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Jessica Berger and Tekela Fisher

Portland’s Best Shaved Ice

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This summer started off with some extreme heat, and now that it’s settled, we are still looking for ways to keep our cool. What’s better than a frosty treat on a hot summer day? Quite simply nothing. This week, we sought out Portland’s Best Shaved Ice! For some of us, shaved ice reminds us of our childhood at the local fair, and for others, it’s a memory of family outings that ended in a sweet treat. However you like your shaved ice, all of these shops will bring you right back to the joy you felt as a kid.

Wailua Shave Ice Portland

1022 W. Burnside St. Unit O
Portland OR. 97209

Open Mon – Tue 12pm- 5pm,
Wed 12pm – 7 pm, Fri – Sun 12 pm – 7 pm
Menu Here

Manoa Shave Ice

333 S State St Suite B, Lake Oswego, OR 97034

Open Tue – Sun 12 pm- 8 pm
Menu Here

Snow Bunny Coffee

1415 NW 11th Ave, Portland, OR 97209

Open Mon – Fri 6 am – 6 pm & Sat – Sun 7 am – 5 pm

Ohana Dessert and shave Ice

6320 NE Sandy Blvd Portland, OR 97213
&
10608 SE Main St. Milwaukie, OR 97222
Open 7 days 11 am – 9 pm
Menu Here

Next time you find yourself wandering around town looking for a sweet treat to cool off, check out one of Portland’s Best Shaved Ice shops. If you’re not quite ready to go down memory lane with shaved ice, check out some of our other Portland favorites Here. Let us know if we’ve missed your favorite, and we will check them out too!

Corollary

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Hot spot of the week this week is the maker of our new favorite local sparkling wines – Corollary! If you know us, then you know that we LOVE champagne. We even run a Meetup group based around the stuff. So when we heard that there is a local winery that does all bubbly, we got pretty excited, and had to head to their tasting room to try it all!

First of all, their outdoor tasting room was so cozy. We were there on a bit of a chilly, drizzly Spring day, but the sheepskin seat covers and fluffy throw blankets kept us totally comfortable. There were delicious home-baked crackers by Jeanne’s mom that were the perfect nibble between bubbles. And of course, our gracious hosts who talked us through the processes they use and the farmers they work with.

We got to taste through all of the 5 different sparklings they have currently available. And while they were all quite different from one another, they all had their own wow-factor. I more or less immediately joined the wine club. The combination of the integrity with which Jeanne and Dan approach the wine-making and the total deliciousness of the wines themselves proved an irresistible combination. I cannot wait to return for my next pick-up from them!

If you’re interested in knowing more about Corollary visit them Here.

2021 Summer Tips

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Hey Friends, Today we are going to be talking about summer home maintenance tips for 2021! If you prefer to see the video, you can do that HERE

Today we have 5 tips to help you ensure you extend the life of your home, appliances and make ti though the summer in style!  

Tip 1: HVAC

Have your furnace and AC serviced. There is nothing worse than having your AC go out during a heat wave.  If you don’t think you need a technician to come out, make sure to replace all your filters so things are running efficiently.  

Summer AC
Tip 2: Windows and Doors

Check your window screens and weatherstripping around the house.  Even the smallest holes in the screens can allow mosquitos and other pests into your home while you are trying to get a some fresh air. Also check the seals around your windows and doors, if you do have the AC running we want to be sure we aren’t wasting precious cold air by allowing it to escape outside.  This will also help your energy bills go down, so its a win-win. 

window sealing
Tip 3: Power Wash

Power wash and reseal your deck or patio.  We want to make sure your deck and patio make it through the whole summer.  Power washing can remove any pollen, grime, or buildup that may have accumulated during the spring and winter months.  If you have a wooden deck resealing it will ensure that you get many more seasons out of your deck and it will look great. 

power washing
Tip 4: Dishwasher

This is an easy, but often overlooked one.  Clean your dishwasher. We don’t think of this often because it cleans our dishes, but it can get food buildup and soap scum which leads to a less than ideal clean. Run the dishwasher on the highest heat setting with a bowl of white vinegar in the top rack. Your dishes will have never sparkled so much. 

dishwasher
Tip 5: Gutters

And lastly, clean out your gutters.  They likely have some buildup from the spring and winter and need to be cleaned out.  This ensure that when those rare heavy summer rains do show up, everything is draining the way it is supposed to. 

gutters

Hopefully this gives you a couple quick things to do to spruce up your house, if you think we missed any really important tips, let us know in the comments!  Otherwise have a great weekend and enjoy your summer of 2021! 

