Devour 2012: Your Almanac For Edible Adventure

Introduction

How to shop at a modern American supermarket: Stick to the edges of the store—the produce, dairy, bulk dry goods and meat and fish departments. That’s where you’ll find whole foods with lower margins and lower prices. Avoid the center aisles of expensive processed foods. Compare the price per ounce on the shelf tags of similar products; larger containers aren’t always cheaper. Read the circulars for deals. It’s worth going out of your way for sales on nonperishable items. Buy store brands, which are a bargain even at Whole Foods and New Seasons. Whenever possible, buy bulk over packaged dry goods.

How to shop at the stores in this guide: Walk every aisle. Ask lots of questions. Poke things. Squeeze things. Sniff things. Ask more questions. Make impulse buys. Eat fearlessly.

This is the fourth edition of Devour, and it is our most extensive guide yet to Portland’s constellation of specialty markets and food purveyors. It is still far from comprehensive—hardly a week goes by without my spotting some unexplored fishmonger or import store—but there are far more businesses included in these pages than any consumer could reasonably be expected to patronize. I hope you’ll explore liberally, and find a store or two to add to your regular shopping routine. 

For newcomers to the sport of culinary odyssey, this year I’ve added “top picks” to the beginning of each section of Devour. These are not necessarily my favorite stores so much as the ones I think should be the highest priority for the uninitiated. They are the places I send out-of-town visitors hoping to sample a little of what eating in Portland is all about: freshness, variety and adventure. Bon voyage!

—Ben Waterhouse

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Contributors

Editor
Ben Waterhouse

Assistant Editor
Ruth Brown

Art Director 
Brittany Moody

Ad Designer
Dylan Serkin

Copy Chief
Rob Fernas

Copy Editors 
Kat Merck, Matt Buckingham

Shoppers
Natalie Baker, Penelope Bass, Craig Beebe, Ruth Brown, Denise Castañon, Martin Cizmar, Kelly Clarke, Liz Crain, Marianna Hane Wiles, Angie Jabine, Kat Merck, Brian Panganiban, Ben Waterhouse

Cover Photo
Matt Wong

Photographers
Mike Grippi, Jarod Opperman, Ro Tam, Natalie Behring, Liz Devine, Amaren Colosi

Illustrations
Kim Scafuro

Special thanks to 
Le Ho and Adam Ho

RIP Witold Lunkiewicz, 1941-2011.