The Screen Door Cafe

The Screen Door Cafe is as close as you can get to great basic southern cooking in Portland. I have to give props to Thomas Harvey who took us all there for a group dinner, he is the king of good restaurant recos. Now back to the food. The appetizers are amazing and it is easy to fill up on them. In fact one of the best entree choices is a sampling of all the apps. I would recommend the fried green tomatoes, the low country shrimp and grits, and the Alabama pimento cheese to start. I guess I should also recommend you go with a large group of people so you can share all the food. As an entree the pulled pork sandwich, the shrimp po'boy and the fried chicken are all excellent choices. If you want to get really New Orleans, you can also order an Abita Turbo Dog beer.

On top of the great southern food they have an interesting organic menu that we did not get into and a really great breakfast offering on Saturday and Sunday. The service was also really good and the prices are very reasonable. And finally if the weather permits, they have a nice patio seating area available.

Screen Door Cafe
2337 E Burnside
Portland, OR 97214
Phone: (503) 542-0880


http://www.screendoorrestaurant.com/

Hours:
Tue-Sat 5:30pm-10pm, Sat-Sun 9am-2:30pm

Emmylou Harris - Wrecking Ball

Sometimes you come late to a party and find out even though you missed a lot of great stuff, you can still catch up and make a night of it. This is my story with Emmylou Harris. I first heard her interviewed on Morning Becomes Eclectic, possibly the best music radio show ever, on KCRW in 1995. She was just about to release her new record Wrecking Ball, which they played a few cuts from and I fell in love.

Her life story is classic. She has been married four times, has three kids with three guys, had to move back in with her parents after her first husband left her despite a hit record, recorded a record with Gram Parsons who died of a drug overdoes before it was released, and now she is a music legend.

I am not going to say this is Emmylou's best all time record, as she has recorded 22 since 1968, but it is the one that got me listening to her and I love every song on it. Emmylou is an old school singer, she does not write her own songs. In fact the title track on this record was written by Neil Young, and there are also songs by Jimi Hendrix and Gillian Welch. This is as good a place as any to start.

End Petlessness

This is my favorite new commercial (not just because I know the person who made it).

Restaurant of the Year : Pok Pok

Pok Pok was recently voted restaurant of the year by the Oregonian.

Pok Pok Restaurant

After a few months of driving by Pok Pok and saying, "we really need to go there" we finally stopped in with our friends Jeff and Etta last Saturday night. It is a strange place that started as a shack in the front yard and has grown into a very casual restaurant with great food and drinks. Their specialty is grilled lemongrass-marinated game hen and exotic shredded green papaya salad that is quite spicy. Jeff and Etta are vegetarians and the selections for them were pretty limited, but they were happy with their choices. The drinks were great too. I had a lemonade cocktail that went down very smoothly with the spicy food. And finally the prices are very reasonable.

Pok Pok Restaurant
3226 SE Division St.
Portland, OR 97202
Phone: (503) 232-1387

Hours:
Take-Out Shack: M-F 11:30a-10p, Sa 5p-10p
Whiskey Soda Lounge: M-F 11:30a-2:30p, M-Sa 5p-10p

Scritti Politti - Cupid & Psyche 85

I once saw an article by a very esteemed rock critic talking about his secret shame, Scritti Politti. I was not sure how to take this as almost every critic loves them and is not afraid to rate this record, Cupid & Psyche, five out of five stars. That said, this is pop music and that can make you squirm. But it's the best kind of pop music, danceable and upbeat with weird, dark, intelligent lyrics.

Green Gartside is Scritti Politti. Over the years he has brought in a series of producers and musicians to put his records together, although he usually plays most of the instruments on all his records. Unfortunately he doesn't like to tour and according to an interview in the New Yorker last year doesn't like to work very much at all. He has managed to make enough money to live simply and happily in Wales and come out with records when he feels like it.

Cupid & Psyche was the first Scritti Politti record I heard in 1985, but my understanding is that it is a collection of singles that had been previously released in the UK. It is easily the best pop record every made. So turn it up and dance around without feeling guilty.

Art Wall

Attached is a picture of the new "art wall" that we have arranged in the dining room. We wanted to feature the illustration of a jazz funeral that we got from Stevie and Amy for our birthday (thank you Dad for the framing). It is the centerpiece and we surrounded it with the great photography of the St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, where we got married, and the equally wonderful shots that Jeff Selis took of the dogs.

It looks great the way Barbara art directed it, but somehow we are going to have to add a picture of Finlay. In case you are wondering, we moved the "Ain't doing your dishes no more" piece downstairs. Barbara is not too happy about this yet.

Talk Talk - It's My Life

Not unlike The Blue Nile, this is a band that made precious few records. Talk Talk only released five studio recordings from 1981 to 1991, and only four had the original line up. Many critics say the band got better with age, but I still love their breakthrough record It's My Life.

This record goes from moody contemplation to dance hit without stress. I remember spending many a Saturday night in college dancing and singing along to this record (and a couple of pretty good music videos it spawned). This is a record that stands the test of time.

Too Close for Comfort

How good are the 2007 Longhorns? I do not think they are the number 6 or 7 team in the country. Based on the last three games I am thinking we'll be lucky to end up 9-4. I don't even want to think about what the final score of the OU game will be. In the words of Barry Switzer, they are going to hang half a hundred on us.

Colt McCoy does not seem like the player he was last year before the injury. He's already thrown more interceptions this year that he did in the first nine games last year. The offensive line seems shaky at best and seeing Charles carry the ball like a loaf of bread when the team is trying to ice a game is more evidence of how immature this team is.

My prediction, they will whip Rice next week, and go into OU with big heads that will lead to being down 30 at the half. Hope I am wrong.

Talking Heads 77

It's hard to say this is the Talking Heads best record, as they have released at least four that I think you should have in your collection. You should also own the DVD of their concert film Stop Making Sense, which is one of the best music DVDs ever (but that is another list).


The reason I have chosen 77 is because it is the first Taking Heads record I bought. It was pretty weird but Psycho Killer was getting a lot of play and I loved that song. In fact I recently saw a comedy troop perform an interpretive dance to this song which took it to a whole 'nother level.


A few months after I got hold of this record, Talking Heads were on Saturday Night Live and blew us all away with an amazing rendition of Take Me to the River. After that the deal was sealed, Byrne became my favorite eccentric. On a sad note, I realize I am writing this the same week as the death of CBGB's founder Hilly Krystal. Along with the Ramones and Blondie, Talking Heads were one biggest bands to come out of that 70' New York scene he fearlessly promoted.