This is my final Feast 2014 recap. This year, Feast Portland added a new Main event, which in retrospect to me seems so obvious: Tillamook Brunch Village! Portland does love brunch!
Despite being four hours long, I definitely felt the 4 days of eating catching up to me, and I knew there was no way I was going to make it to visit all 12 chefs who were brunching it up for us during this event, even with its reasonable start of of basically lunch time (11 AM – 2 PM). I took a very leisurely approach. Also, because I was moving slower, though still taking mental notes for my recap of Tillamook Brunch Village that I knew I would be writing…
One thing I’ve learned from food festivals is that things that are popular are going to have a line, and if you think you can wait until there’s no line, you can take that risk… but you also risk that the chef will run out. I knew right away I needed to hit Aaron Franklin. But, there’s no reason to just go directly in line without some nourishment first! I went to the first chef I saw that had no line. and I added the additional filter that I wanted it to be someone who was not a Portland chef, which happened as it turned out, happened to be Butcher & Bee.
Greg Marks and Chelsey Conrad of Butcher & Bee, traveling in from Charleston, SC brought some southern hug for your tummy via Smoked lamb neck, Geechie Boy grits, okra and harissa jus.
I was tempted by some cold brewed Stumptown coffee but worried it might ruin my palate, I decided I was ready to wait in line for you Aaron.
And, the wait was soooo worth it for the Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue miracle from Austin, TX of Brisket! Breakfast Taco! With charred salsa and Valentina’s Tex Mex tortillas!
And the brisket was hand sliced for you by Aaron himself. SQQQQUEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeee…..
Yes, I’ve judged BBQ about 10 times or so for PNWBA and I can without a doubt say this was the best brisket I have ever had. I forced myself to tear my eyes away from Aaron and look at the brisket and tried not to take too blurry of a picture as I shook with excitement at looking at all the juicyness. Seriously, I was wigging out.
I was reluctant to ruin the brisket with the sauce and avocado because I wanted to just taste it on its own, but this was Aaron’s vision so I accepted it.
I’m pretty sure I might have just disappeared on Spicy Bee and Ktams mid-conversation… I’m sorry! It was a lifetime food memory that needed to be captured immediately! Foodportunity called! I did go back looking for you… and then directly proceeded to the Bloody Mary Bar. I’m a terrible person.
Ha ha you can’t tell as you are reading this when I’m done, but I totally had to take a break after writing about this brisket and continue writing on another day.
I knew I couldn’t eat another bite so soon after that heavenly experience, so I decided to go for a drink. I climbed up the steps to the Whole Foods tent where Derek Johnson of Urban Farmer provided the Bloody Mary base.
Then it was off to the Whole Foods Bloody Mary Garnish Bar that included 25 some hot sauces including Marshalls Haute Sauce‘s Serrano Ginger Lemongrass and Red Chili Lime, half a dozen pickled items including the pickled Beatnik Beets from Unbound Pickling that are pickled with pomegranate and chai spice, smoked chicken wings and mini drumsticks, smoked oysters, various charcuterie from Olympic Provisions (I eat it so much that I can identify OP charcuterie almost immediately), Firefly kimchee, several Tillamook cheeses, bacon, and more various veggies for your skewer or directly into your glass…
The result:
I returned to the big tent, where I was shocked at the generous bite / whole breakfast that Black Seed Bagels had brought all the way from New York and freshly made in the oven of Duane Sorenson at Roman Candle. The Black Seed Bagel is a famous mash up of both a New York bagel and a Montreal bagel. Having been to both those cities in the past 6 months, I appreciated that the Black Seed bagel is soft like a New York style bagel but had the sweet melt in your mouth insides like a Montreal bagel.
Walt Alexander, Kevin Atchley, and Brian Snyder from Pine State Biscuits pleased the crowds with their classic Chatham biscuit sandwich with fried chicken, bacon and cheese topped with apple butter. I photographed but did not partake myself since I’ve enjoyed Pine State Biscuits for years, and didn’t want to take one of those biscuit sandwiches away from others who have not previously enjoyed.
