The Ultimate Portland (OR) Shopping Thread

[1up]

Thanks gents.

 

[1up]

Had a time in your lovely city, shoutout to Kiya and James at Self Edge. Awesome store and good people, highly recommended.

 

[CBrown85]

Yeah, I was just there. Hit up Tanner but Self Edge wasn't open until 12 and I had to grab the train. Lots of great food.

 

[oboy_oboy]

Thought I’d share a shopping experience I had yesterday. I was downtown in the pre-Noon window, which on Sunday means that there’s not a lot open yet. Checked out Case Study coffee which was great (because Portland for sure needs more coffee shops….) and walked by the Indochino “traveling tailor” pop-up. I knew it was in town and had thought about checking it out, but I don’t have a lot of free time these days and it wasn’t a real priority, but there it was. So I went in.

Really well laid out, w/ free coffee (from Case Study next door! I could have saved my $3) and a nice, easy to browse set up of their fabrics and options. There were two sales associates in the space, and each one was engaged with a customer. Other than that, I was the only one there. I probably walked around looking at the fabrics and offerings for a 5 minutes or more before either of them addressed me. When they did, it was a nod and smile. That’s it. Not one word about if I had questions about their program (all MTO), that they’d be with me in a minute, etc. Nothing.

I’d guess I’m firmly in the target demo, and was well dressed, etc. When I saw the prices, I was suddenly thinking, “Hmm. Well, in 30 minutes or so, I could be buying a nice MTO SC and that would be great.” But after being more or less ignored, and not really wanting to push for service, I just left. I couldn’t help but think how much more excited I’d be to spend nearly twice as much on an Epaulet jacket due to the nature of the business and the level of service they provide.

The interesting thing is, I knew exactly who they were and how the model worked. The biggest barrier to entry for me was handling the fabrics and being able to interact with someone. So once I was in the door, I was impressed with the fabrics—at least certainly for the prices. A MTO sport coat for $299 (cottons, slightly more for wool) is a pretty nice deal, and since I’m not a big suit and SC guy, they aren’t items I really pick up multiples of.

I left knowing I’ll probably never buy from them, and affirmed in my desire to support smaller shops (locally when possible), especially ones who really show care for their customer. There are certainly plenty of them in Portland.

Random side note: Nordstrom downtown carries Rag & Bone suiting, and it looks great.

 

[oboy_oboy]

Wow this thread has been dead. Here's something interesting: Winn Perry is reopening in January.

Looks like a space right around the corner from Courier Coffee, between Thai Peacock and Jackpot records.

 

[dixonmanor]

Excellent news! Jordan's great!

 

[NAMOR]

im surprised they kept the blog running this long - good for them.

Dinner reservations at Beast later this week

 

[oboy_oboy]



im surprised they kept the blog running this long - good for them.

Dinner reservations at Beast later this week

Yeah, he must have decided it was best to just pay for the hosting. Note that he says Alden will be back on the shelves.

Re: PDX eating/drinking, be sure you head across the street from Beast to Expatriate. Cool space w/ awesome drinks and snacks. Probably best to hit it before, since dinner will leave you pretty full.

 

[NAMOR]

thanks man - will check it out

edit - wow, expatriate received great reviews

 

[oboy_oboy]

I'm not ******* around up here.

 

[MarioImpemba]

I'm a midwest boy and haven't explored the Best Coast much. I finally made it up to Seattle a few months ago; the food up there absolutely ***** on PDX offerings, which I found hilarious given the food-snobbery 'round here.

 

[dixonmanor]

Yeah, ditto, Expatriate is great.

Otis- any new and notables in Portland? Heading up next week to hang with the fam for the holidays. Doing the Pigeon on the 23rd (my girl's never been) and usually hit Pok Pok, Ludd, Podnah's and the other notables near my dad's house. Just wondering if you've got a stand out favorite among the new crop of great-sounding restaurants that've popped up over the last year (Ox, Ava Gene's, etc etc etc...).

 

[oboy_oboy]



I'm a midwest boy and haven't explored the Best Coast much. I finally made it up to Seattle a few months ago; the food up there absolutely ***** on PDX offerings, which I found hilarious given the food-snobbery 'round here.

Portland has some of the best eating on the West Coast, and maybe the country, and that's not snobbery, it's just true. Seattle also has some of the best eating on the West Coast as well. Turning it into a battle of the cities is just asinine. There's maybe 2 cities in the nation w/ similar populations to Portland that can boast anything near its level of eating.

Yeah, ditto, Expatriate is great.

Otis- any new and notables in Portland? Heading up next week to hang with the fam for the holidays. Doing the Pigeon on the 23rd (my girl's never been) and usually hit Pok Pok, Ludd, Podnah's and the other notables near my dad's house. Just wondering if you've got a stand out favorite among the new crop of great-sounding restaurants that've popped up over the last year (Ox, Ava Gene's, etc etc etc...).

Ava Gene's is worth a visit for sure. It's pretty stand out. Even just a drink and some food at the bar. Shamefully, I've not been to Ox due in large part to strategic dining dates and never being quite into the menu style, even tho I know full well it will be impressive. Ned Ludd is awesome these days. I feel like Jason has really hit a stride and it shows in the food. I think all the press/attention he's gotten has actually fueled him to make better food, rather than the opposite. I really liked the food at Tasty & Alder, but it's loud as **** and that's not just me getting older.

Kevin from Evoe just opened Davenport (next door to Heart Roasters) like last week, so I've not been yet but his food is seriously some of my favorite to eat so I'm looking forward to that. And Ken Forkish just opened Trifecta Tavern around corner from the OG Bunk. I've only been in during the day for coffee/morning buns, but it looks awesome, and Rich Meyer from Higgins is the chef, and he's just rad.

So that's my two cents!

 

[dixonmanor]

Oh yeah, Trifecta!

Glad to hear Ned Ludd is doing so well... I think it's one of the best in the city, but I feel like it's tough to get tourists over there because it's location is sort of in between destination 'hoods. My dad is on 16th and Fremont, which puts me in close proximity to many of my favorites when I'm in town. Curious to try Rodney's new Tex-Mex thing too.

 

[MarioImpemba]

Portland has some of the best eating on the West Coast, and maybe the country, and that's not snobbery, it's just true. Seattle also has some of the best eating on the West Coast as well. Turning it into a battle of the cities is just asinine. There's maybe 2 cities in the nation w/ similar populations to Portland that can boast anything near its level of eating.

I didn't mean to turn it in to that, I was just surprised.

I need to try Ned Ludd - even my therapist recommended it.