Laurelhurst

A grid of leafy, almost exclusively residential streets surround a gently rolling 31-acre park in the one of the eastside's best-preserved neighborhoods. This being Portland, a mushroom cloud of marijuana smoke floats over Laurelhurst Park most days, and Hula-Hoopers compete with tribal drummers for attention with the parade of dogs exercising their owners on a well-used green. The 'hood's residential quality means shopping and dining options are limited, but you're never far from Southeast 28th Avenue's restaurant row or the bars and shops on Belmont Street.

WW PICKS

Laurelhurst Market, 3155 E Burnside St.

Chopsticks, 3390 NE Sandy Blvd.

Portland Nursery, 5050 SE Stark St.

Laurelhurst Park, Southeast César E. Chávez Boulevard and Stark Street.

MUST

Belmont Station

4500 SE Stark St., 503-232-8538, belmont-station.com.

There's a bottle shop in every neighborhood these days, but when Belmont Station opened in 1997, it was a pioneering operation and remained so for quite a while. The adjacent pub still has 24 of the most thoughtfully chosen taps in town, and its 1,200-plus bottle shop remains a must-visit for out-of-towners. The food is bare bones, but Monk's Deli, the food cart parked out back, delivers a Philly cheesesteak that is about as close to a religious experience as you can get at a pub. $-$$.

EAT

American Dream Pizza

4620 NE Glisan St., 503-230-0699, americandreampizzapdx.com. Breakfast-dinner daily.

Like the American Dream, American Dream Pizza has been around a long time—more than 30 years of slinging pies, breakfast sandwiches and three-egg "oven omelets" to a discerning audience. Otherwise, the pies are generously topped and, like the incomes in this neighborhood, above average. $-$$.

Laurelhurst Cafe

4611 E Burnside St., 503-548-6320, laurelhurstcafe.com. Breakfast-dinner daily.

The epitome of a neighborhood joint, which in Laurelhurst means bagels, eggs and burgers but also deep-fried Brussels sprouts and Water Avenue coffee. Truth be told, there are few places to eat in Laurelhurst proper, so it's just as well that this place is dog- and bike-friendly. $-$$.

Laurelhurst Market

3155 E Burnside St., 503-206-3097, laurelhurstmarket.com. Dinner daily.

Few experiences better sum up the unpretentious comfort of Portland dining like Laurelhurst Market. Next to a meat counter filled with a beautiful array of grass-fed beef cut under the steady hand of chef Ben Bettinger, you can easily spend $65 for a cocktail and a cut of meat while dressed like you just finished pouring well whiskey at a dive bar. $$$-$$$$.

DRINK

Chopsticks

3390 NE Sandy Blvd., 503-234-6171, chopstickskaraoke.com.

Old friends in Portland don't disappear, they just move farther from the river. When the grimy Burnside karaoke bar Chopsticks II closed in 2015, David Chow opened a new Chopsticks a week later. In many ways, it's an upgrade. It's cleaner, the drinks are still cheap, and the food is still basic mall Chinese that comes on big plates.

The Hutch

4606 NE Glisan St., 235-4729, thehutchonglisan.weebly.com.

Located in the shadow of the sprawling Providence Portland medical complex, the Hutch is a low-key spot to grab a pint and a shot before or after seeing your doctor or visiting the hospital. There's an open mic on Tuesday, trivia on Wednesday, and karaoke on Saturday, but the Hutch offers plenty of time to sit and consider the options life presents.

SHOP

Music Millennium

3158 E Burnside St., 503-231-8926, musicmillennium.com.

Back when people bought their music in stores, Music Millennium was the greatest shopping experience in town, with eager employees dishing out tapes, CDs and vinyl like your favorite grandmother doling out cookies. Today, the linoleum is a little scuffed and plans for an in-store bar fell through. But screw the sad stuff—Music Millennium is one of the handful of comprehensive, iconic stores that make Portland Portland.

Nectar

3350 NE Sandy Blvd., 971-703-4777, nectarpdx.com.

It's tough to recommend any one thing at Nectar, because the Fred Meyer of Portland cannabis shops' greatest strength is its menu. With more locations in Portland (four) than any other dispensary, this is the place to go when you're not sure what your out-of-town friend really wants.

Portland Nursery

5050 SE Stark St., 503-231-5050, portlandnursery.com.

Portland Nursery is to plants what Powell's is to books. For more than 100 years, this citadel to beautifying your property and growing stuff you can eat has provided stressed-out urbanites with an oasis in the concrete jungle. Like Powell's, this place is staffed with experts eager to help neophytes acquire mastery.

GO

Coe Circle

Northeast Glisan Street and César E. Chávez Boulevard.

Is there a more noble place for a gilded statue of Joan of Arc—a replica of Emmanuel Frémiet's 1874 masterpiece Jeanne d'Arc that sits in Paris' Place des Pyramides—than a traffic circle in the middle of a moderately busy Portland neighborhood? No. Absolutely not.

Laurelhurst Park

Southeast César E. Chávez Boulevard and Stark Street.

Laurelhurst Park boasts a wider variety of trees than many arboretums, a recently refurbished pond with abundant bird life, running trails, picnic spots and a dizzying variety of uses. The park is bisected, with greenery north of Oak Street, and tennis courts, a basketball court, a playground and a soccer field south of Oak. With soaring Douglas firs and sequoias and leafy deciduous trees, it's a green getaway from increasingly urban Southeast.

Old Laurelhurst Church

3212 SE Ankeny St., 503-231-0462, oldlaurelhurstchurch.com.

Even in one of the least-churchgoing cities in America, people need a place to get married, bring their friends together or throw a concert. Old Laurelhurst Church, a towering Spanish colonial edifice a block south of the neighborhood's Burnside Street gate, is now a for-hire hall. The 11 stained-glass windows are the equal of any church's on the eastside.

Willamette Week