Arden

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We had the pleasure of dining at Arden last week, and it was phenomenal. I’m a true portlander when it comes to food. I LOVE farm to table NW Cuisine. After following Arden on instagram and participating in some of the weekly wine talks, I was beyond excited to try this pearl district gem.

Arden Patio

They have a great wine list with multiple options in all styles, including sparkling (yay!). A temporary patio if you are not yet comfortable dining indoors, and a waitstaff that is both friendly and helpful when its time to make a decision.

We wanted to try basically everything on the menu, but luckily our waiter helped us narrow things down to items that would pair well with each other and our sparkling wine. We ended up choosing a burrata salad, smoked trout toast, and foie gras to start with.

The vegetables were all fresh, crisp and absolutely shined in these dishes. The trout toast was my favorite of the three. It featured toast with a smoked trout aioli, smoked trout slices, peas, radishes, lemon zest and a bit of dill. I highly recommend you trying this one!

To finish out the meal we shared the goat cheese gnocchi and a side of blistered radishes. The gnocchi was light and fluffy and complimented by a fabulous pea puree, parmesan cheese and prosciutto. The radishes were simple, but delicious! And to finish the meal we just had to try a dessert. They had a basque style cheesecake served with rhubarb that was absolutely divine.

The menu changes frequently and I know I will be back to try some things again soon. If you want to check out the menu before you head in, you can find that here. If you do go check them out, let us know what you think!

Miyamoto

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Hot Spot of the Week is delicious Montavilla sushi spot Miyamoto! We visited Miyamoto recently to celebrate a birthday and sample their wares, and it was positively delicious.

Miyamoto is tucked on a little side street in Montavilla. The location is excellent as they can have a spacious covered outdoor seating area, yet you aren’t right on busy SE Stark. We started, of course, with a sake flight! I went with the Miyamoto flight as I wanted to see what their signature choices had in store. Luckily, we were sharing because those were some healthy pours! All three sakes were not only delicious, but distinct. I also found the tasting notes on the sake card to be incredibly accurate. The Tears of Dawn was bright and fruity with notes of melon. And yes, the Bride of the Fox WAS rich and nutty! My dining companions actually changed their minds about sake as a whole after this flight. They had both thought that they didn’t care for it, but tasting these was a revelation for them!

We also got some starters going right away, as we were quite hungry on arrival. The chicken karaage and the pork gyoza came out of the kitchen fast and went into our bellies even faster. The chicken was perfectly crisped with a nice spicy sauce. The gyoza were just the right combination of steamed and fried, plus tender and juicy on the inside.

After starters, we went on to rolls. We decided to try the Miyamoto roll, which had 4 types of wonderful fresh fish, pickled jalapenos, and a chili ponzu sauce that I wanted to lick off the plate. We also got the Billy Low Roll which had salmon, tuna, spicy mayo and tempura crunch and it was so yummy. To round out the table and our tummies, we added a simple tuna roll and some inari.

We really loved everything at Miyamoto and are so excited to go back to try the rest of the menu! I love that they have such a great selection of hot and cold plates, a lot of great sakes, and really beautifully prepared fish. Check out their menu Here!

Pro Tips:

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How to Buy a Home when you need to Sell

So you are ready to move? Whether it is downsizing, upsizing, or just getting into a different area, needing to sell first can feel like a huge obstacle. Luckily we have 11 awesome tips to help you buy before you sell so this transition is as smooth as possible!

You can download our full guide, or continue below to read the highlights!

Buy when you need to sellDownload

Tip 1:

Get a Bridge Loan

If downpayment and closing cost funds are keeping you out of your dream home, consider a short term loan. A bridge loan will give you cash to use towards your next purchase.  This allows you to purchase a home with no additional contingencies!  After you move, you use the funds from the sale of your current home to pay the loan back.

Tip 2:

Use a HELOC – Home Equity Line of Credit

This is one of the most common strategies that we are seeing.  Use the equity in your home to get a line of credit to pay for your new home.  This also allows you to purchase first with no additional contingencies.

Tip 3:

Buy New Construction

Builders commonly have additional inventory allowing you to plan out your move date in advance.  This allows you to line up the closing of your current home and the closing of your new home with some overlap to ensure you only move once.

Tip 4:

Custom Build a Home

Similar to buying new construction, this allows you to line up your closing dates and your moving dates. Most custom home builders have in-house financing that will allow you to sell your home and build simultaneously.

Tip 5:

Borrow from your 401K

This allows you to temporarily pull a “loan” from your 401k.  Having this loan allows you to have the cash on hand to make strong offers with no additional contingencies. There are some special circumstances so be sure to discuss this option with your financial planner and/or CPA.

