Sugar High

So now that we have 'officially' opened the doors, and sentenced ourselves to early mornings and long hours making goodies such as fried egg sandwiches with homemade pear-butter and Gorgonzola, machiattos, strawberry-sour cream ice cream, and vanilla malts, one might begin to wonder when and how we will make time to go out and have fun. Well to be quite honest, we haven't yet had much of a problem in the fun department. In all honesty, we have been so jazzed about finally being able to serve our food to real people, that we feel like celebrating all the time.

For example, last night we had the great pleasure to dine out with a couple of our friends, a sort of sampling of some of our favorite North Portland eateries. The night began at Por Que No Taqueria, where we dined upon a fantastic array of foods, including fresh guac and spicy cucumber chips, various tacos (all wonderful), fresh liquados, and margaritas. After our meal we rolled up the street to check out Junior Ambassadors, an orange food cart that was first recommended to us by our good friend David. Curious to check out what other ice cream-heads are up to, we were very sad when we arrived at the cart to discover that we were too late, and it was closed (we'll be sure to come back again soon). Still craving something sweet, we decided to head to nearby Pix Patisserie, an amazing dessert inspired restaurant that is so well thought out, that the wallpaper used in the background on their website matches that which adorns the walls in their restaurant.

At Pix we met Jobie, a very knowledgeable server/chef/foodie who informed us of a brunch thang he has been working on every Sunday, at the Pix outpost located on SE 34th and Division. For me to try to describe his brunch menu would only do injustice to the creativity of thought that he has put into the whole thing, but I will say it sounds fantastic, and anyone looking to try something new and unique should go...now. And please, tell us more about the food, 'cause it could be a little while before we are able to get away from the cafe on a Sunday morning.
At Pix, I was finally able to try a flavor combination that had first been explained to me earlier in the day by our friend Travis. The recipe is simple, and combines three elements I love: coffee, beer, and ice cream. When I saw that Pix advertised a beer float on their menu, I knew I might just be able to sweet talk our server into throwing a couple of shots of espresso into the mix, thus completing the treat that I had been fantasizing about all day long. Of course Jobie was even kind enough to let me sub Hair of the Dog's Adam for the standard Rogue brew they normally pair with their house-made mocha ice cream (I'm picky I know). The end result was out of this world, and many thanks to Jobie for letting me have my way with the beer selection (Adam has many chocolate and coffee-like notes already, and proved to be a great pairing with the espresso and ice cream). The perfect way to end a great night of eating, and an even better night out with some good friends.
So you see, its not all work and no play for us. We still make time for ourselves, especially when good food is involved.