I’ve blown a few endorphins in my life. Spent them on rich food, fine wine, great literature, George T. Stagg, playing my anger like an instrument, cheap tacos, being despondently and inconsolably sad, numerous days of solitude in the desert, Ancient Age, being blissfully and serenely happy, bad poetry.
like a pig in the mud
Last weekend I found a place to settle down with a superfriend who recently completed a 30-day cleanse (an anti-inflammatory diet which is restrictive of many foods, no caffeine, no sugar, no hooch). The sheer fact that she would choose to spend time with me during and after her trial is worthy of a medal in bravery and restraint.
jumping off
Lily Day Cafe is sandwiched between Foster and Powell. It’s owned by the genius goddesses who once owned Dot’s Cafe, a darkened parlor of fries and Strongbow, the very best kind. Their new path is bright and well-curated; yardsticks lining the wainscoting, true tchotchke placed in cozy corners.
note the wallpaper
You don’t have to spend many endorphins at Lily Day, you can if you want to, but it’s okay to just chill out. The majority of the menu is based on sandwiches that are paired with a dip, or perhaps a dunk.
you’ve dialed my number, i’m answering
Chorizo, cotija, as if my spirit was floating around the kitchen offering suggestions, there is corn in this. Life is a hollow room without corn in sandwiches. The dunk for this offering is a tomatillo green sauce. This is an off-menu sandwich, A Special, if you will.
Cleansed Colleen ordered, in addition to the pear puree-raspberry liquer-cava cocktail pictured up-post:
On the subject of how and where to spend your endorphins, just look at this adorable cocktail menu. Lily Day has something precious to say:
don’t stay underground too long
So gosh darn cute. I tried the Spirited Coffee which balanced like an expert aerial yoga instructor.
gingham coaster. gingham. coaster.
Maybe you’ve noticed a recent trend in posts featuring raving accolades for my friends. You are well read and perceptive. Colleen is endlessly giving, supportive and encouraging. She will blast Cat Power with you, she will stroke your hair while you sob. Colleen is a lady who holds you close. Her beauty is rivaled only by the gale-force of her kindness. If you have any questions about healing or health, herbs or honesty, she gives outstanding advice on all subjects – a professional massage therapist and holistic guide who can school you on all aspects of endorphin expenditure. You can find her services here, or in Lily Day Cafe most Saturday afternoons.
There is a newly opened establishment on 39th Avenue in Southeast Portland, it’s located in a building that used to serve coffee, just around the corner from a place that still does. Turn left on the street with the broken sidewalk and take the next right on the sidewalk soaked with rain. Wander aimlessly (don’t trip), you’ll likely make it in the front door.
No Ordinary Place
Geographic placement is the only piece of homogeneity that pertains to The Kingdom of Roosevelt. It is not at all reminiscent of dining out for dinner in Portland. Oddly, Roosevelt is doing everything that usually equates to ‘Portland’: locally sourced ingredients, taxidermy and antlers, waitresses who look like they were birthed full-grown from the pages of a J. Crew catalog, but there is a shocking lack of pretension in this room that seats only 20 people and 4 of them can saddle-up to the finest, thickest bar I have ever laid my grubby hands on. Carved from Black Walnut, this length of wood is cool to the touch and visually stunning.
No Ordinary BarFox Confessor Brings the Pigeon
Roosevelt belongs to Eric Bechard and you’ve probably heard stories about Eric. ‘Hailing from the old Alberta Street Oyster House…he beat up a fellow chef in front of Magic Gardens…yep, they were fighting about pork.’ Far more interesting is the fact that Bechard hunts and forages the ingredients for this Kingdom. The Roosevelt Elk informs the dining room, the guests eat what the Elk eats, the eater becomes the Elk.
Be the Elk. Transform.
As is the case with many great tales of evolution, this one starts at the sea.
Sea Change
Raw Razor Clams from Seaside. Five Sea Vegetables. Radish. Cucumber.
My date and I ordered the 6 course tasting menu. Choosing between poetic menu items such as:
Fallow Deer Heat Tartare with His Marrow
Soft Cooked Egg and Smoked Steelhead Roe
Duck Broth with Her Poached Egg
Overwhelmed. We couldn’t decide.
