Our in flight snack was a wrapped Biscoff cookie (which TC liked, so I gave her mine) and beverages...
I was surprised to see Seagram's ginger ale since I'm so used to seeing the Canada Dry brand. Seeing Seagram's reminded me of one of my dad's favorite alcohols, Seagrams Seven Crown, a blended whiskey. I always thought the Old English lettering was so cool.
TC took this shot as our plane approached the airport...
In the rental car...look at that temp! We are such wimps, ha ha!
Our first stop was a Portland mainstay, Elmer's. There are locations all over the place, but this happened to be closest to the airport. It's int he Parkrose neighborhood on NE Sandy.
As mentioned in the Day 1 Highlights post, I had asked Bert if he wanted "hipster breakfast" or "normal breakfast". In this case, "normal" won out. Last time we were in Portland, we went straight to Pine State Biscuits in the Alberta Arts District. No, we wanted less pricey but more bang for your buck, stick to your ribs, American comfort food, not overpriced sandwiches (good though they were).
Elmer's is known for these:
I'd never had one before and have seen them on other menus as "Dutch Babies". I thought I'd try one but also ordered a potato pancake as a "backup" breakfast, ha ha. Bert ordered a Crab Benedict while TC got my normal go-to breakfast, the Chicken Fried Steak.
The folks working here were so very welcoming and kind. Our server was a young lady who had a cute pair of mini waffle earrings. It turns out that her mother made them for her! There were many folks dining, both alone, or in small pairs or groups. There was even a fireplace in here! I happened to watch an elderly lady proudly display her quilt work to her breakfast companion. It was a really lovely piece and I could hear her excitement as she showed her friend her craft.
Our breakfast that morning...God will forgive us for eating meat. Actually Bert had crab, so he technically did not "sin" (ha ha). I had a side of pork sausage with mine while TC had, duh, the chicken.
The pancake looked impressive. Our server suggested having it the traditional way which is with powdered sugar and lemon, plus butter. I declined to have fruit syrup with it (it costs more). I normally don't eat sweet foods for breakfast but I really was curious about this. The pancake itself is baked. I thought it would be more "crisp" all around. Only the curled edges were crisp and the rest of it was...gross and soft and tasted uncooked. I only had one bite and really felt that I was eating raw dough.
I later checked recipes online and Youtube videos and found that it is supposed have a "custard like" consistency in the center. This did not seem custardy to me. Our server saw that I had hardly eaten my pancake and asked what I thought about it. I asked her if it was meant to be t hat way, if that was supposed to be the texture, etc.. She said that a regular couple who dines there orders their pancake 'well done'. Had I known that was a choice, I might have done that. Next time I see it in San Diego, I can ask for it that way and perhaps my impression would be different.
I'm glad that I ordered a potato pancake on the side. This was a sizable pancake, served with a small dollop of sour cream and ramekin of apple sauce. I liked this very much and ended up finishing this off...along with the pork links and scrambled eggs.
Bert's enjoyed his crab benedict with hash browns. He just informed me that there was also Canadian Bacon in here...so I guess he's not off the hook for today, ha ha. I liked his crisp hash browns but my potato pancake was much better.
TC's breakfast was pretty hearty. We had to help her with the CFS itself. The biscuit was overkill too so we passed on that. Her chicken fried steak was pretty juicy and I liked that they did not entirely drown it in gravy.
Overall, a great meal to start the day (apart from the doughy German pancake).
Two businesses down from Elmer's was this thrift store which was one TC's list of "to visit" places. It looks pretty old! We did step inside for a tiny bit to check it out and concluded afterwards that it was kind of crappy and junky inside. Many items were dirty looking too. So, thumbs down for this place.
Elmer's Restaurant, Parkrose
10001 NE Sandy Blvd.
Portland, OR 97220
(503) 256-2150
eatatelmers.com / fb page + reviews from that four lettered site, tripadvisor & TheDailyMeal
Better Bargains Thrift Store
102009 NE Sandy Blvd.
(503) 254-1060
fb page page + reviews from you know where
Feeling satisfied with our breakfasts, we headed out to check out a nearby park...
No comments:
Post a Comment