Before I confess, I need to point out that when it comes to eating, people are either foodies or not. If you are a foodie, you know you are, and if you are not a foodie, you probably don't know what I'm talking about.
Foodies are those who eat adventurously, eat globally, and enjoy trying new things.
Non-foodies prefer to eat familiar food, dining on tried and true standare fare.
My confession: We tend to refer to the non-foodies as "White Breads."
Huh? Why? Think of bread.
- White bread is popular, well-known in the US, always good, always the same (no surprises) and goes with anything you put on it.
- Foodies eat white bread too, but if you peek in their grocery cart you may also see: ciabatta, sour dough, pita and other flatbreads, focaccia, artisan breads, naan, lavosh, challah, etc. Technically these breads are white but far from being "white bread."
Now-- I am friends with a lot of foodies and white breads, and really don't intend to insult anyone who is reading this and realizing I think of them as a white bread. It just is what it is. If you are a white bread, I like you for who you are and I don't want you to try to be someone you're not.
Foodies tend to flock together, getting together for foodie meals, meeting at foodie restaurants, sharing foodie recipes, and talking food in general. When I meet a new foodie friend, I'm always happy to compare notes and share tips.
Lately, I've been enjoying foodie conversations with a new friend, "G," who has not only traveled a lot but grew up as a foodie. G sent me an email today that lists his favorite restaurants. Note that none of them are here in Salem. Salem is a White Bread town for the most part. Three hundred restaurants, half of them are Mexican and most of the rest are Asian or chain/fast food. Mexican and Asian food is fine, but that ratio is sadly lopsided if you're looking for variety.
Habibi is one of my PDX favorites (although last time I was there the service was terrible upstairs, where we were sitting.) I will make a note to check out some of G's favorite restaurants next time we head up to PDX. Not big on soup, I'd still check out the two Pho restaurants to see what kind of noodl-y dishes they have. I still miss the Curried Mock Duck that Frank and I would get at the Vietnamese restaurant behind our Uptown Mpls apartment (at 36th and Colfax.) Maybe one of the PDX Vietnamese joints would have a great Curried Mock Duck.
G's list:
Biwa on 9th and Ash in Portland
Best Baguette on 82nd and Powell in Portland next to Carl's Jr
Habibi Middle Eastern food downtown Portland a few blocks up from Broadway
Chopsticks Thai/Chinese food on Hawthorne in Portland
Wong King's Seafood Restaurant (best dim sum in the northwest) 82nd and Division
Pho Hung 3120 SE 82nd Ave Portland for Vietnamese food
Pho Van for more Vietnamese food on Hawthorne and 82nd
This comment was emailed to me by my friend Todd, another foodie:
ReplyDeleteRegarding foodies places. I will second the Pho Van hands down one of the best Vietnamese pho places I have ever been. There is also a cool pho place downtown PDX that for some reason also has a lot of French baked goods, really good chocolate soufflé I can’t remember its name ugh. If you like fine dining the Heathman also downtown PDX is nice and it always has what’s in season. There is a hole in the wall wood fired pizza restaurant right next to the Keller Auditorium in that big black office building. They have excellent wood fired lasagna and pizzas. Oh and and and cool regional food is also at Caprial's Westmoreland Kitchen. TV Cooks Caprial and John Pence are the executive chefs it is very good albeit pricey.