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August Events

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Can you believe we are already nearing the end of summer? Us Either! We do hope though that this lovely warm weather continues through September. We have some fantastic events for you this month and we hope to see you out there enjoying the city!

Pickathon

  • The three-day festival on 80 acres just outside Portland attracts a range of indie, rock and rap artists as well as the bluegrass troupes that gave the event its name. You can camp with a weekend pass, or just do a day pass!
  • Pendarvis Farm – Happy Valley

Weekend passes from $390 and day passes from $170

TICKETS

MORE INFO

August 4th – 7th

Vanport Jazz Festival

  • The Vanport Jazz Festival honors the city of Vanport and the voices that formed Portland’s jazz community.
  • Colwood Golf Center

starting at $60 – TICKETS

MORE INFO

  • August 5th: 6pm – 9pm
  • August 6th: 12pm – 9pm

First Thursday in The Pearl

Stroll through the art galleries in the pearl for an evening of art, music, and wine! Parking is difficult so public transit is recommended

The Pearl District

Free Event

  • August 4th
  • 5pm – 10pm though gallery hours vary.

Bridge Pedal

Join your friends and neighbors for the one opportunity each year to bike or walk on Portland’s car-free streets and bridges. Bridge Pedal is one of the largest community bike rides in the world!!

Tom McCall Waterfront Park

Starting at $35 – TICKETS

MORE INFO

August 14th

Hip Hop Week

  • Portland Hip Hop Week is a celebration of Hip Hop culture in the city of Portland. Enjoy great performances from Portland artists and performers who have contributed to Portland’s Hip Hop scene.
  • Multiple Locations

Pricing varies per event – TICKETS

MORE INFO

  • August 20th – 26th
  • times vary

Adult Soap Box Derby

  • Put down your video game controllers and step away from your Mario Kart. The best way to race isn’t on a screen, it’s down an extinct cinder cone volcano in Southeast Portland. This event is so much fun, its a Portland MUST!
  • Mt. Tabor Park
  • *Free*
  • MORE INFO
  • August 20th

Hood to Coast

  • Hood to Coast is the world’s largest running relay race, stretching 200 miles from the top of Mount Hood to the Pacific Ocean in Seaside.
  • Timberline – Seaside
  • Tickets sell out months in advance, but you can watch along the way!
  • August 26th

We hope to see you at some of these awesome events!

Looking for something else to do? Check out our best of lists!

Tercet

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Hot Spot of the Week is wonderful prix fixe dining experience, Tercet. If you ever had the pleasure of dining at Roe, you will have a bit of an idea of the stunning presentations and delicately balanced flavors that you can expect at the re-opened and re-imagined Tercet. After our recent dinner here, I can definitely say it’s a contender for the year’s best meal.

One of the stand-out aspects of Tercet is the general experience. There is almost a speakeasy vibe to the manner of entry. Through the building, up some back stairs, and into a dimly lit parlor. Enhancing that feeling, you are greeted at the door with an aperitif to sip while your table is prepared. Once seated in the cozy space, the tables all have full view of the open kitchen, allowing guests to watch the magic happen.

At the time of our visit, the menu at Tercet had 7 courses on offer, presented simply on a card as ‘Egg’ or ‘Salmon’. This did not count the several ‘snacks’ that were little bonus bites at the beginning and end of the meal. The meal opened with one of our favorite of these snacks – fresh oysters two ways. I wish I remembered the exact details of preparations, but suffice it to say that one was chilled, bright, briny, and crisp and the other was warm, rich, and buttery, topped with caviar.

There were too many delicious bites of the evening to talk about them all, but I’ll tell you quickly about two of them. The ‘Morel’ course was one of the best of the night. The wild foraged Oregon morels were grilled so they had a smoky similarity to a skirt steak. Served with hollandaise, and some green onion crepes for wrapping, this was like a crazy delicious taco meets Benedict and I was smitten with it.

Another favorite of mine was the final dessert course of the night ‘Fromage Blanc’. This took the form of little wedges of breaded, rather savory, cheesecakes, paired with shaved rhubarb, and a bright fruity granita. It was one of those food experiences where I thought to myself, “Wow- these ingredients can be used in this way!”

