Sweet Treats

As my dental bill would prove, I have a major sweet tooth.

I'm not kidding about the dental bill either. A few weeks after I moved home this past summer, I had a toothache and ended up spending $1k on my teeth. Of course, I didn't have it taken care of while living in London where I had universal health care. Why would I do a sensible thing like that?! It's in my cards to spend ridiculous amounts of money on dental hygiene the second I become unemployed and uninsured. In fact, every time I move or am about to move somewhere, I end up spending obscene amounts of money on my health - circa February to April 2008 when I spent $1800 on a root canal and that's WITH dental insurance (goddamn NYC dentists), when I could have waited to get to London to have it taken care of for close to free. I swear I brush my teeth religiously at least twice a day and floss daily!!! I even use a prescription toothpaste! Why me???!!!

Macaroons at Two Tarts

But despite all that, I still think it's worthy to mention a few of Portland's sweet treats that I've discovered recently (especially since I wrote a whole long blog on savories), starting with my favorite boulangerie, St. Honoré, a lovely bakery & cafe where I went for the first time right when Autumn began when the air was crisp and sunny for some coffee. Michael and I sat outside reading US Weekly :) next to a group of stay-at-home moms and their BMW station wagons. Close by is Two Tarts Bakery, a hidden goodie on NW 23rd. My friend Tram took me and Michael there on a Saturday afternoon, right after we had just eaten, couldn't possibly eat anymore and were each on our way to various dinner parties to eat some more! Yet, we couldn't resist picking up a selection of bite sized treats! Then there's Bakery Bar where I got Michael's last birthday cake. They've got 2 locations (NE & SE) and are my favorite when it comes to clean and bold cake designs. With free wi-fi, I like chilling out at Bakery Bar (especially on sunny days when you can sit outside) with a cup of joe or some breakfast! For my own birthday, I got 3 treats! It's tradition in my family to get a Jamoca Almond Fudge ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins (I'm not even gonna' bother hyperlinking that one :) but Michael also got me cupcakes from Cupcake Jones and Allison & Tram got me a super delicious chocolate cake from JaCiva! Yumm, so divine!!!

I think Cupcake Jones' cupcakes might slightly be more fluffier (although I can't say for sure since I've only had it twice), my favorite place for cupcakes is actually St. Cupcake. I discovered them years ago when I was looking for a creative Valentine's Day gift for Michael. At the time, he was still living in Portland and I was in New York. After a lot of Googling, I found St. Cupcake, who for the occasion, had a Valentine's Day special where if you ordered a certain amount of cupcakes, the owner himself (I think his name is Matt), would deliver the cupcakes straight to your Valentine (within various zip codes) and sing a song you chose from his list for like $30 (not including the cupcakes) or something totally worth it like that :) It's like a singing telegram, but with a sweet treat at the end! Matt sang "How Sweet It Is to Be Loved By You" (I was tempted to choose Britney's "I'm a Slave for You," for the comedic factor but we all know that's not true :) and Michael later reported that Matt surprised him by showing up in a pink t-shirt, cupid wings, and entertained his entire (and usually quiet) office by singing at the top of his lungs in a capella! For his reaction, I would have paid that amount three times over! Not only does St. Cupcake hold a special place in our hearts for that particular occasion, but my best friend was proposed to earlier this year by her boyfriend, using six of their cupcakes (also her favorite) in the form of "Will You Marry Me?" Of course she said Yes! For your sentimental moments, go to St. Cupcake :)

And finally, in the midst the frozen yogurt craze (I love you Pink Berry), I recently discovered Tart, which serves a delightful frozen custard! But other than the neat take on this frozen treat, they don't have anything on Skinnidip. Skinnidip has an unbeatable selection of toppings, all of which are freshly cut (not frozen, ugh) (my favorites are pomagranate, cream puff and cookies n' cream) and they take great pride in making their yogurt from unadulterated products (not artificial flavors like those other guys - bleh). Eh, perhaps I'm biased since I know the owner, but hey, with or without my recommendation, they're still rapidly growing! Check out their third and newest location downtown (opening right before Christmas) by Nordstrom, across the street from the Max line!