Our Super Markets

An A-to-Z spin through the aisles of Portland grocery stores. Plus: A Hood River barbecue odyssey, Laika’s take on ‘Wildwood,’ and private schools by the numbers.

In this issue:

Arts & Culture

Verse

‘Dear Ghost,’ a Poem by Jennifer Perrine

The first entry in Portland Monthly’s new poetry series, from the Portland poet’s recent collection Beautiful Outlaw, winner of the Oregon Book Award.

09/17/2026 By Jennifer Perrine

Enchanted Forest

Wildwood Really Is Laika’s Most Ambitious Project Yet

The epic, Portland-set stop-motion adventure hits theaters October 23.

09/15/2026 By Conner Reed

Grafiti

Entrevista con Queso Queso

El grafitero que firmó en español en prácticamente casi todas las aceras de la ciudad y se convirtió en un héroe popular.

08/19/2026 By Matthew Trueherz

Public Record

Archiving Dance: Linda K. Johnson’s Maps and Memories

What if dance is really about the friends we meet along the way? With her Converge 45 show, the choreographer and dancer taps the collective memory.

08/18/2026 By Hannah Krafcik

Eat the Roses

How Bitter Radicchio Became Portland’s 21st-Century Sweetheart

A new book by Lane Selman and Margarett Waterbury tells how the vegetable became a poster child for our local food culture at its best.

07/30/2026 By Lola Milholland

Eat & Drink

Editor’s Note

Breaking Out of My Grocery Routine

What if we shopped at the stores we wish were in our neighborhood?

09/16/2026 By Margaret Seiler

Mart History

Portland’s Grocery Evolution: Pioneers, Hippies, and Big Business

A lot of local stores aren’t so local anymore.

09/14/2026 By Heather Arndt Anderson

Super Markets

An A-to-Z Guide to Portland Grocery Stores

Where we shop, yesterday and today.

09/11/2026 By Margaret Seiler

Dish Exploder

Xiao Ye’s Khao Soi Radiatori Is for Pasta Lovers

This star of the Portland restaurant’s ‘first-generation American’ menu marries Thai noodle soup and Italian technique.

08/27/2026 By Matthew Trueherz Illustrations by Amber Day

BBQ

Why Grasslands Barbecue Is More Than Worth the Drive

A trip to the Hood River food cart is a meaty pilgrimage.

08/06/2026 By Jordan Michelman Photography by Thomas Teal

Home & Real Estate

Plants

At Rancho Cacto, Molly Malecki Is All About the Succulents

She's known to some as the Cactus Lady.

03/19/2026 By Jordan Michelman Photography by Michael Novak

News & City Life

PDX Index

Running the Numbers on 60 Years of Outdoor School

The beloved program takes kids out of the classroom and into the woods.

10/05/2026 By Rebecca Jacobson

Love Letters

An Illustrated Ode to Portland’s Scrap Creative Reuse

The nonprofit art supply center is piled with treasures.

09/23/2026 By Shay Mirk

In Short

Hot Takes on Portland’s Latest News

Real news in small packages.

09/15/2026 By Brooke Jackson-Glidden and Margaret Seiler

Education

Portland Private Schools, by the Numbers

Application deadlines, tuition costs, demographics, and more key info on Portland-area K–12 private schools.

08/31/2026 By Portland Monthly Staff

Q&A

Ripping the City with Ari Shapiro

The journalist reflects on career pivots and finding connection in an always-on world.

08/25/2026 By Dalila Brent Illustrations by Betty Turbo

Activism

Meet the Young Portlanders Leading Today’s Political Movements

Whether they’re organizing protests, starting school clubs, or lobbying in DC, the city’s youth are staking their claim.

08/24/2026 By Natalie Pate Illustrations by Jeannie Phan

Graffiti

An Interview with Queso Queso

The graffiti artist tagged practically every sidewalk in the city in Spanish and became a Portland folk hero.

08/19/2026 By Matthew Trueherz

Cherished Objects

Portland Artists on the Things They’ve Repaired Over and Over

New isn’t always better. So say Britt Howard, Jeffry Mitchell, and Morgan Ritter.

08/13/2026 By Matthew Trueherz

Local Legends

If Portland’s Thompson Elk Statue Could Talk

In 1900, the bronze monument to the Oregon Humane Society decorated a fountain. Then it watched as the city went up around it.

08/12/2026 By Matthew Trueherz Photography by Michael Novak

Think Pink

A Coos Bay–Born Showgirl Bets on a Scrappy Corner of Old Town

Welcome to the newly christened Pink Light District.

08/11/2026 By Rebecca Jacobson

The Fixers

Meet the Portlanders Who Can Fix Your Broken Stuff

Talking craft and philosophy with menders, restorers, and repairpeople around the city.

08/05/2026 By Amelia Arvesen, Gabriel Granillo, Matthew Trueherz, and Alice Wolfe

The Fixers

Repairing Broken Objects to Mend a Broken System

Oregon’s Right to Repair bill, and the community organizers and fix-it shops fighting planned obsolescence.

07/27/2026 By Matthew Trueherz

Training Wheels

Waymo Considers Portland as Portland Considers Waymo

As of today, the self-driving taxis are simply learning Portland’s streets. Then what?

07/23/2026 By Amelia Arvesen

Travel & Outdoors

Big Bird

Getting to Know the Great Blue Heron, Portland’s Official City Bird

Bud Clark made the designation in 1986. Sorry, swifts.

8:00am By Rebecca Jacobson

Peak Produce

The Making of Mt. Angel Oktoberfest’s Harvest Monument

Artist Daniel Frey works in seeds, apples, onions, and beans.

09/01/2026 By Margaret Seiler

Getaway

Seabrook’s Study in New Urbanism

A fantasy, or the future?

08/10/2026 By Amelia Arvesen

Star Power

Oregon Dark Sky Locations for Stargazing

Get away from the city and all its darn lights.

08/04/2026 By Margaret Seiler

Into the Night

In Antelope, Oregon, Light Breaks Through

Red bulbs and black paint show a way forward for a rural community with darkness in its past.

08/03/2026 By Leah Sottile Illustrations by Joseph Laney