One of my favorite things about Tercet is their use of seasonal, local, and foraged ingredients. And they change their menu seasonally as well, so re-visiting often is a great plan. I, for one, cannot wait to try out their next menu! You can check out their menu and make reservations Here.

Have you been to Tercet? What were your favorite dishes?

July Events

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Happy Summer! Festival season continues and we are so excited about some of the things coming up! Beer, movies, music, e can’t wait to see you at some of these great events.

Blues Festival

  • This music festival is one of the longest running and helps to showcase both local talent and national celebrities. With beautiful views of the willamette and a firework show, this festival is not to be missed!
  • Waterfront Park

$35+ TICKETS

MORE INFO

July 1st – July 4th 9am – 6pm daily

Craft Beer Festival

  • This brewfest is unique in that all the participants are brewed and created within the city limits of Portland!
  • The Fields Park

$30 TICKETS

First Thursday in The Pearl

  • Stroll through the art galleries in the pearl for an evening of art, music, and wine! Parking is difficult so public transit is recommended
  • The Pearl District
  • Free Event
  • July 7th 5pm – 10pm though gallery hours vary.

The Big Float

  • This year is the very last big float (at least hosted by the current organizers) so if you want to get in a floaty and ride across the willamette now is your chance!
  • Tom McCall Waterfront Park
  • $10-$15 TICKETS
  • MORE INFO
  • July 10th 11am-6:30pm

Cathedral Park Jazz Fest

  • This annual summer favorite is a prime showcase of Portland’s homegrown talent, natural beauty and neighborly charm.
  • Cathedral Park

*Free*

MORE INFO

July 15th – July 17th times vary

Cinema Unbound

  • A Portland tradition of watching a film under the stars but make it a little extra, with thematic and experiential surprises galore.
  • OMSI
  • $20-$75
  • GET TICKETS HERE
  • July 7th- July 31st

Fuji to Hood Beer Fest

  • Fuji to Hood is a beer and food festival between 40 like-minded breweries, cideries, and distilleries in the shadow of Oregon’s Mt. Hood and Japan’s Mt. Fuji.
  • The Bindery Annex
  • $30-$40 TICKETS
  • MORE INFO
  • July 16th

Oregon Brewers Festival

  • While we may have many beer festivals, none truly compare to this one. with over 80 different breweries, there are so many beers to choose from and its a must attend event.
  • Waterfront Park

$10 for a mug $2 per token

MORE INFO HERE

July 28th -30th

World Naked Bike Ride

  • This is one of the truly loved Portland traditions. Thousands of people bike around portland naked to protest our dependency on oil.
  • Secret Location TBD

*Free*

MORE INFO HERE

July 30th

Montavilla Street Fair

  • Stroll down Stark Street and enjoy district businesses, a farmer’s market and family-friendly entertainment and activities. 
  • SE Stark st in Montavilla

*Free*

MORE INFO HERE

July 31st 10am-5pm

We hope to see you at some of these awesome events!

Looking for something else to do? Check out our best of lists!

Portland’s Best Fountains

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Want a free activity to help you cool off? We thought so! Going to the beach or river for the day is always a good plan, but those can be sometimes be crowded. The summer is the perfect time to check out Portland’s Best Fountains! Temperatures are climbing and there’s nothing quite like running through a fountain to help you cool you down during these heatwaves.

Stark Street Island Park

  • Named the rose petal, this simple fountain is a fun one for kids.
  • SE 106th Avenue and SE Stark Street
  • Portland, OR 97216

Jamison Square

Cascading waterfalls meant to simulate shallow tidepools.

