We stayed in the Pearl District in condo for a few months. Here is the good, and the bad . A must see is Powell’s Bookstore it the biggest bookstore it has a cool factor. The Chinese Garden is must see as well. A list of places for good food worth mentioning, Piazza Italia , Brics, Irving Kitchen, Khao San, Thai Bloom, Touché, Merriweathers has great food and breakfast on weekends,but pricey. Swagat for amazing East- Indian food. For sweets , Jones cupcake and Salt & Straw for ice-cream noted for it’s originality, but expect a long wait. Papa Haydens is long time Portland favorite. The very best coffee is at Nossa Familia, and another place is Via Deliza great coffee and breakfast…a place you can read the newspaper in a very relaxing atmosphere . An absolutely excellent breakfast and lunch is St Honores , this is a bustling place. The best food cart where people line up to get a healthy bowl, is the Whole Bowl. Music scene is good if you hit it right. Tons of shops people seem to like NW 23rd. Now here is the bad, the air quality was really bad, I suspect it is from all the carbon monoxide from the freeways and the industrial area is next door so the air streams carry all that fumes into the Pearl. I really do not think humans are meant to live so close to an industrial area or freeways! We never opened our windows even at 1 am it wasn’t just the bad air quality it the early morning garbage service for the bars, millions of glass bottles being dumped into garbage trucks and of course the beeping sounds the trucks make. We were up was up quite a few floors from ground level and it was still annoying. For ladies, I would avoid carrying a purse from what I’ve seen there it is best to be safe, than sorry. Portland has had a population explosion and along with it came crime and apparently enough homeless to fill a small town. There are so many homeless, and mentally ill on the streets it is a shocking! Every single week , I would see broken glass on the ground apparently, from car break ins. doesn’t matter if it is day or night! The parking is difficult, and the rates are outrageous a quarter buys you seven minutes on the meter, but parking is free after 7pm after the happy hour and dinner crowd leaves the city if that makes any sense it at all?. At night, the Pearl is younger louder party crowd emerges. We were in a very nice high-rise condo which has a big homeless village 1/2 block away that are burning wood in the late night to stay warm and you can smell the fumes and then throw in the crime, and super bad air quality and the noise level and place start losing points fast. Why pay a premium price to live or even stay in a place like this? The Pearl is great place to visit . Now remember to bring you wallet and make sure it is full because Portland is expensive! Be sure to check out the breweries, We liked Fat Head’s Brewery for beers from the U.K. Henry Brewery has great beer and great atmosphere. Our favorite was Portland Brewery grab a table outside and experience ( what a local told me )a place that still reflects what Portland was once like. This place has a different feeling, than rest of NW Portland and great food to boot, and few screens so you can catch the game. If we return to Portland we would stay in a hotel on the SW side of Portland and catch a cab to the Pearl. Portland has a serious problems with a large homeless population problem that needs to be addressed.
