This morning was the ribbon cutting ceremony for ten electric vehicle charging stations at the Rose Garden. They are the most publicly-available stations at any single location in our region, according to the Guv, who attended.

In partnership with , the stations are conveniently located on the preferred levels of the Garden and Annex Garages. To help encourage this new venture, the first electric vehicle to park for each event at the Rose Garden will be able to charge for free.

With next week being NBA Green Week, this is perfect timing. From April 4 to 11, the NBA will partner with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) for the third annual NBA Green Week in an effort to generate awareness and funds for protecting the environment.

NBA Green Week is just one of the ways the league, its teams and players are taking steps to be more environmentally friendly. And also present at the ceremony was a fabulous-looking Tesla vehicle – now I have a goal to strive for – an electric car – that’s also sexy!

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On March 5, Oregon joins the rest of the country in celebrating the beginning of Women in Construction Week, which continues through March 11.

From its debut 15 years ago, Women in Construction Week has become an annual event that has captured attention far beyond those who work in the building industry. In fact, Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber and Secretary of State Kate Brown have signed a proclamation encouraging everyone in the state to join in the celebration.

The Daily Journal of Commerce is answering that call. Throughout the coming week, the 91��Ƶ will offer a series of stories and features looking at how the industry has changed for women, examining new career opportunities for women in areas such as alternative energy, and profiling some local women who are helping build our state one project and contract at a time.

My involvement with women in the local building industry during my few short years as publisher of the 91��Ƶ has been rewarding and compelling. I’m thrilled to associate myself with the strong professional women who build and design both in Oregon and around the country.

The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), an organization that the 91��Ƶ is involved with and supports, was created to enhance the success of women in construction and promotes women’s advancement and growth in the industry through education, support, mentoring and community involvement. The Oregon chapter recently developed a mentoring program, launched across the nation last August, for all women in the architecture, engineering and construction industries.

I’m excited, therefore, to be able to announce that the 91��Ƶ will partner with NAWIC for a new conference event for women in the AEC industries in August. As part of the conference, the 91��Ƶ will unveil its newest publication, a “who’s who” directory of women in Oregon’s building industry. Stay tuned to find out more, including how to submit names for inclusion.

Construction is indeed a viable career path for women. I look forward to continuing the 91��Ƶ’s commitment to help unite and elevate the status of women in the built environment, even after Women in Construction Week has ended.

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I’m at 47 burgers now – do I really need to keep going? Actually, I might as well make it an even 50. With meatless-for-me Lent beginning on Feb. 22, I need to bring this to a close and begin the Lenten best veggie burger search. Please let me hear from you if:

1. There’s a burger out there worth the calories that I absolutely have to have
2. There’s a burger location (building, atmosphere or structure) that’s really unique and worth experiencing (that also has a great burger)
3. You’d like to be a judge and participate in the “91��Ƶ Sweet 16 Peoples’ Choice Play-off”

Here’s the total list in order of preference (Sweet 16 are bolded):

1. Hall Street Grill “Big Burger”
2. Foster Burger “The Burner”
3. Serratto
4. Brasserie Montmartre
5. Doug Fir
6. Paragon
7. Gilt Club
8. Red Star “Green Chile Burger”
9. Metrovino,
10. Paley’s Place,
11. Little Bird “Le Pigeon Burger”
12. Toro Bravo
13. The Original
14. �䲹���������’s
15. Gruner
16. Wildwood
17. Bluehour
18. Dick’s Kitchen
19. Deschutes Brewery
20. Jory at the Allison
21. Oswego Grill
22. Orenco Station Grill
23. Southpark
24. Monteaux’s Public House
25. Slow Bar
26. Higgins
27. Clyde Common
28. ���������’s
29. �ѱ�����ɱ𲹳ٳ���’s
30. Home Field Grill
31. University Club
32. Ringside Eastside
33. Helvetia Tavern
34. Skyline
35. Stepping Stone Café

Fast Food/Cheap Eats worth mentioning: Little Big Burger, Fresh Grill, Garden State, Killer Burger, Violetta

So what’s next? Between now and Feb. 21, we’ll finish this off. Send me your comments and whether you’re interested in judging. More details coming soon! Bon appetit!

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Ranking burgers isn’t easy, and with 35 now on my list (including three I’ve tasted twice), I decided I finally needed to develop a better judging system – one that makes sense.

I certainly won’t blog about all 35, but you’ll see that from now on I’ll have a running top five based on meat flavor, bread, sides and accompaniments – weighted in that order.

So … as a result of this newly created ranking system, five burgers on my list scored nearly perfect and all tied for second place with tie breakers coming from the side orders (Foster is still number one, by the way).