  • 810 NW 11th Ave
  • Portland OR 97209

Children’s Fountain

  • 2 side by side fountains with dancing jets of water.
  • 410 NE Second Ave
  • Gresham OR 97030

Dawson Park

  • This timed fountain allows for interactive movement that highlights the history of the neighborhood.
  • N Stanton Street and N Williams Avenue
  • Portland, OR 97227

Salmon Street Springs

  • This 3 phase fountain puts on a glorious display and is great for playing in.
  • 1000 SW Naito Pkwy
  • Portland, OR 97204

Keller Fountain

  • Arguably the most famous fountain, this was designed to represent the many waterfalls in the area.
  • SW 3rd Ave & SW Clay St
  • Portland, OR 97201

McCoy Park Fountain

  • First municipal fountain, designed to represent the moon’s phases.
  • N Trenton and N Newman Ave.
  • Portland, OR 97203

Have you been inspired to pack on the sunscreen and run through one of Portland’s Best Fountains? The season for all of these fountains runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day, so you’ll have plenty of time to check out one or all of these if you’d like. If fountains aren’t quite what you had in mind, we’ve also put together plenty of other great Portland activities to check out Here. Let us know if we’ve missed your favorite fountain!

Champagne Poetry

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Hot Spot of the week is new and delicious dessert and champagne spot Champagne Poetry! Sister restaurant to the already established (and worth the trip) La Rose Patisserie in Beaverton, now Portland proper has a spot to grab inventive sweets and tasty bubbles.

First thing you should know about Champagne Poetry is that everything from the dessert case to the flower wall is totally Insta-worthy. The flower wall in particular, adorned with neon light up wings, begs you to strike a pose and snap a pic.

The next thing to note, is that the desserts are unexpected and surprising. On our recent visit, we tried a bright pink ‘doughnut’ that was actually a fluffy dark chocolate mousse in the shape of a doughnut and glazed with a very light frosting. Similarly, the Pink Lady was a lovely combination of mousse, cake, and a chilled guava center. Obsessively drooling over Instagram videos, I have learned to always expect the unexpected when ordering a dessert from Champagne Poetry.

As the name would imply, they also have a decent selection of sparkling wines. There are a few roses, some prosecco, and even a true Champagne. Next time you are looking for a good ‘Treat Yo Self’ day, look no farther than the delightfully indulgent Champagne Poetry!

Have you checked this fun place out yet? What did you try? You can find their menu Here or check out our other Hot Spots Here.

June Events

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It’s June! That also means it is the start of festival season! We are kicking things off with the rose fest, pride, and some beer! If you don’t love festivals, we have some other great things to do this month also! We are excited to share these June events!

Peony Festival

  • Visiting the gardens will include walking 25 acres of production fields, strolling through 2 acres of display garden, and enjoying many different colors of gorgeous peonies!
  • Adelman Peony Farm, Salem

*Free*

MORE INFO

May 1st – June 15th 9am – 6pm daily

Rose Festival

  • Parades, rides, fireworks, greasy food, what more could you ask for?
  • Tom McCall Waterfront Park

Parades are free, city fair requires a ticket

Portland Pride Festival

  • Portland is widely known to be a gay-friendly destination, but you can count on us being even more fun for the pride festival and parade!
  • Tom McCall Waterfront Park
  • *Free*
  • MORE INFO
  • June 18th and 19th

First Thursday in The Pearl

  • Stroll through the art galleries in the pearl for an evening of art, music, and wine! Parking is difficult so public transit is recommended
  • The Pearl District
  • Free Event
  • June 2nd 5pm – 10pm though gallery hours vary.

Crush on Oregon

  • Enjoy Wine tasting, local eats, and entertainment at this annual wine festival!
  • Castaway

$50-$70

GET TICKETS HERE

Sunday June 5th

Cider Summit

  • The regions largest cider festival is back! With 150 different selections made by 40 producers, you’ll fund something here to love!
  • The Fields Park
  • $40 for general admission
  • GET TICKETS HERE
  • June 10th and 11th

PDX Beer Week

  • We may not need a special week to drink beer, but this 11 day “week” will feature specials, rare beers, and fun events!
  • Various locations
  • Prices Vary – find all the events on the FB page
  • MORE INFO
  • June 17th -26th

Festival of Balloons

  • Hot air balloons take flight every June and you can enjoy the view with just a quick trip to the south!
  • Cook Park – Tigard

$12

MORE INFO HERE

We hope to see you at some of these awesome events!

Brasa Haya

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Hot Spot of the week this week is lovely Spanish restaurant Brasa Haya! Located in the old Beech Street Parlor space, Brasa Haya does it’s own playful take on tapas and pintxos and they do it well.

