A tasting spread at last year’s Circle V Portland. Photo credit: Josh Chang.
Tickets are on sale now for Circle V Portland 2025, Portland’s premier vegan tasting event. It will take place at Castaway, where you an enjoy all kinds of vegan food, beverages, and products. If you eat a fully vegan diet, eat vegan part time, or are vegan curious, this is a great opportunity to get to know the Portland vegan scene—Portland is considered by many as one of the best cities to access the breadth of vegan food and drink.
Welcome again to the first day of Portland Salad Week! With summer in full swing, there’s no shortage of fresh and flavorful salads across the Portland metro area. While most restaurant menus feature classic market greens, which are lovely this time of year, this week brings something extra special: well-crafted Salad Week restaurant specials by local restaurants.
A big salad from Garden Monsters—The Hercules with chicken
Over the years, I’ve heard people ask, “So where can I get a big salad in Portland?” If they are a New York transplant, they are probably thinking of those chopped salad and panini spots that were (are?) ubiquitous in Midtown Manhattan. Or the kind of “Big Salad” referred to in Seinfeld. But really—sometimes you just want a big salad, no matter where you come from.
Here are some places where you can get the classic “Big Salad”—but instead of a bowl of “big lettuce, carrots, tomatoes like volleyballs,” a la Seinfeld, you can get a mix of diverse ingredients that will be delicious and satisfying—enough for a whole meal (sometimes two, if you play your lettuce cards right—Romaine stands up better overnight compared to mesclun greens).
Canteen
Photo credit: Yelp
Self-described at a “world famous organic juice and smoothie bar,” the food here I would say is nutrient dense, healthy, and fresh—the kind of place I like to go when I need to nourish myself. They offer two substantial salads at their SE Stark location:
Walnut Taco Salad: mixed greens, carrot, red cabbage, avocado-curry sauce, walnut taco crumble, pico de gallo, cashew nacho spread, avocado, green onions.
Quinoa Confetti: quinoa, curried cashews, currants, apple, celery, mint, cilantro, lime, balsamic vinaigrette. (Add a bed of balsamic dressed greens for $2.)
I usually get a smoothie with my salad (The Orange One is a fave). I love eating here. Definitely put it on your list of tasty healthy crunchy food spots.
The Rain Shadow Bowl at The Celery. Photo credit: The Celery
Back in October 2021 I came across mention of The Celery, a restaurant planning to offer organic whole foods in the form of juices & smoothies, bowls, salads, and … oatmeal! But for months there wasn’t a peep out of their website or social media (spoiler: it took a year to get the place off the ground). That’s all changed—The Celery is now open in the Boise neighborhood along the N Williams commercial strip between Fremont and Prescott.
