Thingsaroundpdx
Food
Tao of Tea - Fee required to enter the Lan Su Chinese Garden where the tea house is located ... for a full flight of tea plan on 2-3 hours.
Townshend's Tea - Several locations throughout Portland, though their Alberta Street location has the most comfy easy chairs to relax in whilst enjoying your tea. Any of the 70+ types of loose leaf tea on their menu are available to buy and brew later.
Tea Zone - Organic tea cafe with a small cocktail bar inside. A downtown oasis for tea lovers who don't want to wander through the Chinese garden.
Andina Restaurant - Novoperuvian cuisine. The quinoa fried chicken is a must sample. Save room for their trio of housemade chocolates dessert.
Batter Up - Tastiest Waffles in the world. This is John and Terri's favourite food truck!
Pepper Box Cafe In Portland you can not find good Mexican food .. but you can find good New Mexican food.
Santeria - Not great Mexican but still pretty good if you're having a hankering for it, need late night food downtown (open until 2 AM) or you're looking for reasonably priced eats with seating vs. a food truck. Lots of options for vegetarians and vegans. Located at SW Ankeny right across from Bailey's Taproom. They deliver to Bailey's, too, if you are in the mood for beer and tacos.
Salt & Straw - Everyone's going to tell you tales about donuts, but the actually delicious weird Portland food is ice cream!
Podnah's Pit - Incredible barbecue. Get the Pit Boss and share with a friend. The Texas Caviar is also excellent.
Mother's Bistro - Terrific breakfasts and nice comfort food dinners. Reservations recommended.
John Street Cafe - If you're out for the day to look at the St. John's Bridge and Cathedral Park, stop in at the John Street Cafe for brunch. When you're ready for coffee, head to Anna Banana's, the local place, for a great cup of joe. The food and the view from the park are well worth the drive.
Little Bird - New French cuisine with more reasonable prices than its sister restaurant Le Pigeon. Reservations needed and available via OpenTable.
Pok Pok - Everyone will tell you to head here for the wings. They're right, but the whole menu is filled with lovely pan-South Asian fusion cuisine. Reservations only available for parties of 6+ and definitely needed.
Screen Door - The French Toast for this place is legendary. Expect a line. No reservations. If you're interested in a memorable brunch, well worth the wait.
Tin Shed Garden Cafe - Mellow breakfast place with outdoor patio. Pooches welcome to dine with you if they are well behaved. Lots of options for vegetarians and vegans, too. Stroll along Alberta after breakfast for fun boutiques, record stores and tons of independent cafes serving home made baked goods.
Woodlawn Coffee - The coffee is fantastic but the treats are even better. The gluten free coffee cake is simply not to be missed, especially during berry season. You can work here from your laptop for hours and no one will mind.
Breakside Brewery - Right next door to Woodlawn Coffee, this brewpub features creative and tasty microbrews, including their Aztec with peppers and cinammon. Even more enticing for the deep fried pickles.
McMenamins - The McMenamin family specialize in acquiring interesting old buildings and turning them into brewpubs. Food selection is typically limited though delicious - you go for the ambiance. Several locations have full separate bars so restaurant sections are perfect for family dining. Locations worth mentioning include the Kennedy School (with hotel rooms available in refurbished classrooms and on-site movie theatre), the Crystal Ballroom (featuring live bands) and the Baghdad Cafe (also a theatre, in the city's highly walkable Hawthorne District).
Burgerville - If you need food in a hurry, head to Burgerville. Specializing in local, Pacific Northwest meats and produce, this small chain's speciality items include their salmom burger and berry shakes/smoothies during berry season. The marionberry smoothie is only available for a few weeks and well worth a visit. They take sustainability seriously, with entirely compostable packaging for their products.
Blossoming Lotus - Vegan and raw food so good that confirmed carnivores eat here regularly.
Entertainment
Darcelle XV Showplace - Darcelle XV & Company have been entertaining audiences in all walks of life for over 37 years with Las Vegas-style cabaret revues of Glitz, Glamour and Comedy. Stop by when you are in Portland and you will be glad that you did!
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry - Tons of hands on exhibits for kids with a super cool submarine and rotating exhibits. Lots of parking nearby but also easily accessible via transit.
Oregon Zoo - The animal enclosures are spacious and the zoo prides itself on all the greenery throughout the property. They have a super cute endangered piglet, too! Easily accessible via the Max.
Alberta Arts District - Tons of restaurants, brewpubs, boutique shops with locally made goods and independent cafes. They even have a record shop and a place to buy classic musical instruments. If you're in town on the last Thursday of the month, check out the evening street fair. They'll have fire dancers performing.
Hawthorne District - Home of vintage shopping, Powell's Home and Garden Books and tons of dining options. Highly walkable neighborhood is just fun to wander around in and people watch. Head to Harlow for fresh squeezed juices and refreshing vegetarian fare.
Check out Travel Portland for details on all of Portland's neighborhoods, e.g. downtown or the Division, and fun things to do in each.
Outdoors
Columbia gorge & Multnomah falls - Beautiful scenic area with many short hikes, as well as scenic viewpoints and waterfalls visible directly from the road. Terri particularly likes the super short walk to Latourell falls.
Seaside, OR and Cannon Beach, OR - a couple of nearby beaches if you'd like to see the coast. They're about 1.5h from Hillsboro. The water is very chilly, but the beach sand is warm. Great places to relax and fly a kite.
Forest Park - a huge natural area in Portland filled with trails (not unlike Ottawa's greenbelt, for the Canadians!). The trails are mostly free, but there is a charge for parking.
The lovely Japanese garden is a great spot for photos, but costs $9.50 for adults.
Perhaps the most popular garden is the International Rose Test Garden, which is free and on a clear day, you can get a nice view of Mount Hood.
Smith and Bybee Wetlands Area - One of the largest urban wetland areas in the United States. Gorgeous for picnics with a few outdoor barbecue pits. You can also swim (or just wade) in the Columbia Slough to cool off if its a hot day (most old Portland buildings have no air conditioning).
Mt. Tabor Park - Huge park with hiking trails, picnic areas and spectacular views located atop a volcanic cinder cone.
Looking for a short trail that's a bit less crowded? The Audobon trail has a little pond and a wild bird care centre.
Pittock mansion has great views of the mountains around Portland: Mount Hood and Mount St. Helen's are the close ones, with Mount Rainier and Mount Adams further out. I've never been in the museum but I hear it's neat!
Shopping
Powell's - Portland's giant independent bookstore has a few locations, but if you want the full experience check out the city-block-o-books downtown. And don't forget, no sales tax in Oregon!
Head for the Lloyd District for mall shopping to take advantage of the no sales tax in Oregon! For fancier versions of shops, go downtown for Nordstrom's, etc. There are discount stores downtown with nice selections, like Nordstrom Rack and Ross.
The Real Mother Goose - Spendy but beautiful handmade goods from Oregonian artisans.
Cascade Station - Your usual strip mall stores, like Target and Best Buy and Ross and Homegooods, but right next to the airport. If you want to do tax free shopping at the last minute, head here before boarding your flight.
Portland is famous for its thrift store shopping. There are a ton of Goodwill stores throughout the city that have terrific selections of clothing, housewares and tchotchkes. If you're feeling up for an adventure, bring some gloves and dig through the bins at the Goodwill Outlet for amazing bargains sold by the pound. It's in Milwaukie, a small town next to Portland, so you'll need to drive there.