Tip 6:

Seller Carried Financing

This isnt a very common option, but if the seller owns the home outright, they will sometimes carry a short term loan for you while you wait for your home to sell.  This option requires an attorney and usually has higher interest rates associated with it.

Tip 7:

Negotiate a Lease Back

With a strong sellers market, we can list your home and ask the new buyers to give us time in the home after it has sold.This can give us an additional 60 days to find and close on your new home.

Tip 8:

Use Sale Subject To

With a strong sellers market, most buyers just want to “win” a home.  We can ask to have a close date that is subject to you finding a replacement property.  Most people want to have some idea of how long that will take, so we often see in contract within 60 days.  This is a great option especially when paired with a rent back.

Tip 9:

Look in Less Desirable Areas or Price Ranges

If you don’t have a strong preference for a certain area we can focus on locations that are not as competitive.  This allows us to have more control in our offer terms and closing dates. Also, if you have some pricing flexibility, we can find price ranges that don’t have as much competition.

Tip 10:

Write a Contingent Offer

We can write an offer that is contingent upon the sale of your current home.  This allows us to find the home you want before putting your home up for sale.  Depending on market conditions, it can be difficult to have this extra contingency accepted.

Tip 11:

Rent for a Bit

If you want to sell at the peak of the market and have additional time to look for a home, this can be a great option.  Find a short term rental to move into to remove the timeline crunches of finding a new home.

Now that you know your options, are you ready to see what your home might be worth? Or are you ready to see what options are on the market? You can do both right here!

Home Value
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Or, if you would rather chat with us before jumping right in, fill out the form below and we will get back to you right away!

Flying Fish Company

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Living in Portland exposes us to all sorts of amazing food, and on the top of that list is seafood. Are you ever craving some sushi-grade tuna at home, but you’re just not sure where you can find it? Or maybe you just want some oysters on the half-shell? Flying Fish Company offers a fresh fish market for consumers as well as a full-service restaurant. This week, we decided we needed to experience all that Flying Fish Company offers.  

The food

We settled in under their outdoor covered patio just after the lunch rush started to die down. The menu offers various seafood with both raw to cooked options. As well as salads and burgers. We selected the cod fish and chips, grilled steelhead sandwich, and tuna Niçoise salad. The freshness of the seafood here is unsurpassable.

The cod was lightly battered and fried until golden brown and crispy. Served with a side of Jojo’s and some citrus kale slaw. The grilled steelhead was perfectly seasoned and lightly grilled so that the interior of the fish was still moist and delicious, but the fish skin was nice and crispy. The fish was then served on a Grand Central ciabatta roll with the best herb aioli I’ve ever had and the kale citrus slaw that accompanied the cod. Last but certainly not least was the Tuna Nicoise. Poached albacore tuna was served on top of a bounty of greens with a light red wine vinaigrette with just the right amount of bite. The potatoes and egg were cooked to perfection making the salad stand up next to the other entrees without question.

On our way out we headed into the fresh fish market. Todays offering had fresh oysters, and clams, ahi tuna, cod, steelhead, Dungeness crab, Scallops and so many other fish options. In addition to all the fresh fish, Flying Fish Company also has a variety of canned seafood to stock up your pantry with. For the current list of what’s fresh go Here. Whether you’re looking for an easy meal out or a decadent dinner in Flying Fish Company has everything a seafood lover could need. For more local hot spots check out our blog Here.

Slappy Cakes

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Slappy Cakes is a Portland favorite and one of the most fun restaurants that you can visit in SE Portland.  With griddles on nearly every table, you can order and make your very own pancakes at your table.  They always have buttermilk, chocolate, and vegan batter, but there is also a rotating seasonal flavor to keep you coming back.  This time around it was a lemon poppy seed which paired perfectly with our fruit. 

Slappy cakes

I went as a special mom and daughter date, so we ordered all the berries, chocolate chips, and whipped cream.  The pancakes are light and fluffy, and the flavor combination was perfect.  In the past I have ordered chorizo and goat cheese toppings, so if you are feeling adventurous, be sure to check that out! If you aren’t in the mood for pancakes, they also have all the breakfast staples.  Hash, Benedict, Scrambles, Candied Bacon.  This place will truly please everyone in the family. 

Because I was having a mommy and me date, we ordered some fresh squeezed orange juice.  They have multiple juice options, but if you are in the mood for something a little stronger they also have a fantastic cocktail menu.  I highly recommend the Slappy Cakes Bloody Mary!

We constantly go back to this restaurant for the fun atmosphere and the yummy food and drinks, have you been to visit yet?  Make sure to let us know when you go!