Continuing on our whirlwind tour of Portland awhile back, my wife and I had our most memorable breakfast at Byways Cafe. Since 1999, they’ve “been serving authentic, yet creative home style meals to people from all over the world! … we’re the diner destination for tourists and locals alike,” boasts their website and after one visit we were sold!

Inside

The inside is a bit kitschy, but in a very Portland kind of way. Antique plates cover the back wall and coffee is served from unique mugs where no two are alike. Speaking of drinks, their cocktail menu had us hooked right away. My wife went with the bloody mary with bacon ($8) and I was immediately drawn to the “chef’s day off” due to the ginger beer. This drink also adds vodka, soda, and orange juice ($8).

Drinks

As for food I went with one of the specials of the day, which seems to be permanent addition to the menu now, the Mt. Tabor Monte Cristo ($12.95). This is a monster that combines grilled ham, turkey, and Havarti into a triple-decker French toast sandwich. I’m glad this was added to the permanent menu as this was outstanding! The raspberry jelly on the side was equally as amazing.

Mt Tabor Monte Cristo

My wife went with the space needle scramble ($9.75) that combines 3 scrambled eggs with onion, spinach, mushroom, tomato, Tillamook cheddar, and a choice of protein. This also was served with a generous portion of fruit on the side. My wife loves Tillamook so this was an easy decision for her and I didn’t hear any complaints. The scramble was packed full of quality ingredients and was very filling.

Space Needle Scramble

The Byways Cafe is not to be missed. This was not only the best breakfast we had, but it was one of the best meals and service we experienced on our entire trip.

My wife and I had a couple of noteworthy restaurant visits during our quick trip to Portland. The first comes from TILT, a small local chain featuring handcrafted food with an emphasis on burgers and sandwiches. We visited with some friends who highly recommended this for our first meal of the trip.

Inside

Inside TILT the feeling is very industrial, and there are even pieces of old manufacturing equipment that the space is built around. The layout is cafeteria style with long counters where orders are placed, quick assembled, and picked up at the end. Draft beer and classic cocktails are also available for ordering at the same time, or there are a couple of bars where drink orders can be placed.

Shop Towels

This is a no-frills kind of place, with a tagline of handcrafted food and drink built for the American workforce. They also claim to be blue-collar inspired and feature shop towels rather than paper napkins. Meals are served on metal trays and silverware is minimal.

Freebird

My wife went with freebird sandwich featuring a southern fried chicken breast, bacon, Swiss, jalapeno slaw, and bacon honey mustard ($9). She also added an order of their original handcrafted cheddar tots (6 pieces for $4). I stole a few bites of each and her sandwich choice was excellent, as were the tots. I think this would be my go to order if I lived in the area. The sandwich was a bit spicy, but the honey mustard and bacon flavors helped to tame it down a bit.

Non-Union Club

I went with the non-union club featuring a grilled chicken breast, sweet ham, bacon, Swiss, avocado, lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayo ($10). This sandwich was massive! And while I enjoyed it I thought the freebird was a better choice. Perhaps the mayo needed a little something extra in it to really make this one shine. I also ordered some delicious beer battered onion rings on the side (6 pieces for $5). Serving sizes were very generous and this was more than enough food for a hearty lunch or dinner.