-up

The map as such was a bit misleading (as was my understanding between that a “winery” is not synonymous with “vineyard”), but Mack commented that this establishment was a good option for those who couldn’t make it out to the winery itself.

We took home a bottle of blended reds, and left Hood River in search of an actual winery. As it was early in the evening, many of the wineries we passed on our way back to Portland were already closed for the day. We managed to find one that was still open – Cathedral Ridge.

Cathedral Ridge proudly identified an award they were recognized with in 2007, which may not have been a good sign for more recent achievements. It was quiet inside the tasting room/ shop, but the clerk was nice enough, if seemingly rote in her interactions.

She told us that the majority of the vines actually weren’t planted at that location, but were situated near The Dalles, further east. It was a bit of a letdown, though we still took the opportunity to pick up a souvenir bottle and wander what vines were located on-site. The moral of the story: make sure you plan out a sure-fire route, with enough time to explore!

Some of the vines at Cathedral Ridge

Although time is a luxury on any vacation, I was glad we took the better part of a day to see what was outside Portland.

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