One of these in the top five is the Paragon Burger at . The ambience at Paragon is special. It’s casual and comfortable, yet trendy and hip. It’s also part of the Moana Hotel and Restaurant Group. I mention this because it certainly doesn’t feel like it’s part of a chain or larger group, but with locations in Berkeley and San Francisco, it is indeed that. Located in the Pearl with First Thursday right outside its windows, it’s a great place to people watch and a great place to have a burger. Rated at No. 5, it includes caramelized onions, white cheddar and amazing aioli and rosemary fries. For an additional $1.50, you can add pepper bacon as well (but I didn’t – calories, you know).

Two other ones that had near-perfect scores include and , both of which I’ve had twice now. Located in the “Trendy-First” area for over 25 years, Serratto was the sixth one that I tried and has remained in the No. 2 near-perfect spot. Painted Hills beef on brioche with white cheddar, bacon, aioli, bbq sauce, crispy fried onions – the only thing keeping it from a perfect score is that the fries, though real good, are just not exceptional. Reviews will tell you that the service here is sub-par at times, though for two burger visits, we never experienced that, so I can comfortably recommend going here. According to research, the building has a little bit of history having once operated as an old factory of some sort, and it certainly has a rustic and historic feel.

Housed in a 104-year-old building is downtown’s hidden secret, Brasserie Montmartre. A 2010 91��Ƶ Newsmaker, building owner and developer Carl Coffman learned that the old building once housed the Calumet Hotel and was in dire need of either demolition or restoration. Encouraged by developer Tom Kemper to restore the Park Avenue structure, there were plenty of reasons it would have been easier to call in a wrecking ball. While the building sat vacant, thieves snuck in one night and hammered away at a brick wall in an attempt to break into a jewelry store safe next door. And six months into the renovation, the building suffered a partial collapse that nearly ended the endeavor to save it. Demolition debris totaled about 200 truckloads, much of it hauled out by hand. Designed for a LEED gold rating, the renamed Esquire on Park Avenue, the building now features five stories of apartments above the ground-level Brasserie Montmartre restaurant. The Brasserie’s new incarnation boasts several familiar features, including framed drawings created by patrons back when the restaurant held coloring contests. Coffman also framed the damaged section of brick wall – exposed rebar and all – that the jewelry thieves left behind.

But the Brasserie Montmartre is not just another pretty Portland place. With lots of great food and a true French bistro feel, the burger is not to be missed – deliciously juicy with grilled onions, gruyere and tomato bacon jam on a brioche bun, including an array of fries – even duck fat or foie gras ones – that are definitely worth the calories.

And the one recent burger visit whose praises I am not singing, was from on Northwest Quimby Street. I thought I had just seen it featured on “,” but it turns out I actually saw it on “.” In any case, I thought I’d give it a try. Well, this was the worst burger yet. The meat was dried out, flavorless, over cooked and so unbelievably unexceptional, I can’t believe it remains on the menu. I’m sure I’ll get scolded for this and will get told I should have known better to only have breakfast or a non-burger item here, but I’ll say it again – if it’s on your menu, it should be taken seriously. And the building, well let’s just call it what it is – a dive.

Running top five burgers: , , , ,

Buildings and Burgers is a quest to find Portland’s best burgers and the stories of the buildings around them. The best burger must be gourmet and worth its weight in calories.  Submit your favorite to rynni.henderson@djcOregon.com.

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Since my last burger update I’ve had a ridiculous amount of new burger tastings, but only a few that are notable enough from both a burger and a building standpoint: , , and .

If you haven’t yet experienced guilty pleasures at the Gilt Club, you certainly should. Housed in the old Everett Street Hotel in Old Town/Chinatown – and the only business operating in this 11,000+ square foot historic building – it provides a unique  dining experience. Everything is ornate, and everything is red: leather booths, walls, lighting – all red. It’s also intimate and cozy, and it’s definitely safe to say the food is over the top, as well. After all, this is a place that once featured a foie gras-topped burger; alas, it’s no longer available, but it has been replaced with an equally decadent “pork-strami”-topped burger with jack cheese, meat onions, sloppy sauce and tangy, spicy slaw. And it’s even served with pork rinds! Plus, if it’s your birthday or anniversary, the Gilt Club will be happy to buy you a yummy dessert.

About as polar opposite as you can get to the Gilt Club is Doug Fir Lounge at the Jupiter Hotel on East Burnside Street. This popular music hot spot has great food, as well. Dining here is like being in a contemporary yet vintage Northwest lodge with a bit of a nod from the ’50s. It’s a place where you would expect to hear the B-52s playing the minute you walk in the door. And the décor of doug fir beams is very cool, as well. The Fir Burger is absolutely delicious, though nothing out of the ordinary. It has a juicy, flavorful, smoky-charred deliciousness. I highly recommend it.

