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by: Erik Wolf
Whether it’s a weekend jaunt to the beach or a conference halfway around the world, food and drink are essential parts of travel. And being away from home is the perfect excuse to indulge your palate – a green light to that second helping of dessert. After all, there really is no better way to experience local customs and people than through cuisine.
In fact, cuisine has always been a strong cultural indicator. In the same way you might associate Rome with pasta, Athens with spanakopita,
champagne with, well, Champagne, you’ll soon be associating Oregon
with its culinary treasures.
And there are plenty. Every day, talented chefs, winemakers, cheesemakers, brewmasters and bakers turn Oregon’s incredible native bounty into unpretentious, mouthwatering, seasonal cuisine that speaks to all five human senses (in fact, culinary art is the only art form to do so). And it’s available all over the state, from countryside wine tasting rooms to high-desert restaurants to brew pubs overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Oregon continues to attract ambitious culinary talent from near and far. Folks, it seems, are discovering what native Portlander and food missionary James Beard realized years ago: that Oregon is ripe for the picking when it comes to culinary treasures.
For starters, Oregon’s wine industry is just a few decades old and already producing varietals that outshine some of the world’s best. Upon last count, there are nearly 300 wineries in Oregon, and the state’s 11 viticultural areas produce 40-plus varietals, including Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Syrah, Chardonnay and the list goes on. From the Willamette Valley to the Rogue Valley, many wineries open their doors year-round to the public, inviting novices and connoisseurs alike to taste what could be the best vintages yet.
Wine isn’t the only product putting Oregon on the global culinary map. Next time you see a perfectly shaped, unblemished juicy Bartlett or Anjou pear on the dessert tray, let your mind wander to Hood River Valley or the scenic Rogue River Valley near Medford in Southern Oregon. Chances are your luscious pear calls one of these valleys home, since Oregon produces much of the nation’s pear crop. (Oregon’s 370 pear growers produce about 800 million pears each year, making it Oregon’s number one fruit crop). In Oregon you’ll also find apples, peaches, cherries, strawberries, marionberries, blueberries and huckleberries – there are even cranberry bogs near the Southern Oregon coast.
All this variety provides perfect fodder for local bakers and chefs.
Stephanie Pearl Kimmel, executive chef and owner of March restaurant in Eugene, has been known to complement pears with another crop that has made Oregon cuisine famous – the hazelnut (Oregon grows 99% of the U.S. supply of this buttery nut). Kimmel’s seasonal Pacific Northwest menu features premier Oregon products, including the “world’s best blue cheese” from Rogue Creamery (it won the blue ribbon at the 2003 World Cheese Competition in London).
On a larger production scale, Oregon is home to Tillamook Creamery, located in the north coast town of – you guessed it – Tillamook. Each year, the creamery hosts nearly one million visitors, many of whom come for a taste of that famous cheddar or a two-scoop cone of its decadent ice cream (our favorite flavor is the fresh Oregon strawberry). Also at the coast is a great selection of restaurants that specialize in the catch of the day, whether it’s Dungeness crab, salmon, albacore tuna, shrimp, sole, halibut, clams or all of the above. And there are a slew of intimate cooking schools in Astoria, Cannon Beach and other charming towns, that offer day classes for anyone interested in learning how to fillet wild salmon or prepare the perfect crab cake.
But you’re going to need something to wash this all down. Lucky for you, Oregon is also famous for its brews. In fact, the state is the microbrew capital of the country with nearly 55 brewing companies. Thirty-three of these are nestled in the Portland metro area (that’s more than any other metro area in the world!). This all translates to a huge selection of craft beers, many of which you can only get here in Oregon. Why Oregon? The ingredients are practically on the front doorstep. Oregon is number two in the country when it comes to hop growing, and it’s in the top ten in barley production.
Oregonians take great pride in the state’s cuisine, and it’s nowhere more apparent than in the following sections. Here you will find a taste of Oregon’s unique and memorable experiences in taste and travel, from wine festivals and roadside jam stands to classic diners and award-winning restaurants. So sit back and prepare your five senses for an unforgettable journey of a lifetime.
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Dang's Thai Kitchen | [Lake Oswego - Oregon - United States] |
| August 11 | ||
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Nutshell | [Portland - Oregon - United States] |
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Trebol | [Portland - Oregon - United States] |
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Lincoln Restaurant | [Portland - Oregon - United States] |
| July 09 | ||
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Vault Martini Bar | [Portland - Oregon - United States] |
| July 06 | ||
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The Pfeiffer Cottage Inn | [Albany - OR - USA] |
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Youngberg Hill Vineyards & Inn | [McMinnville - OR - USA] |
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Yamhill Vineyards Bed and Breakfast | [Yamhill - OR - USA] |
by: Erik Wolf
Cascadian Cuisine is a new comprehensive umbrella term that more accurately encompasses all the food and drink in the region that is defined as the U.S. States of Oregon, Idaho and Washington, the Canadian Province of British Columbia, and the very northern part of California. The name “Cascadian” originates from the Cascade Mountain range that bisects Oregon, Washington and part of British Columbia.
