What to do in Portland, Oregon in January

I am someone who consistently checks flight prices for places Adam and I are wanting to go, and this past July it really paid off! I scored really cheap flights from the Dallas Love Field Airport to PDX in Portland, Oregon, a place Adam and I have both wanted to go for quite some time now. It fell during a slower time for both of us at work and we were able to book a hotel in downtown/the pearl district so we would be in the middle of it all!

As we were planning we noticed a lack of things to do during winter months/the end of the holiday season. A lot of our friends asked why we would go somewhere so far north in January when it might snow or be really cold in general. After visiting I can say that January was a BEAUTIFUL time to visit, and if you are ever able I would definitely recommend! We had an absolute blast, and the weather was perfect. If you are looking to visit Portland, Oregon during January, or maybe just in the winter in general, here is a brief schedule of what we did and why you should check it out. It is important to note that we based a lot of things/scheduling on location and hours they are open, as well as our own jet-lag from the time difference.

Thursday, January 2:

We landed at 10:45 PM PCT, but we could not help but make a run to VooDoo Donuts before calling it a night. There was one within .2 of a mile from our hotel so we walked over and brought some back. We chose:

• High Tea - earl grey frosting with hibiscus drizzle
• The Homer - strawberry frosting with sprinkles

Both delicious! The Homer was a classic and the high tea was both tasty and original. It is important to note that our hotel was the Courtyard Marriott in City Center, so we really were at the heart of everything. It is a beautiful hotel and a great location for visitors without a car!

Friday, January 3:

Around 9:30 AM we headed to Blue Star Donuts! There are quite a few Blue Stars around Portland, so we settled on one that was on the way to a bus station. We enjoyed trying:

• Blueberry Basil Bourbon
• Traditional Buttermilk Old-Fashioned
• Raspberry Buttermilk Old-Fashioned
• Coconut Creme Brulee 

As well as a cup of Blue Star coffee! Wow-oh-wow were these donuts good! An agreed favorite being the blueberry basil bourbon for both its uniqueness and just how good it was in general.

We hopped on one of the TriMet buses after purchasing a day pass and rode it all the way to the Oregon Zoo drop off. This gave us a chance to sit back and really look at Portland through the bus windows and all the areas we went to. We passed even the Japanese Garden on the bus which was our intended end destination, so it gave us a pretty good idea of the general direction we would need to head in.

We looked up a trail through Washington Park that lead us from the zoo to the Japanese Gardens and took off! It was a 2 mile hike with a lot of beauty along the way. This was Adam and I's favorite part of the trip. It was a beautiful 50-55F outside, it was slightly overcast so the sun was not beating down all day, and the views were just beautiful. Going up and down the hills on a Friday meant there weren't many people out and about, and our hike took from 11am-1pm with all of the fun photo-stops we made.

Once we made it to the Japanese Gardens (maybe around 1pm?) we took a breather to meditate and really enjoy the gardens. From the bridge, the water fall, the zen gardens, peaceful benches, and a great view of Mt. Hood we both left feeling like we'd really gotten to see a small part of Japanese history. The garden is known as being the most accurate Japanese garden in the USA to a real garden in Japan, and it had a lot of spots to stop and read about why certain pieces were there or positioned in a certain way. 

Flash forward to about 3:00 pm. We finished walking around the Japanese Garden (and the gift shop), walked down to see the sadly empty Rose Gardens, and waited for our Uber to take us to our next stop. We landed on Boxer Ramen back in Down-town, and what a lucky find! It was incredible! The pork was so tender and full of flavor, the broth was delicious, Adam and I both agreed it was hands down the best ramen we've ever had. We both tried the Tonkatsu-Shio (our go-to) and I can't recommend it enough. For reference I've tried that same dish in Houston, Plano, Denver, and Disney's Animal Kingdom, but nothing hit the level Boxer Ramen's did.