You can’t talk about Brasa Haya, of course, without mentioning the setting. It is located in an old 1906 foursquare home off of MLK, meaning that all of the dining areas are really converted rooms of the old house. They (or rather Beech Street before them) have added a beautiful wooden bar to the main level family room, but otherwise it generally feels like you could be headed to a dinner party at a friends home. Plus the wallpaper game here is top-notch.

The drinks list is understandably Spanish-driven, with a large selection of Spanish wines, a proper sherry list, and the ubiquitous Spanish coffee. Yet, we found quite a few fun surprises sprinkled throughout, like the Tensho Embassy (my cocktail of choice of the eve) which involved tequila, yellow chartreuse, and roasted miso. Once we finished cocktails, we ordered a lovely bottle of Cava to pair with the remainder of the courses.

The thing that I love most about tapas is that it is all built to share. I always want to try everything on the menu, and tapas restaurants are the only ones that let me even get close. That said, the portions here were not tiny and still quite filling, so try not to go too overboard, even when everything sounds too delicious.

We ended up trying the salt cod croquettes and the charred onion relish with ricotta on toast to start. Both were super tasty. Next, we had some of the roasted brussels sprouts with romesco (my favorite sauce in the world). Finally, we shared the salsify gratin with black trumpet mushrooms and preserved lemon. This one was so good but also so filling that we decided to skip the larger portions and head straight for dessert!

Dessert was a real treat. We went with the servers recommendation and had, what was more or less a wonderfully upscale and handmade version of a Dilly Bar. Pairing that with a Spanish coffee to round out the meal was definitely a genius move.

I cannot wait to head back to Brasa Haya and try the rest of the menu! Next time, I’m bringing a larger group so that we truly can order absolutely everything. Have you been to Brasa Haya yet? What was your fave? Let us know in the comments!

Love it or List it?

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I’m sure you’ve seen Love it or List it- where a family has totally outgrown their space but one of the partners just doesn’t want to leave, so they decide to renovate. 

And if the renovations aren’t fixing the issue, then, and only then, do they move…

While reality TV is fun to watch, the reality of living in a construction zone while shopping for a new house, isn’t.

That’s why I recommend doing one or the other. Let’s break it down.

A lot of times, people get frustrated with their space. They’ve had another baby, fallen out of love with their condo, or started dreaming of retiring in a smaller space near the beach. 

Whatever the reason, it’s very important to first identify WHY you are considering a move, and then go from there. 

Here’s five things to think about…

#1 Can it be fixed easily? 

If you want an updated kitchen, swapping out fixtures, painting cabinets, and buying new appliances is a pretty easy fix. But if you want a bigger kitchen, you’re going to have to move.

#2 Can you deal with contractors?

Hiring an interior designer or general contractor to manage your project will help, but renovations require you to work with multiple companies and contractors on a daily basis. And you’ll be totally dependent on their timeline, expertise, and quality of work. If you don’t want people coming in and out of your home for weeks on end, it may be time to move into a turn key home.

#3 Can you live with the mess? 

Renovations can be dusty and dirty and shrink an already hard-to-navigate environment. Tools will be everywhere, equipment will be everywhere, and people will be everywhere. Is a renovation going to get in the way of school, work, or travel? If so, something turnkey may be more appealing.

#4 Can you tolerate a move? 

You may dread the thought of having to pack up your entire home while paying a moving company thousands of dollars to pick up your heirloom armoire and try and make it through the front door. If this sounds unbearable to you, it may be cause to stay.

#5 Do you love your location? 

If the view, zoning, corner lot, or amazing neighbors are the reason why you moved to your current house to begin with, then moving may not be the answer. In this case, it would be better to renovate the inside of the home to match the amazing benefits of the outside of the home. 

No matter whether you decide to love it or list it, it’s important to have a good Realtor to help you understand how renovations will affect your home value and help you decide if you’re better off packing up or staying put. That’s where I can help.

If you’re thinking about making a move (or know someone who is), Please reach out! No pressure, no sales tactics, just helpful advice and the guidance you need!

And finally, if you’re not thinking about making a move just yet, feel free to save this page for future reference, so you can come back to it! 

If you want to get to know either of us better you can go to our pages Jessica or Tekela