The same with another local favorite Lisa Schroeder of Mother’s Bistro & Bar who was the consummate professional and mother who never ran out and was superfast at doling out her delicious buttermilk biscuits with sausage gravy to nourish the hungry masses. Also, was it me or did she look even younger than when I saw her just in June…
The other big line besides that for Aaron Franklin was for Alvin Cailan of Eggslut from Los Angeles, CA. Eggslut impressed with both taste, presentation, and threw in a little audience interaction with Kimchee fried rice with Coddled Egg served in a silver tin that you would cover and shake up to break the egg and mix it in with the rice. I feel no shame at all that after a few bites I took my tin AND my friend’s tin home so I could eat it later for dinner.
As the line for Eggslut wound around 1/3 of the tent, you couldn’t help but go by the Rosé Garden where 3 wineries offered tastes of their Rosé wine, including as pictured here Columbia Winery and not pictured Hawks View.
After that delicious Eggslut dish, the beverage from Widmer Brothers Brewing and King Estate Wines who came together for the Hefemosa with Widmer Brothers Hefe, Orange Juice, and King Estate 2008 Blanc de Gris really hit the spot.
And it worked well with the offering of Ethan Powell from The Parish who had a take on a fried ball of Shrimp and Grits and Quail Egg.
Umm… I don’t know where this came from. I swear it was also from The Parish. Does anyone know?
Then it was time to go sweet, starting with Teresa Sasse, Puddin’ River Chocolates & Wine Bar commuted in from Canby with her Salted Caramel Apple Bread Puddin’
A palate cleanser as Bendistillery brought a Pina Picante cocktail to help show off their spicy Crater Lake pepper vodka. And spicy things help kick up your metabolism right?!
Josh Gregory, of Maggie’s on the Prom from Seaside, OR represented the Oregon Coast with Razor claim ceviche with huckleberries and hazelnuts and housemade kale chip
Mark Linebarger from Baldwin Saloon in The Dalles impressed with a Castle of Gorge nut bars filled with truffles and other sweet pastries in a beautiful presentation.
Tillamook, the awesome named sponsor of Brunch Village, gave everyone both the healthy and unhealthy options of yogurt with berries and granola or a sour cream and cheddar biscuit with a big smear of Tillamook compound butter (choice of fresh basil, garlic herb, or brown sugar masala). Guess what I went with.
I washed down my butter and biscuit with Deschutes and a pour of beer Cultivateur, a collaboration between the Bend and Portland brewers of a saison aged in Pinot Casks with Brett.
I didn’t try this myself as I was waddling at this point, but Duff Goldman of Charm City Cakes West brought Gingerbread Waffle with Cinnamon Whipped Cream and Candied Pecans from Los Angeles.
I never made it to visit Aaron Silverman and Mark Cockcroft of Tails & Trotters, and by the time I got to Adam Sappington of The Country Cat he had run out of his cinnamon buns topped with bacon pieces. Oh well. I also never had a single Bon Apetit cocktail! Time just flew by! At least Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte helped me finish with happy bubbles thanks to their Brut Rose
One of the new sponsors this year, Dave’s Killer Bread, killed it by presenting every day new ideas on how to enjoy their bread. I had shared 2 chef recipes they had from Jenn Louis (with Hazel on a Mission with ricotta, fig, hazelnut and salt on Sprouted Wheat) and BJ Smith (with a Yellow Submarine with deviled egg salad, smoked tuna, and pickled mustard on 21 Whole Grains) at my Oregon Grand Bounty Tasting on Friday and Saturday Recap.
They were at it again at the Brunch Village where they presented both a sweet and savory recipe from their own in house chef! The Pesto-Change-o is simple basil pesto with heirloom tomatoes and an extra touch of capers to make this fancy enough to serve at your next wine party, while the Rad-berry Cocoa-nut is a dessert option with nutella, fresh berries, and coconut flake. For more recipes check out the recipes and interviews with the chefs at Dave’s Killer Bread Feast!
More coffee? Grab some Sorbenots Coffee and it’s time to go after a 4 hour brunch.
Like all of the Feast events, the net proceeds of the dinner went towards ending childhood hunger in Oregon through Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon and Share Our Strength.
This is my fourth recap of my adventures at Feast: my first was for the Oregon Grand Bounty Tasting on Friday and Saturday and my second was for the Sandwich Invitational, and then I did one for the State of the Art dinner.
For more recaps of the Brunch Village, check out some of my fellow bloggers’ posts like Ladies in Navy and Salt. Water. Coffee. and Cooking with B.S. and Love Rachel and In the Pink and Green!
Disclosure: I was granted a Blogger Pass for Feast Portland 2014 for blog post and social media coverage but I am not otherwise being compensated. I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.