After finishing the best ramen we've ever had Adam and I decided to browse a few stores. After grabbing a cup of coffee at Stumptown we popped into a local thrift shop, some of the stores in the same area as Boxer Ramen, and finally we made our way to the famous Powell's City of Books. Powell's is the largest book store in the country, taking up an entire block in the city of Portland. It is incredible, with so many different wings and an extremely organized system. They had every book I could have ever imagined and to be honest I was overwhelmed with both joy and indecisiveness. Adam found a book he came in hoping to look for, and on that first day I left pretty much empty handed.

We walked to Deschutes Brewery from there to use the restroom and grab something to drink. Deschutes Brewery is a Portland treat with plenty of different brews to try, as well as wine, whiskey, and a hard seltzer. We tried the Garlic Fries topped with orange and basil aoili, a Black Butte Whiskey with ice for me, and a Brewer's Choice Tray for Adam. The tray included:

• Couch Surf Kolsch
• Swedish Coffee Break (even I liked this one)
• Common Have a Pint
• Altbierior Motive
• Jolabokaflod
• Dank Cake Stout

The Swedish Coffee Break was a favorite we both enjoyed, and Adam also really liked the Jolabokaflod. The whiskey was smooth and had a unique flavor. It was described to be a collaboration of a malt whiskey from the wash of Deschutes Black Butte Porter beer. The fries were a great addition but made for a pretty heavy side that we both had trouble finishing.

After a fun few hours out and about we made our way back to the hotel to shower and change out of our hiking gear. Once we were gussied up (and a bit less full from Deschutes) we did not know where we wanted to go or what we wanted to do. We debated the typical tourist spots like the Whiskey Lounge (very pricey), Doug Fir Lounge (pretty far away), Ground Kontrol, etc. As we were walking we saw a place lit up that looked fun and just walked in. That is how we found the Pine Street Market, a wonderful place with lots of different restaurants shoved in. It was like being back in college but with better food and alcohol! Adam grabbed a slice of marinara pizza from Checker Board Pizza and an Abiss Mimosa while I relaxed with a glass of wine. After he finished we tried some Pork Steam Buns from Kim Jong's Smokehouse and we ventured to split a Dream Sickly beverage. After some great conversation in a pretty fun atmosphere we capped the night with ice cream from Wiz-Bang, which exclusively serves Salt n' Straw ice cream. 

Saturday, January 4th:

After breakfast we walked around the corner to Cacao, a fancy chocolate shop that features several different hot chocolates. Adam and I both tried what they described as their European Flight, including 3 small cups of very thick hot chocolate. The flavors were dark chocolate, dark chocolate with cinnamon, and spicy dark chocolate. They were all really tasty, but Adam and I both liked cinnamon the best! We browsed around the chocolate shop a bit and managed to bring home a lavender dark chocolate as well as a mango white chocolate bar to try later.

After leaving Cacao we made our way to Wild Roots Tasting Room. This was across the bridge so we took the opportunity to walk past China Town, see the Portland Stag sign, and really take in the view of Portland at the water front. It was absolutely breathtaking.

We slept in a little and left the hotel around 9:30 AM (mind you this translates as 11:30 AM in CST). We knew we wanted to go to Cacao, but we also wanted to stop somewhere for breakfast. Blue Star donuts was sort of on the way to Cacao, but we passed several places serving breakfast, including Stumptown coffee, along the way. We saw a place called Kenny & Zukes Delic... and thought it was worth a try. Little did we know it would end up being our favorite meal of the trip! Kenny&Zukes is a Jewish themed restaurant with a menu full of wonderful food including fresh bagels, matzah, flatkas, and so much more! The pastrami was insanely good, but truly all of it was really good! We ordered:

• ​Matzah Brei - crackers soaked and re-baked in egg with cinnamon and sugar
• 222 - Pastrami, Latkas (like a 'potato biscuit' is how Adam describes them), eggs over easy, and rye toast
• 2 Coffees (of course)

They were also really nice and complimented my hat, so I couldn't help but try to get a picture in it. 

