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With the new MAX Orange Line installed and Tilikum Crossing up and running, chances are much of Portland is about to discover what neighborhood loyalists have long known: Lower Powell and Brooklyn are far different from the industrial hinterlands between Woodstock and booming Division Street. Sure, it's still a little rough-and-tumble—in a heavy-industry and busy-thoroughfare kind of way—but now that it's more connected than ever, Brooklyn is poised to be the new destination for close-in Southeast Portland homeowners and folks looking for a little less hustle in a neighborhood that still feels very much like a different city altogether.
WW PICKS
The Original Hotcake House, 1002 SE Powell Blvd.
Teutonic Wine Co., 3303 SE 20th Ave.
Hazel & Pear, 3432 SE Milwaukie Ave.
AMF Pro 300 Lanes, 3031 SE Powell Blvd.
MUST
Aladdin Theater
3017 SE Milwaukie Ave., 503-234-9694, aladdin-theater.com.
The old midsized Aladdin concert hall is the perfect antidote to the hipper venues in town, a place where bluegrass bands, second-tier rockers on solo tours, standups, comedy fests and bands on the cusp of graduating to bigger stages find common ground. The theater's seen some wear and tear, but it's also part of the charm. Aladdin is the place for laid-back live shows and a sit-down venue where dance parties can erupt up front, but where the stage is still the main event.
EAT
Edelweiss Sausage & Deli
3119 SE 12th Ave., 503-238-4411, edelweissdeli.com. Breakfast-early dinner Monday-Saturday.
At this German deli and butcher shop filled with wondrous chocolate, better beer and even better meat, all of second-generation deli masters Tom and Tony Baier's house-cured meats are available in sandwiches so voluminous that they overwhelm their rye bread holders. $.
The Original Hotcake House
1002 SE Powell Blvd., 503-236-7402, hotcakehouse.com. Open 24/7.
A lot of things could happen at Portland's most famous 24/7 diner. You could see a bro get punched for skeeving on a biker's girl. But you will have one of the best greasy-spoon breakfasts in town. Those hotcakes are on point. So's that chicken fried steak. Hotcake House is a rite of passage for all Portlanders. $.
Shut Up and Eat
3848 SE Gladstone St., 503-719-6449, shutupandeatpdx.com. Brunch-dinner daily.
Shut Up and Eat is like a warm blankie for the citified East Coaster—an all-purpose home to mortadella, meatball and cheesesteak that has expanded in the past couple years to not only a miniscule market and flat-screened sports bar in the back, but also a singular brunch spot. $.
DRINK
Brooklyn Park Pub
3400 SE Milwaukie Ave., 503-234-7772.
Dive bars—and make no mistake, this windowless neighborhood sports local is definitely a dive—aren't often associated with good booze. That's what makes the Brooklyn's 100-plus, highly curated selection of whiskeys such a surprise. Bonus points: You can drink good whiskey without the snob factor.
Bushwhacker Cider
1212 SE Powell Blvd., Suite D, 503-445-0577, bushwhackercider.com.
The nation's first cider bar added an outpost in Woodlawn offering an expanded food menu, but the original Southeast spot in Brooklyn remains the best, cheapest and most extensive bottle shop for cider in all of Portland, with deep cuts spanning the globe.
Gigantic Brewing
5224 SE 26th Ave., 503-208-3416, giganticbrewing.com.
Gigantic's tiny beer shed and big patio are an oasis in a yawning desert of machine shops. It's a place where bearded Timbers fans crush pints of head brewer Van Havig's industrial-strength IPAs in between baby-talking the burly dogs that match the drinkers if not in number, then in size.
Teutonic Wine Co.
3303 SE 20th Ave., 503-235-5053, teutonicwines.com.
Teutonic is the rare taproom where the guy who actually made the wine may also be your bartender and DJ. The place is as handmade as the wine—just some vinyl, a rotary-dial phone, a bar made from pouring resin over woodcuts, and the Wild Hunt Scandinavian food cart out front.
Twilight Cafe
1420 SE Powell Blvd., 503-236-7668. Lunch-late night daily. 21+.
Part greasy diner, part overlooked venue for no-name punk bands, Twilight remains a paragon for the Old Portland mentality in a neighborhood fast being enveloped in cute. It's rough. It's tumble. Stiff drinks, loud music (no cover)…even if the crowds and quality dwindle, our love does not.
SHOP
Brooklyn Mall
3384 SE Milwaukie Ave., 503-233-2550, brooklynmall.org. Closed Monday.
One of Portland's best-stocked antiques shops—think refinished furniture and gorgeous art deco trinkets more than old TV Guides and other flea-market fare—this place is like a museum for folks looking to class up a home with real-deal art furniture.
Elemental Arts
1133 SE Pershing St., 503-238-3862, elementalarts.us. Closed Monday.
For nearly 15 years, Elemental has been the grown-ups' answer to Claire's Accessories, with custom, handmade charm bracelets, blown-glass art, and custom-made wedding bands that make it one-stop shopping for folks looking for a gift that's highly personal. Oh, and they do repairs too.
Hazel & Pear
3432 SE Milwaukie Ave., 971-544-7798, hazelandpearpdx.com. Closed Sunday-Monday.
One of the most darling children's consignment shops in the city, Hazel & Pear carries kids' clothes up to size 10, with high-quality shoes, dresses, rain coats, and PJs that seem barely used…probably because the kids wore them once and then sprouted. The shop also has toys, books and clothes for Mommy. Because sometimes, Mommy's gotta treat herself.
Scottish Country Shop
3568 SE Powell Blvd., 503-238-2528, scottishcountryshop.com. Closed Sunday.
With bagpipes, kilts, books, art, drums, music and food from Scotland (yes, there is canned haggis), Portland's little Aberdeen is about as Scottish as you can get without throwing your back out while tossing a caber. If it's not Scottish it's crap, they say. No crap here.
GO
AMF Pro 300 Lanes
3031 SE Powell Blvd., 503-234-0237, amf.com/location/amf-pro-300-lanes.
Tired of fancy-ass bowling alleys with fancy-ass cocktails and calamari and people who giggle every time they throw? This is your place, part of a dying breed of Portland bowling alleys. That means leagues are in full effect. Shoes could tell stories if they weren't gagging. Food is Sysco-heavy. Cocktails are only called such because of a splash of Coke. This, friends, is a bowling alley the way God intended.
Portland Futsal
3401 SE 17th Ave., 503-238-8725, portlandfutsal.com.
As Portland gets more comfortable with its Soccer City moniker, indoor facilities have been springing up. This 5-on-5 set of three fields specializing in the Uruguay-born futsal, with a smaller ball and the elimination of walls for body-checking. Leagues and clinics abound, making it RCTID every day.
Powell City Park
Southeast 26th Avenue and Powell Boulevard.
Powell Park is the neighborhood's living room, a sprawling space packing soccer and baseball fields, a huge playground, volleyball courts and enough paths that you can make a pretty good day out of a leisurely stroll through one of the city's more unsung green spaces.
In Multiple Locations:
808 Grinds, 5226 SE 26th Ave.
Willamette Week