Located in the trendy and historic Alphabet District on Northwest 21st Avenue is Paley’s Place. Paley’s is home to Portland’s only Iron Chef, Vitaly Paley, and is located in a lovely Victorian house situated above a hair salon. This tiny 50-seat restaurant is delightful on the front porch when the weather’s nice, and being so small, reservations are an absolute must. Available in the bar area only, Paley’s burger is Wagyu (Kobe-style) beef blended with rib meat that comes with homemade pickled vegetables and house-made ketchup. This is my husband’s No. 1 very favorite burger, and he has tasted most of them with me. What keeps this (almost perfect) burger from being my very favorite is simply a matter of personal preference: I found the ketchup and the veggies just a tad too sweet for my taste. And the fries, though very good, were not anything out of the ordinary.

Until next time…bon appetit!

Buildings and Burgers is a quest to find Portland’s best burgers and the stories of the buildings that house them. The best burger must be gourmet and worth its weight in calories. Submit your favorite to rynni.henderson@djcOregon.com.

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It’s always preferable to have great food in an equally great atmosphere (and y’all know I’m still burger questing to find that perfect mix), but such isn’t always the case here in Portland.

Take , for instance. Housed in a beautiful old building at the entrance of the 1905 World’s Fair site, the restaurant also boasts a lovely and unusually large outdoor dining area, an interesting history and original stained-glass windows. With a great looking menu and its own Skyline Farm, I had hoped that the overall dining experience would be a special one.

But alas this is an example of the burger that could have been THE ONE – but wasn’t even close. At a whopping $19 price tag for the Grass Fed Wagyu “Royale With Cheese,” it should have been exceptional. Well, it was only OK, and at that price – not acceptable. The first flaw was that it was overcooked considerably, which of course led to drying it out and leaving it without any rich juicy flavor whatsoever. I guess my first red flag should have been the flat screen TV in the bar (on Saints game night no less) that had been broken for “about six months or so.” Can’t or won’t fix the TV? What does that tell you? And where else are they cutting corners?

In stark contrast to Meriwether’s in every way, is in Beaverton near Washington Square. In a no-frills, no-ambience, typical fast food-type building, this place is all about very good quality fast burgers at great prices, and with a choice of waffle fries or sweet potato fries! For less than $7, I’d take this burger over Meriwether’s any day. I’ll say it again: You really can’t judge a burger by its building. Bon Appétit!

Buildings and Burgers is a quest to find Portland’s best burgers and the stories of the buildings that house them. The best burger must be gourmet and worth its weight in calories. Submit your favorite to rynni.henderson@djcOregon.com.

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You can’t judge a book by its cover, or a great burger by its building (or lack thereof).After 17 burger samplings I realized it was time to revisit my original favorite – .

Foster is on Southeast Foster near Powell Boulevard in a very non-descript building, to say the least, with an outdoor covered patio that doesn’t have much to brag about, either, but at least it has an outdoor area. In truth, it ain’t quaint. In fact I’m really not crazy about going there. Its interior is dark and dreary (but it does have a beautiful carved bar inside that drastically contrasts to the rest of the place). I don’t like the drive. I don’t care for the neighborhood. Yet the burgers, fries and service are so amazing that I’ve managed to drag myself twice there now.

I’m really trying hard to find a Foster replacement, but for Foster Burger, though, it’s not about the building or the atmosphere, it’s all about the burger and the service – excellent to say the least. In fact, it’s all Foster’s fault that I’m on this obsessive hunt that began almost five months ago.

Foster was my first in the official quest, and after 17 burger tastings we decided we had to revisit Foster. And guess what – it’s still the one, with THE very best fries for sure. They are truffled parmesan crispy goodness with an optional lemon squid ink aioli sauce (don’t grimace, it’s really, really good).

Prior to revisiting Foster, though, I took a trip to the (on S.W. 6th Ave. near Oak Street) specifically for the famed burger, and it did not disappoint. Although a lovely little place, it is very easy to miss with only a small and unassuming sign. The mostly mirrored interior has a cozy mezzanine, a small main level and lots of stuffed little birds – some in cages and some perched on antlers. The stamped tin ceiling panels, though not unique, are a nice touch. The burger is really very good, but after so many other very good burgers, I’m not sure how this one stands out (other than it still being a really good gourmet burger).

And then there are the burgers in the non-buildings (the carts of Portland). I recently sampled downtown on Southwest 10th Avenue (sorry, but this one is totally not worth the calories; it’s tasteless and seems commercialized). Then there’s in the Mississippi Marketplace. Wow, what a difference. Here’s another example, like Foster, of not judging a book by its cover, for this is one excellent burger, and from a humble cart no less.

Still the hunt continues. Foster’s is still the best in my opinion.

