It’s amazing how much you learn to appreciate a little sunshine when you live in a place where gray skies reign supreme through most of the winter and spring. The second a few rays start poking through the clouds, you figure out a way to drop everything and get outside to enjoy the sun.
So when the sun popped out just before lunch today, we quickly scrapped plans to eat indoors and instead decided to walk from Lindsey’s apartment to the pod of food carts at 12th and Hawthorne. The selection isn’t huge—there are only five carts—but it’s all about quality over quantity here.
Lindsey headed straight for Perierra Creperie, which serves the unlikely but awesome combination 0f crepes and milkshakes. The crepes come in all kinds of cool flavors: savory options like chevre, fig, prosciutto & honey; smoked salmon, arugula, cream cheese & lemon; and spincach, gruyere & baked egg (Lindsey’s choice), and sweet options like lemon & sugar; chocolate and prosciutto (seriously!); and Nutella. The shakes are just as creative, with flavors like avocado & sea salt, Nutella and banana, mint and Oreo, lavender & honey, basil & coconut milk, and dulce de leche & sea salt. Yum.
Lindsey is enjoying the crepe almost as much as she's enjoying the sun.
Beth went for the wood-fired pizza at Pyro Pizza. The menu is super simple—always a good sign, if you ask us. Just a caprese salad, 4 or 5 pizzas, and a few homemade sodas. Beth was tempted by the carmelized onion pizza with gorgonzola, parmigianno-reggiano, and pistachios, but going on her tried and true philosophy that in order to know if a place is the real deal, you have to make sure they do the basics right, she went for the standard margherita instead. Whoa. The crust was perfect—crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, with just a few nicely charred spots from the fire—and the house-made mozzarella, tomato sauce, and basil scattered over the top were just right.
Beth was sure she wouldn't be able to finish the whole thing—until she looked down at her plate and realized it was gone.
We (and by we, we mean Beth) topped off the meal with a dulce de leche milkshake from Perierra Creperie.
Beautiful, no? Tasty, too.
We love that in Portland, “fast food” doesn’t have to mean a trip to the Golden Arches. This place is full of independently owned food carts—more than 450 at last count. If you’re passing through town and want to visit a few, check out Food Carts Portland for ideas. The blog has a full list of carts organized by location and cuisine, plus constant updates on recent openings and closings. Or, you know, you could just ask us for recommendations. We’re slowly becoming experts!
