Margaret Seiler helps keep Portland Monthly clear, readable, and grammatically correct. She also writes about local politics, history, sports (from the Thorns to Tonya Harding), and her hobby of extreme transit. The native Kentuckian landed in Oregon after youth-hostelling her way around the continent (before cell phones!) and worked at Willamette Week and the Portland Tribune before joining Portland Monthly in 2010. She lives in North Portland with her brewer husband and their two children.

PDX Food History

A Look Back on a Century of Portland Burger Joints

From Yaw’s and TikTok to Little Big Burger and Mike’s Drive-In, homegrown fast-food restaurants hold their own with the likes of Shake Shack and In-N-Out.

05/16/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Portland in the Movies

A Nike Historian Weighs In on What Air Got Right—and Wrong

“People have told me a million times, ‘Scott, it’s not a documentary.’”

04/28/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Trails

Hike of the Month: Mosier Plateau by Transit

Thanks to the CAT bus, you don’t need a car to get to this wildflower standby in the Columbia River Gorge. Bring a bike along and hit the Mosier Twin Tunnels or a winery while you’re there.

04/27/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Books

A Margaret Talks to Margarets about Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret

We check in with legislator Margaret Carter, writer Margaret Malone, and others, in anticipation of the movie version of the Judy Blume classic.

04/19/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Kitchen Gear

2 Pandemic-Born Portland Businesses Bring Some Style to Food Storage

Add some color to your counter with cool, mod cookie jars from Astro the Studio and washable food covers from Hanuk Design.

03/27/2023 By Margaret Seiler

In Memoriam

Darcelle Has Died. Long Live Darcelle.

Also known as Walter Cole, the legendary and beloved nightclub owner and drag queen Darcelle was a Portland institution.

03/24/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Shoe Review

We Try Dansko's New Translucent Clogs

Choose your socks carefully for these clear clogs—a Scandinavian-inspired cross between ’80s jellies and ’90s iMacs.

03/17/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Events

Some of Portland’s Biggest Spring 2023 Concerts and Events

An incomplete guide to Portland’s best cultural offerings this spring, including onetime locals Ari Shapiro and Yeat

03/15/2023 By Dalila Brent, Margaret Seiler, and Matthew Trueherz

Markets

Yes, Walmart and Green Zebra Are Closing. No, the World Isn’t Ending.

Portland is full of former grocery stores, from Kienow’s to Piggly Wiggly to lots of extraneous Safeways. Greg Abbott can chill.

03/15/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Movers & Shakers

Perfect Party: Spring 2023

From the Hops’ new manager—one of the highest-ranking women in baseball—to the ghost of the Fort Stevens whale, here’s who we want to sit down with for a meal this season.

03/13/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Film

Guillermo del Toro's Portland-Made 'Pinocchio' Wins Oscar for Best Animated Film

The filmmaker's take on the fairy tale was made with ShadowMachine in Northwest Portland; Goonies alum Ke Huy Quan's Oscar had an Oregon connection.

03/12/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Editor's Note

From the Editor: How Many State Parks Have I Checked Off?

With 250-plus properties, Oregon State Parks is a welcome to-do list that never ends.

03/10/2023 By Margaret Seiler

By the Numbers

Oregon State Parks Facts and Figures

13 disc golf courses, nearly 3 million camper nights last year, 30 years of yurts, and the real reason behind the most visited state park

03/09/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Gift Guide

Valentine's Gift Guide: Last-Minute Presents to Find Close to Home

Ideas for your sweetie from every Portland quadrant, from vegan doughnuts in Hollywood to pain pillows in Multnomah Village to hand hooks in the Pearl

02/10/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Soccer

The NWSL Soccer 2023 Schedule Is Finally Here—Portland Thorns’ First Home Game Is March 26

The long wait is over, and fans can finally mark their calendars for home games at Providence Park.

02/08/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Self-Care

4 Local Spa Treatments to Shake the Winter Doldrums

A Hawaiian massage, a float tank, and your choice of soaks

02/08/2023 By Karen Brooks, Katherine Chew Hamilton, Isabel Lemus Kristensen, and Margaret Seiler

True Crime

Lifetime Movie Brings Daniel Brophy Murder to the Small Screen

Cybill Shepherd and Steve Guttenberg star in the ripped-from-the-headlines made-for-TV movie about the murder of a local chef and culinary instructor.

01/13/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Soccer

Portland Thorns Name Mike Norris, an Assistant in 2022, as New Head Coach

Just ahead of the NWSL Draft, the native of Newcastle, England, replaces Rhian Wilkinson, who resigned in December.

01/10/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Light a Fire 2022: Keeping Us Healthy

WomenFirst Tells People They’re Worth Loving

The Gresham-based nonprofit matches people coming out of the criminal justice system with mentors who know what they’re going through.

12/29/2022 By Margaret Seiler

Soccer

Portland Thorns Coach Rhian Wilkinson to Resign

Just a year after her hiring, the Canadian soccer coach reported a relationship with a player to the club and league. While an investigation cleared her of wrongdoing, she says she has lost the players’ confidence and that they asked for her resignation.

12/02/2022 By Margaret Seiler