Buildings and Burgers is a quest to find Portland’s best burgers and the stories of the buildings that house them. The best burger must be gourmet and worth its weight in calories. Submit your favorite to rynni.henderson@djcOregon.com.

The post You can’t judge a burger by its building appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

Buildings and Burgers is a quest to find Portland’s best burgers and the stories of the buildings around them. The best burger must be gourmet and worth its weight in calories.  Submit your favorite to rynni.henderson@djcOregon.com.

I had never been to – a popular Portland cafe with a longstanding history and a very loyal following – until last Friday night. I had been wanting to go there, and since it had been on my “Burger Quest List” (more about that in a minute), I figured I’d better get there before too much time elapses and it’s gone – or drastically changed.

For those of you who aren’t aware, apparently several houses near Northwest 23rd Avenue and Savier Street might go by the wayside as part of a mixed-use development that’s planned. There’s speculation that the developer plans to keep the restaurant in its building, but there’s still some gray area regarding the details of whether they will build around the restaurant or rebuild parts of it.

Now, about my burger mission. I have become utterly obsessed with finding the best (gourmet – NOT commercialized) burger in the Portland area. And this from someone who typically prefers seafood and exotic meats other than beef, is kind of strange, but I don’t think I ever knew better, and I’ve only recently discovered how special a truly fabulous burger can be. It started Easter Sunday 2011 with me wanting to have the very best burger after six weeks of Lent no-meat eating, and I found a truly amazing burger at in Southeast, and now we know there are others out there as well. There are 16 I’ve rated to date since the hunt started and 16 still on the list (which continues to grow as people give me more and more places to try).

So Besaw’s, well, it’s a very good restaurant with good service and a really good menu. It would indeed be a shame to lose this little gem. The house that it’s in is very old – 1890’s I believe, with an interesting and colorful history. None of the staff that I talked to while dining there knew much of the details of what will transpire, but I was told that it is for sale, and that it will probably be one to three years before this project, if approved, would take place. As far as its burger – it’s pretty good. One thing I’ve discovered is that the Portland metro area has a LOT of pretty good burgers (which is more than many cities can say), but so far only a handful of amazing ones. More to come.

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Some exciting plans are in store for AEC (architecture, engineering and construction) women in the Pacific Northwest.

I am part of a new group of just under 20 women from different facets of the region’s building industry. The group is creating a coalition that will serve multiple purposes: to broaden the definition of AEC women,  to build (no pun intended) and recruit for this important segment of this industry, and to support and strengthen each other. Plans are under way for an educational conference this fall to kick off this new group and to celebrate and link women in the building industry.

There’s an obvious gap between the office workers and the tradeswomen in the built environment, and all this does is encourage isolation rather than to help women find a common bond.

But first we need a name – a name for the group and a name for the planned conference. NW Women of the Built Environment? Linking Women in the Built Environment? AEC Women? – you can see where we’re going with this, but we’re just not sure yet. Updates on this conference, the new group’s name, etc., will be coming very soon, and regularly. Stay tuned.

-Rynni Henderson

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Reading Angela Webber’s recent story about workers who bring dogs to construction job sites, I recalled fond memories of workplace experiences with my beloved Springer Spaniel, Rex, who spent most of his “growing up” years riding in the cabs of various excavators.

It was in the late ’90s while living in Key West, Fla., that my husband, a founding partner for  the , was involved with the company’s construction from the beginning concept to final completion (about three years total).  Being on a small island, I was at the job site regularly. The first time I saw my “baby” riding on the cab seat with his tongue hanging out, having a blast, the mom in me freaked thinking only of the danger. But isn’t everything dangerous when you think about it?  When your time is up, it’s up.

And not to worry, I soon discovered all the workers took very good care of Rex, and he was clearly having the time of his life.  In fact, it became not at all unusual for me or my husband to show up in the morning with Rex and be greeted with, “Hey! Rex is here!” No offense taken by us – after all, Rex was about the coolest dog that ever lived.

In addition to joyriding on backhoes and excavators, Rex also enjoyed “cleaning up” after the crew by picking up various beverage (beer) caps and bringing them to us for us to throw for him, just like a ball.  Yes, he was unusual in this way, but he kept us all amused and in really good spirits.

There’s a lot of truth to the studies that have shown that having a pet-friendly workplace is great for morale and performance, and why wouldn’t the same hold true for construction sites?  In fact, when Rex wasn’t at the Conch Republic Seafood job site “helping” with the construction, he would be at my office hanging out with me in my role as then-publisher of Florida Keys Magazine. I think we’d all be much more productive, certainly happier, and better able to deal with the stress and deadlines in our lives if only “” could be every day.  Thanks, Angela, for bringing back the memories.  Rex – RIP.

-Rynni Henderson

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