The City of Roses

This last week, I had the incredible opportunity to go on my first business trip and cross one more US city off my travel bucket list: Portland.

Although I traveled primarily to attend the annual conference for International Foodservice Editor Council (IFEC), I made every effort to snag a local cup of coffee any chance that I could. And since the conference was for food editors and publicists, much of Portland's unique food culture was incorporated into the event.

Being my first time attending IFEC, I did not know exactly what to expect. It is such a unique conference because networking and food are the central focus. 

Publicists filled the hallways, pacing back and forth with black binders in tow waiting for their one-on-one meetings with editors. These 10-minute sessions provide a platform for editors to discuss upcoming stories and publicists to pitch ideas on behalf of clients. It was such a great opportunity to put faces with editor names, and I made some great contacts for work!

Photo by @Arosendahl777

In addition to great networking opportunities, all of the educational seminars revolved around food, especially showcasing the unique food culture of Oregon. In fact, one of deep's clients, Kerry Beverage, sponsored a couple of specialty coffee break stations. I loved having the chance to put my coffee passion and heritage to work in my PR career!

Not counting the amazing food tours on our last day, my favorite educational session was a honey tasting sponsored by the National Honey Board. They brought in honey expert Marie Simmons, author of the book Taste of Honey, to lead us through some different varietals of honey.

Each honey had a distinct flavor profile based on the region and type of plant that the bees gathered pollen from--similar to specialty coffee and bean-to-bar chocolate. I do love my artisan foods!

Overall, my PDX adventure was packed full of valuable work experience, meeting new people, learning about the science behind many artisan foods and tasting fabulous things all along the way. I have many coffee shop reviews coming along with some other foodie highlights from the City of Roses.

Stay tuned!
-Coffeegirl

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Ecuadorian Eats

This post is dedicated to all the food I have been eating in Ecuador. 

Yes, I know it is about dinner time, so you should probably not read this if you are super hungry... :)

This is the first meal they served us that I LOVED!

It was ham and llapingachos.

What in the world is a llapingacho?

It's okay I didn't know either.

It is a potato and cheese pancake looking thing,

and it is SOO good!

Last Tuesday, the group went to a restaurant called "La Boca del Lobo".

It was such a cute place.

(I will share more pics later of the decor,

but now here is the delicious food we had):

I had chicken kabobs wrapped in bacon dipped in dijon mustard with bread.

Yes, I was in heaven.

My lovely friend Morgan had this stuffed mushroom dish that looked scrumptious. 

:)

Fruit is more than a staple here in Ecuador.

We eat fruit at just about every meal.

I am not much of a fruit person,

but I am adjusting.

In the Middle of the World, we saw these baby bananas that are supposed to be super sweet.

Aren't they adorable?

This is called Rambutan.

It is a red spikey fruit with a juice white center.

There are also seeds inside...

which you are NOT supposed to eat,

learned that the hard way.

Okay, do you see that chocolate bar in the background?

It is called Pacari,

and I am addicted now.

The first thing I craved from the US was Askinosie chocolate.

My craving has been satisfied with this single origin chocolate from the Esmeraldas region of Ecuador.

I have already bought like 5 bars.

At the beach this weekend, we had amazing seafood!

And soda pop in adorable glass bottles. :)

This is dessert from that restaurant on the beach,

which is called Spondylus...

weird, I know.

Brandi discovered this adorable bakery called Corfu.

I think I may go every day.

The pastries are absolutely incredible.

Yesterday, I felt a bit under the weather,

so we played it safe and tried a deli.

I had an amazing Caesar salad with a cheese empanada.

My food adventures are certainly not over.

This weekend we are trying "Cuy",

which is guinea pig.

I am a little scared,

but it is a traditional dish here,

so I have to try at least a bite.

Tenga un buen dia!

-Beth

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