Throughout this region, outstanding cuisine is a result of high-quality local ingredients and produce, including seafood, berries, wines, beers, meats, mushrooms and other treasures. The Cascadian region is agriculturally integrated, and its geography creates a largely closed system. The region does not grow foods like avocadoes, oranges & almonds, but several food items, such as hazelnuts and truffles, are unique to the area.
Geologists and farmers alike will testify that this geographic region is represented by the well-known fact that it shares a common watershed (and therefore foodshed) that begins in Western Montana/Alberta (west of the Missouri River), runs all the way to the Pacific Ocean, and extends south into Northern California and well into British Columbia. The Cascadia Institute of Seattle, the Salmon Center and other organizations recognize this watershed as the “Cascadian Bioregion.” This watershed is the basis of the region’s unique culture, agriculture and cuisine, and represents a geographic area and food diversity larger than the region and cuisine typically associated with the term “Pacific Northwest.”
Historical precedents link the region’s pieces together. When Native Americans populated this area, two primary groups of tribes existed: those living in and around the Cascade Mountains (and valleys) and those living in the high desert. The two groups traded together and intermingled closely. J.M.R. Le Jeune’s “Chinook Rudiments,” published in 1924, describes the Chinook jargon that was used as the “International Language of the Pacific Coast, from Northern California to Alaska, from the Pacific Ocean to the Rocky Mountains.” The Rocky Mountains were a formidable barrier, as was the Pacific Ocean. There was much less intermingling and trade with other Native American tribes elsewhere, such as the Central Plains (e.g. Nebraska) or Southwest (e.g. Arizona). The “Chinook Ilahaee” region (Land of the Chinook speakers) now perfectly matches the demarcated “borders” of the Cascadian Bioregion (as defined by the Cascadian Institute).
While the term “Cascadian Cuisine” may be new to you, there is an agricultural, cultural, historical and anthropological precedent to the unification of the region’s culinary offerings. Food is a unique manifestation of culture, and it embodies not just a people’s indigenous foods, but its history, cooking techniques and recipes, and favorite dishes and beverages. As you’re traveling through this region, keep these local favorites in mind: grilled wild salmon in a fennel sauce, marionberry cobbler, Country Natural Beef tenderloin in a Pinot Noir reduction, buffalo steak, and huckleberry margaritas.
Cascadian Cuisine embodies the Fresh, Local, Organic, Sustainable and Seasonal (FLOSS) approach that is indicative of market-driven and ingredient-driven cuisine for which the region is known. While “Cascadian” applies to restaurants offering locally-inspired menus, the term also works for quick service and ethnic restaurants if they use unique, locally-sources ingredients. Examples are Burgerville for quick service, or Typhoon in Portland, a Thai restaurant that uses classic Northwest ingredients in its Thai cooking.
by: Erik Wolf
Oregon sits on a gold mine of ingredients, and chefs from all over are catching on.
The state is ripe with culinary experiences. In the Willamette Valley, you can walk into a winery and taste an unreleased pinot noir straight from the barrel. At the coast, you can sip a creamy stout on the deck of an oceanfront brewpub while watching a fleet of flat-bottomed Dory boars return from the Pacific. And in a Portland restaurant, you might just see a local mushroom hunter wander in holding a matsutake the size of your head (and a small sack of chanterelles) ready to wow the chef de cuisine.
While most food elsewhere travels some 1500 miles (2400 km) from source to plate, Oregon sits on a gold mine of fresh, local, organic, sustainable and seasonal products ready for the picking. At last count there were 734 vineyards supplying grapes to 303 wineries all over the state. Oregon grows 99% of North America’s hazelnut supply, has the country’s most prolific winter pear crop, is second in the U.S. in hops production, and provides salmon, Dungeness crab and other coveted ingredients to local restaurants and markets.
None of this is lost on Oregon’s ever-growing community of culinary talent. Chef John Eisenhart, who worked alongside Mario Batali in New York, says he moved to Portland because he couldn’t pass up the organic meats and produce from this region. Today, he buys from local purveyors and micro-farmers, and features organic fish, meat and produce in his menu at downtown Portland’s Pazzo Ristorante.
Oregon is chock full of brewmasters, artisan cheesemakers, chocolatiers and distillers who also use regional, or Cascadian, ingredients in their culinary art. Chef Vitaly Paley of Portland’s Paley’s Place says he tries to get all his ingredients within a 150-mile (240 km) radius. Eisenhart and Paley are part of a larger, regional way of thinking about food that involves local ingredients, and shared cooking techniques and methods. This Cascadian Cuisine (named for the iconic mountain range that promotes incredible growing conditions) describes a culinary movement that stretches from Oregon to Washington and British Columbia.
Even the Northwest’s bigger companies – Tillamook Creamery, Burgerville, Kettle Foods – share the local ingredient philosophy in the cheeses, milkshakes, burgers and potato chips they produce. And there are entire retail wine shops, cheese shops and other stores (Made in Oregon, Harry and David) dedicated to showcasing Oregon’s bounty.
As you make your way through Foodtrekker’s Oregon pages, you’ll see that Oregon has a lot to offer in the way of unique and memorable experiences in taste, travel and adventure.
[ Louisiana : USA ]
Portland Metro
[ Oregon : USA ]
Greater New Oreleans
[ Louisiana : USA ]
Willamette Valley
[ Oregon : USA ]