Once we made it over to the Wild Roots Tasting Room we were in for a real treat! My dad's favorite vodka brand is Wild Roots and you can almost only get it in Oregon. He loves the Marionberry, which is a classic in our eyes because it is the first one we ever tried. It has a thick texture to it, which is not common for any other vodka I have ever tried. We took a chance and did a Spirit Flight and a Cocktail Flight, that way we could each try them stand alone as well as in a drink.The Spirit Flight Included:

• Raspberry Infused Vodka
• Marionberry Infused Vodka
• Huckleberry Infused Vodka
• Pear Infused Vodka
• Dark Sweet Cherry Infused Vodka

The Cocktail Flight Included:

• Hot Cobbler (Hot buttered rum mixture and Peach Infused Vodka)
• Frozen Hot Chocolate (Frozen Chocolate Slushie and house infused Candy Cane Vodka)
• Autumn Freeze (Frozen Apple Cider Slushie and Cranberry Infused Vodka)
• Chai Cream (Smith Tea Chai, cream soda, and Apple & Cinnamon Infused Vodka)
• Refresher (Club soda and huckleberry infused vodka)

Needless to say, they were all really good. Adam loved the pear infused vodka and my favorite drink was the Hot Cobbler. We ended up taking a few bottles home (although if I could go back I think I would get others just to have them).

After Wild Roots we headed back towards down town to give me another shot at finding a book or two at Powell's. This time I left with two books and Adam picked up a second one as well. It was less crowded and we had a better sense of which rooms held which books. We even took a second to stop by the Pearl room, or the "Rare Book" section. These books range in prices of $150 - Thousands of dollars. These we just wanted to look at out of curiosity, but we also made a point to go to every wing this time. I think we may have even spent over an hour there before we left to look at other shops!

We worked our way through the streets with rain off and on until we settled on grabbing lunch at Bamboo, a sushi restaurant in the area. We debated what we would do next there. Maybe see a movie at The Living Room Theatre nearby, stop by the Curious Comedy Club to see their improv group perform, or one of the many other interesting things we saw advertised on other blogs or in general. As we talked we ordered:

• Chef's Choice Steam Buns (beef&kimchi)
• Tuna Sashimi
• Mackerel Sashimi

​And here is a picture of Adam with a statue of bikes we took before we made it to Cacao. Random, but I really like it!

Since we did not manage to get a picture of our ice cream the night before we felt like we could not miss a chance to stop by Ruby Jewel for another sweet treat. We ordered:

• Double chocolate cookie sandwich with gingerbread ice cream
• 2 Scoops caramel coffee ice cream

And holy cow were they good! The gingerbread ice cream had such a strong molasses flavor, it was awesome! 

As we wrapped up we headed back to the hotel room in a light drizzle and ended up talking, hanging out, and reading our new books in the hotel for several hours. By the time we looked up and realized what time it was, we knew we needed to start packing up for our early flight the next day. We didn't sweat it though. Feeling a little hungry now we ordered room service. Creme Brulee French Toast, Eggs, Bacon, a beer for Adam and a glass of wine for me gave us the perfect chance to relax and end what was already a great trip on a high note. The Courtyard Marriott in City Center's room service is impeccable if you are ever staying there.

Sunday, January 5th: 

A 6:45 AM flight had us leaving the hotel around 4:00 AM, but we really didn't mind. We even stopped by the airport Blue Star Donuts to get our fill before we left. A Pina Colada Old Fashioned Donut, a Chocolate Almond Ganache Donut, and an Apple Brandy Crumble Cake Donut left us feeling more full than I think we have ever felt. We also realized that there was a Deschutes Brewery and several other "Portland" or "Oregon" spots in the airport someone visiting could check out if they did not get the chance to during their main visit.

Overall we had an incredible time in Portland. With the fun nature-side (and honestly so much we did not explore) as well as the great food and fun vibes of the city itself I can't wait for the chance to go back. We didn't even do half of the things we could have, but I wanted to share for anyone traveling there, especially in the winter months, looking for fun stops and things to do. Coming from Oklahoma the weather was beautiful, a consistent flow between 40-55 Fahrenheit (much nicer than the 22-60 Fahrenheit fluctuations in Oklahoma).