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Portland Monthly

February 2016

Comfort Food

Find your next go-to meal in our gallery of edible coziness. We scoured the city and took inspiration from around the globe for the best warm-blanket, rainy-day dishes. We scoured the city for the best warm-blanket dishes from around the globe. Search out your next rainy-day go-to by comfort key word: soothing, hearty, homey, gooey, or spicy. So go ahead, wrap your napkin around your shoulders like a snuggie and dig in.

In this issue:

Arts & Culture

THE ESSENTIALS

February's Pop Culture Hot List

The art, the film festival, the concert, and the book you can't miss this month.

01/27/2016 By Fiona McCann

TELEVISION

How One Portlander Went from Jefferson High to Hollywood

After roles on True Blood and Rectify, Johnny Ray Gill returns to the small screen in a new series about the Underground Railroad.

01/25/2016 By Fiona McCann

MUSIC

What’s Next for Portland’s Legendary Music Scene?

From dystopian hip-hop to sexy, space-age doo-wop, five fascinating artists craft a wild new soundtrack for the city.  

01/25/2016 By Casey Jarman

Eat & Drink

COMFORT FOOD

Portland Chefs Reveal Their Favorite Comfort Foods

From Yucatan pork stew to toffee sauce-smothered date cake, here's what the local pros crave.

01/25/2016 Edited by Kelly Clarke

COMFORT FOOD

The Wide World of Comfort (or, We’re All Gonna Die Anyway)

We scoured the city for the best warm-blanket dishes from across the globe. So go ahead, wrap your napkin around your shoulders like a Snuggie and dig in!

01/25/2016 Edited by Kelly Clarke By Karen Brooks, Ramona DeNies, Zach Dundas, Rachel Grozanick, Amy Martin, Fiona McCann, Marty Patail, Rachel Ritchie, Benjamin Tepler, and Tuck Woodstock

WORD OF MOUTH

Three Things You Must Eat This Month

Decadent-yet-healthy breakfasts, Spanish dessert breakthroughs, and dead-sexy chocolate bars.

01/25/2016 By Karen Brooks

COMFORT FOOD

Making A Case for “Chrysalis Time”

Screw YOLO. Between Instacart, Netflix, and box wine, why go outside at all this winter?

01/25/2016 By Amy Martin

RESTAURANT REVIEW

The Agony & the Ecstasy of Micah Edelstein’s Feisty Lamb

A one-woman restaurant bursts with heartfelt ideas and world flavors—if you can stick around long enough to taste them.

01/25/2016 By Karen Brooks

COMFORT FOOD

Hot Cups for Cold Days

From chai to hot buttered rum, we’ve got the liquid cure for whatever ails you.

01/25/2016 By Kelly Clarke, Fiona McCann, and Benjamin Tepler

COMFORT FOOD

The Search for Portland’s Magic Mac

For premium comfort, you’ve gotta get out of the city. Zigzag’s Skyway Bar and Grill has the mac ’n’ cheese you’ve been dreaming of.

01/25/2016 By Kelly Clarke

COMFORT FOOD

Dumplings of the World, Unite!

Whether steamed, boiled, fried, or filled, almost every nation has at least one variation of these irresistible doughy morsels. It’s time for a global tour.

01/25/2016 By Rachel Grozanick

COMFORT FOOD

Taste-Testing Portland’s Pho Kings

We slurped bowls from a handful of the city’s most beloved neighborhood pho spots. Here are this winter’s essential beef noodle soups.

01/25/2016 By Benjamin Tepler

COMFORT FOOD

16 Ridiculously Comforting Dishes from Around the Globe

Search out your next rainy-day dish or guilty pleasure by comfort keyword: soothing, hearty, homey, gooey, or spicy.

01/25/2016 Edited by Kelly Clarke By Benjamin Tepler, Karen Brooks, Marty Patail, Tuck Woodstock, Rachel Ritchie, Ramona DeNies, and Zach Dundas

EAT HERE NOW

Homegrown Smoker Gets a Warm, Cozy Home

After three carts, three moves, and nearly seven years, the city’s finest meatless barbecue outfit debuts a brick-and-mortar outpost.

01/25/2016 By Tuck Woodstock

BEER

A New Lents Brewery Evokes an Obscure German Tradition

Zoiglhaus Brewing Company shares the wort.

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

RECIPE

A Taste of True Catalan Comfort

Spanish modernist José Chesa shares a recipe from his chocolate-fueled childhood.

01/25/2016 By Benjamin Tepler

NEWS

Ruby Jewel Takes Its Ice Cream Sandwiches Nationwide

With a new production facility, the local ice cream maker eyes expansion.

01/25/2016 By Emma Mannheimer

COMFORT FOOD

The Spud Bracket

Pit Portland’s most awesome potatoes against one another in a drag-out battle for carb-loading supremacy.

01/15/2016 Edited by Kelly Clarke

Editor's Note

EDITORS' NOTE

Why Portland’s Comfort Food Haunts Are More Important Than Its Hottest Restaurants

It’s all about nourishing the soul.

01/25/2016 By Zach Dundas

Home & Real Estate

HOME DECOR

A Portland Start-Up Will Turn Your iPhone Snapshot into Frame-Worthy Art

Whether the picture was worth taking in the first place is still up to you.

