Brad and I are BIG beer fans (and consequently big gym fans. Also Big Jim fans. He is cool!) Good beer, none of that watery crap or anything with an animal on the can. Better yet, make that NO can. Even and especially Pabst. Its not cute, cut it out already. You can’t have good beer without good food, so we look for places that offer both. Bonus: hipster douchebags generally don’t like these places! McMenamins brewpubs are the obvious choice for microbrew in the Portland area, and they’re good for sure, but we have found a couple of smaller places that are as good, if not better.
We love the New Old Lompoc on NW 23rd (happy hour ALL day on Saturday! Their website doesn’t say so, but the little cards on the table do.). The beer rocks and the menu is limited but good…perfect fries and I usually get the portobello mushroom burger and have them sub hummus for the aioli and cheese. They have a partially covered patio that is so perfect when its nice out. We have literally spent entire days there.
One of our favorite discoveries is Mashtun Brew Pub, hidden down a side street off of Alberta. They have a great beer selection (you can see the big vats just cooking away behind the bar!), really friendly staff and the bathroom walls are covered in chalk boards, just waiting for your beery masterpiece. Their menu has some excellent vegan offerings, including homemade tempeh bacon and Veganaise for the burgers and sandwiches! (Bless you, Mashtun, because they don’t offer that stuff in little packets or I’d cram my purse full.)
It was at Mashtun that we discovered pita pizzas…friggin brilliant! No need to make or buy pizza crust. Just buy a pack of pita bread, assemble your toppings and you’re in business!
We missed out on Vegan Pizza Day last Saturday, so we made up for it on Monday. Everyone got to build their own little pizza and for toppings I offered: red sauce, sautéed mushrooms, soy curls, red peppers, onions, tomatoes, avocado, pineapple, mushrooms, olives, Yves veggie pepperoni, pepperoncini slices and jalapenos! We do have vegan cheese, but I have found that I don’t miss cheese and I prefer my pizza with sauce and veggies. Just top your pita and bake at 400 for about 10 minutes. If you do put cheese on yours, you may want to broil it a bit at the end to crisp it up. Also, put a rubber band on your wrist and snap it ten times.
If you’re out drinking delicious beer (call me!) and need a little something to sop it up (pussy!), here is a fairly comprehensive list of where to enjoy vegan pizza around Portland:
(Note: If you’re in Eugene, kindly stop in and make sweet, sweet love to the Greek Pizza at Pizza Research Institute for me. The best pizza I’ve ever had anywhere ever. I dream about making it official and marrying it, I love it so very much.)
When you don’t see vegan pizza on the menu, you can spit on the floor and leave OR just do what I do and order it with tons of veggies and no cheese. (THEN spit on the floor and leave.) If you have some pizza left over, you are a quitter. Hang your head in shame and then wrap your leftovers in a napkin and stash them in your purse, or your girl’s purse. Later, when you’re leaving, say Kennedy School, and everyone else is suffering from the micro-brew munchies, you can whip out your leftover pizza and chow down. Don’t mind the stares, they are just jealous. Or baffled. But probably jealous. Cheryl?
