Southeast x Northwest

It's hard to believe that it's almost time for Christmas.  As cliché as it sounds the time has blown by since we moved to Oregon this summer.  I have been meaning to write for some time now but have lacked the inspiration to do so, despite that I am living in a new place.  It has been nearly six months since we moved out West, and it has given me some time to reflect.  There are many things I miss about living in the South: the manners, the food, but most of all I miss the people.  In Portland, people don't look you in the eyes as you pass by them on the street, and they most certainly don't say hello.  If they do, you can bet they're from somewhere else.  I've gone through periods of thinking perhaps we'd just go back home as if it never happened and pick up where we left off.  I've been sad a lot, and not because of S.A.D (seasonal affective disorder) but because I sincerely miss having old friends and family close by.  I'm okay now, and I am happy that we did it.  Now, I will never have that nagging feeling of never giving it a try.  We did it; we picked up and moved all the way across the country away from friends and family.

I never thought I would be a South Carolinian, but then I became one in early summer 2007.  I resisted at first, thinking all sorts of judgmental thoughts people from the Old North State have about their neighbors to the South.  I settled in slowly at first but after many years I became ingrained in a community I had once prejudged.  By the time of our big move rolled around this summer I was very sad about saying goodbye to friends we made, and questioned whether this was the going to be the best for us.  We soldiered ahead anyway and day-by-day made our way West with most of our belongings and two cats in tow.  It's been challenging getting used to all of the quirks of Pacific Northwesterners and other transplants like me who inhabit the city of Portland.  It is also challenging getting used to a new place without my husband, who has been traveling almost non-stop since our move.  While he is here we try to take advantage of what the city has to offer, namely the dining. 

Since living out here I've run into people from North and South Carolina countless times while working at Winderlea.  Some people are just visiting and others picked up and moved here for a different way of life.  I've also noticed how many North and South Carolinians there are in the wine business in Oregon, as well as the number of chefs in Portland who hail from these two states.  Six time James Beard Finalist Chef Cathy Whims of Nostrana is from Chapel Hill, NC.  This restaurant has quickly become one of my favorite places to eat in the city, not because of where she's from but because the food is simply amazing.  The wood fired pizzas are fantastic, but what draws me in each visit is her simple, sinful preparations of pasta.  On my last visit, my friend Russell enjoyed the Dungeness crab pizza (which are now in season) and I enjoyed goat-cheese stuffed pappardelle with sage butter sauce and prosciutto.  The time before that, my husband and I split the iconic Nostrana salad made of radicchio, Caesar-style dressing, parmigiano, and rosemary sage croutons and a pasta dish of fettuccine noodles, pork meatballs tossed in a garlic cream sauce.  After lunch was over I promptly went home and took a nap.  Upon doing research I also found another famous Portland Chef John Gorham of Tasty N Sons and Toro Bravo lived in North Carolina at some point too.  Another Carolina connection was made once this summer while having a beer at Bunk Bar on one of my days off.  We met one of the owners Matt Brown, who grew up outside of Fayetteville, North Carolina.  The whole conversation started because I had on an ECU t-shirt on that says "Pirates Have More Fun" and he asked if that was in fact referencing the East Carolina Pirates.  We indeed said yes, and he bought our next round of beers, even though he went to NC State.

The McIsley Chicken Biscuit

Another one of my favorite spots in the city, Pine State Biscuits, is also owned by a trio of guys from North Carolina.  This wildly popular breakfast spot has three locations in Portland, none of which are ever without a line out the door.  They serve lunch and dinner as well, but we have only been for breakfast.  The first time we went I had a sausage biscuit with gravy and a Cheerwine, North Carolina's finest cherry flavored soda.  The next time I had their fried chicken biscuit topped with pickles, honey and grainy mustard, and of course to drink a Cheerwine.  The food is good enough to bring a tear to the homesick girls eye. In fact I was feeling particularly homesick the morning of our second visit and I cried in Pine State Biscuits.  That's right, I actually became weepy in a restaurant because it made me think of the South I had been missing so.

Sausage Biscuit with Sausage Gravy and a Plain Biscuit

The food-obsessed city I now call home has some restaurants I can retreat to when I'm feeling a little homesick.  Along with Pine State Biscuits there is The Screen Door, which is rumored to have some of the best fried chicken in the city, the overhyped Country Cat, and Podnah's Pit.  I haven't yet made it to The Screen Door since every night they're open, there's an hour and a half wait, even from the minute they open.  I dined at Country Cat a few months back and I have to say, I was very disappointed.  I ordered the deviled eggs, which were good and tangy, and also the fried chicken plate.  The plate came with two boneless skinless pieces of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and collard greens.  The collards and the deviled eggs were the two best items

from the meal.  Sadly, the fried chicken wasn't crispy, it was chewy and almost kind of stale in a way.  Because of the open kitchen, I could surmise that they weren't cooking the chicken to order, but rather they were just keeping the chicken warm in a hotel pan by the stove.  I haven't been back since.  I did have a really good meal at Podnah's Pit.  My husband and I split their sampler plate, aptly named the Pit Boss.  It came with brisket, Texas-style sausage, pulled pork, smoked chicken (they were out of pork ribs) cornbread and two sides.  I've read that Podnah's Pit is known for the brisket, but I was blown away by the

Sad Fried Chicken from Country Cat

pulled pork.  I consider myself pretty picky when it comes to the barbecue subject, but they passed.  All of the sauces were great too.  Podnah's offers a South Carolina mustard barbecue sauce, East Carolina vinegar, and a thicker Texas-style barbecue sauce, all to suit your sauce needs. 

The Pit Boss from Podnah's Pit

It is mind-boggling to me there are so many of us North and South Carolinians out here, it's truly hard to believe.   It feels like portions of both states just picked up and settled out here.  I think living out here has made me more Southern than I ever thought possible.  It's kind of hard to explain.  I'm very much looking forward to coming back South for the holidays to see family and friends, but I am so glad we have landed here in Oregon.  We tried for so long to move here but it was never the right time.  They say timing is everything, and this is something I truly have grown to believe.