02/29/2016 By Sylvia Randall-Muñoz

URBAN DESIGN

Can San Francisco's Planning Czar Tell Portland How to Grow?

The Bright Lights discussion series presents a conversation with Gil Kelley, San Francisco's director of long-range planning.

02/24/2016 By Randy Gragg

ARCHITECTURE

Real Architects Make Their Models Out of Wood

A World Forestry Center exhibit showcases a design technique no computer rendering can kill.

02/16/2016 By Caitlin Collins

URBAN DESIGN

Portland's Proposed Green Loop Could 'Reinvent Outdoor Urban Life'

A Design Week competition will rally competing visions for a carless path through the city center.

02/01/2016 By Caitlin Collins

News & City Life

TECH

App Developer Panic Switches Gears with Video Game "Firewatch," a Mystery Set in the Remote Wilderness

Dropping today, the game places you in a fire lookout with nothing but a radio and your wits.

02/09/2016 By Marty Patail

LONG STORY SHORT

Will Lewis Leads a New Generation of Gamers

With the Portland Indie Game Squad and Pixel Arts Game Education, a new community is born.

01/25/2016 By Brandon Staley

SHAKEDOWN

What’s the Deal With Tina Kotek?

Oregon’s Speaker of the House begins a new session February 1. But first, we size her up.

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

REPORT

While New York Sleeps, Self-Published Authors Are Taking Over Literature

A new breed of Portland writers goes solo.

01/25/2016 By Zach Dundas

BIG PICTURE

Adding Soul to Custom Caskets

Two Portland tattoo artists create “death-positive” coffins in their own home.

01/25/2016 By Megan Haverman

5 THINGS ABOUT

Union Station Turns 120

We visit our iconic train station’s past and predict its future.

01/25/2016 By Katie Vaughan

PDX INDEX

Portland: A Safe Haven for Refugees?

And so far, most of them are not Syrian.

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

DISPATCH

The Timbers: A Championship 40 Years in the Making

For the first time since they started in 1975, Portland’s soccer stars defend a title.

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

EDUCATION

Inside Portland’s Schools

Explore the fast-changing landscape of local learning.

01/15/2016 Edited by Ramona DeNies By Zach Dundas, Fiona McCann, Rachel Grozanick, Katelyn Best, and Alex Madison Illustrations by Matthew Billington

INSIDE THE SCHOOL BOARD

Gentrification, Testing, and Social Justice: School Boards Sit at the Center of the Storm

How Portland’s volunteer education leaders cope with an impossible job.

01/15/2016 By Fiona McCann

TEST YOURSELF

Could You Handle the Brutal New Test Oregon Students Face?

The state’s Smarter Balanced test is a real doozy.

01/15/2016 By Ramona DeNies

ISSUES & INNOVATION

Portland’s Schools Take On Tough Issues and Bold Ideas

From absentee kindergartners to meditation classes, local education is transforming.

01/15/2016 Edited by Ramona DeNies By Alex Madison, Katelyn Best, Rachel Grozanick, Zach Dundas, and Emma Mannheimer

Style & Shopping

WEDDINGS

Get Your Party Started at Rocked 2016

Sip bubbly, get inspired, party the afternoon away—oh, and plan your wedding.

02/16/2016 By Tessa Woolf

RSVP!

Save the Date: Rocked 2016

Plan your wedding while partying with the best Oregon wedding vendors on February 21.

02/02/2016 With Portland Bride & Groom

GIFTS

Our Portland-Centric Valentine's Gift Guide Stabs Romantic Cliché with Cupid's Arrow

Well, anyway—here are some ideas for V-Day that hopefully won't nauseate you or your Special One.

02/01/2016 By Caitlin Collins

WINNING FINDS

Trophy Case: Best Local Stuff of February 2016

This month’s hottest locally made goods, from aphrodisiac bitters to exquisite stone jewelry

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

STYLE

Finger Bang’s Wild Nail Art

A new salon revives the art of weird and wonderful manicures.

01/25/2016 By Eden Dawn

BUDGET

The Portland Budget: How to Manage Your Finances, the Local Way

From picking a credit union to becoming a big-deal investor, there’s a PDX method to money.

01/25/2016 Edited by Marty Patail By Emma Mannheimer and Zach Dundas

Q&A

How to Invest in Locally Run Businesses

The executive director of Hatch Innovation on Oregon’s groundbreaking new rules for start-up capitalists

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

Q&A

An Insider’s Insight on Portland’s Crazy Real Estate Market

When should you make your move?

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

THE NEXT STEPS

You’re Making $80K—How Should You Spend and Save?

Financing a start-up, the economics of home brewing, and the dark truth about childcare

01/25/2016 Edited by Marty Patail By Zach Dundas and Emma Mannheimer

Q&A

How to Budget With Goals in Mind

The creative director of innovative banking app Simple breaks it down.

01/25/2016 By Marty Patail

THE FRESH START

How to Live the Good Life in Portland on $40K

Uber vs. car ownership, the legendary $10,000 windfall, and picking a credit union

01/25/2016 Edited by Marty Patail By Zach Dundas and Emma Mannheimer

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