Lunch, Saturday, August 3, 2013

Strawberries, sheep cheese, Traditional Chex Mix and sweet iced tea. Arranged on a colorful tray I lucked into at Joanne's last Saturday when I had the Zipcar for hours and hours of errands. A 70% off sale on outdoor dining items. Besides the tray, I got the cup, too. So, they're meant for children, but I don't care. It's a way to exercise portion control, don't you know?



Artsy HDR-effect close-up.



As far as I'm concerned, the best sheep cheese, ever. With Sole di Sardegna in my life, I don't miss cheddar cheese. This stuff is so fine, eaten at room temperature as it was at lunch yesterday, with various complimentary foods. Shredded for tacos or burritos or chili or spaghetti and meatballs. Or melted as the insides of divine grilled cheese sandwiches.

Out with the girls on New Year's Eve afternoon

Click here for a trip to City Daily Photo, transporting you around the world every day.



Julie from Minnesota, Donna from Alabama, and I from Mississippi met at Brasserie Montmartre in downtown Portland for a tasty, time-consuming-cause-we-wanted-it-to-be lunch. Good food. Good friends. Talking. Laughing. Enjoying. Then, we walked a few blocks to the Living Room Theater and bought our tickets for "Old Goats." With time to spare, we browsed at nearby Powell's Books before returning to the theater to watch what turned out to be a highly entertaining movie.

VW van, seen on the street, No. 3

Downtown Portland. Lots going on to watch and/or photograph. I took this photo on July 23, 2008, at 11:50 a.m. while on my lunch hour. If memory serves, the bright orange VW van circled the block several times before I got up from my bench and went to catch the bus back to work. The last couple of years the times for bus arrivals at work and departures back to work have not lent themselves to much of a relaxed lunch time in the park. I hope 2013 proves to be much better for me.

The first, and only, corner building I've entered in all of Portland

I took this photo on my walk to work September, 29, 2011. This is the only wedge-shaped corner building which I've been inside in all of Portland. I have eaten lunch at here with my two sons, Lamont and Leland, on several occasions. Click here to see the menu at Michael’s Italian Beef and Sausage Co. It's an interesting menu, filled with selections and guidelines for ordering and a tidbit at the very bottom which I do not believe that I have ever seen on a menu--"menu prices reflect cash discount." Have you seen that on a menu? I'm quite curious to find out if you have and where you saw it.



If you've arrived in an automobile, you park right there behind the building. If you work nearby, you can just walk on over. Since my building is a mile away, we ride in Lamont's car. No matter how you get to this street corner building, you enter the building beneath the black awning above the sidewalk (as seen in the top photo) and get in line to the right of the door (seen in this photo). By the way, I took this photo and the rest of those below on April 14, 2011.



While you wait your turn to order from one of the folks behind the counter, you can pick up a menu and make up your mind what sort of meat or meats you want on your sandwich, whether or not you want it wet or dry (juice spooned on or not), what sort of peppers and/or onions you want. I get a dry half Chicago Style Combo--sausage and beef on Italian bread with sauteed onions only, no peppers for me. With my sons, I share an order of fries which Michael's calls Shoestring Potatoes, fried in 100% Canola oil--we share two orders, actually. And I get a Barq's Root Beer. I can't remember for sure what the guys get to eat, but they like it.

Once we place our orders, all in the name of either Lamont or Leland, we walk towards the other end of the building, the wider end, and find a seat at a table. From that spot I noticed the meat-inspired decor hanging over the counter. Love the cleaver, the knives, the pincher, the machete and that giant axe-thingey. Way cool!



Once the order is ready, whichever son's name is called goes to get the tray of food. One son already had picked up his sandwich from the tray--seems like it was Lamont and he had a meatball sandwich--the photo I took of it is not any good, but he said the sandwich was very good.
 

Then we chow down! This is my lunch!

Terry Schrunk Plaza, Downtown Portland, June 28, 2010

Took this one from a moving bus on my way back to the building where I work--I'd been over to eat lunch in the park just across the street to the north of this one. You can tell that it was a beautiful day, sun and shade, soft breeze, no humidity. Blissful. Shared with innumerable Portlanders.