Moving InlandPoached Potato Pâté , Duck Fat, Wild Garlic, Duck Cracklingslet the fixer work until the silver’s washed away
I ruminate about plate settings far more often than I admit. On a recent visit to a purported 5-star restaurant I spotted a steak knife with a plastic handle and I sank into a deep despair. I collect and use sterling silver at home not because I am a high-minded bourgeoisie (though I have my moments) but because it actually makes food taste better! Try tasting your favorite ice cream with a plastic spoon and then try a sterling spoon (ideally with the first initial of your last name engraved on the end). Tell me I’m wrong. Say Uncle.
duck breast carpaccio, pumpkin seed, cabbage chips, iris briar rose cheese (goat), cherries, sorrel
This is raw duck breast, it melts with the cheese, has a crunch of the cabbage, and marks the halfway point of your Elk Evolution. You are growing hooves. The woman behind you gasps a bit as new antlers begin to show through your hair. You are not afraid.
the trinkets and the treasures you brought back from the crusadespigeon liver custard, pickled huckleberries, elderberry gelee, edible flowers and such
This was SO INTENSE. A pungent game-y flavor with a hint of grassy sweetness from the greenery, the warmth of the elderberry. The supremely earthy mixture spreads on Little T Bakery bread unlike any…spreadable I have ever spread.
further evidence of proper settingsmy abiding loves
Pickled beets AND salt roasted beets, the most divine pickled Elk Tongue in existence, horseradish, a scant brush of fresh yogurt, wood sorrel. This is a special concoction from the kitchen because I am a gal who loves beets AND tongues. I guess that’s the kind of treatment you get when you’re wearing your t-shirt from the Abbey Bar in New Orleans, the one that says, ‘Repent, You F’n Savages! Repent!’ Turns out this sentiment takes you pretty far in a wild game restaurant. Now you know.
hello, old rabbit
Rye berry porridge with nettles, rabbit confit, soft cheese, black trumpets. This was very much like eating a risotto in a ditch deep within a forest that is far away from civilization.
elk meatball made with his leg & kidney, three cabbage dumpling, yogurt, fried shallot
The way The Kingdom uses small amounts of dairy is exceptionally brilliant. Now that your Elk Evolution nears completion you won’t have a taste for much milk and cheese but you will probably enjoy the rare delicacy in your overland travels. In case you’re curious, even Elks can drink wine…
Coattails Winery – 2010 Pinot Noir
This winery is one to watch. It’s owned and operated by two PNW brothers who come from a long line of winemakers. They actually work for other wineries full time, Coattails is their passion project. This is a huge pinot noir, the perfect libation for your new Elk self.
What a meal. You will enjoy this very much. Before you scamper off into the wild take a glance at your emerged proud tail.
The triumphant return of eating lunch at my desk – Lela’s Bisto on NW 23rd sells top rate banh mi with fresh salad sides. They also make fizzy house sodas.
the traditionalistspicy tamarind and a caramel shortbread quarter
Other days I circle the district on foot (inspired by “Wanderlust” a brilliant book authored by Rebecca Solnit) stopping at the library, heading South to Saint Patrick’s, ambling by the re-purposed grocery carts and suffering under the 405 bridge, eventually procuring lunch at the Q19 carts.
zucchini tacos from el diablito and sunshine
After dark I get down to business, most recently at the new Ava Gene’s, sister of The Woodsman, on SE Division.
love makes you feel 10 feet tall
This is a Zimmerman concoction of Gin, Pisco, Aperol, Punt e Mes, Grapefruit Peel. I feel like it should be served in a coupe but I also admit to being newly and completely bored by cocktail menus. So I did what any modern mortal would do when faced with indecision and ambivalence, I doubled down, ordered another pre-fab cocktail.
Lights Out
Zacapa Centenario, Becherovka, Bitters, Black truffle. What a broody drink, of course I enjoyed it but it didn’t shoot me to the moon the way a recent dealer’s choice at Teardrop did. That’s the night I learned pineapple juice, maple tinctures and liquids that have “shrub” in the title can CHANGE LIVES.
I’m not quite ready to discuss the food at Ava Gene’s, I veer a bit further from indecision towards confusion on that topic.
marble crypt
I am decisively decided on Ava Gene’s restroom facilities. Transcendent rooms that feel like sacred spaces, completely covered in marble, a balmy 45 degrees, almost completely dark save for a few small lights near the basin. A peaceful tomb-like quality. A proper antique soap carafe that you turn over in your hands. Amazing design. Whether you stop by for a 5 course meal, or a single cocktail, make sure to excuse yourself for a moment.
Up Next: I spend 3 days overdosing on Vitamin E to have a sense of smell for 48 hours. The last time I did this was nearly 10 years ago and I learned that old books have a smell. Game changer. I have various Tour Guides for the majority of this project but there is one epic experience that is so crucial, so central to my philosophy of food and drink, it is a mission I must face as God intended, alone.
bunny bread surprise 