Now that was a Good(Life) Pretzel (Bend, OR)

A little over a month ago a few of my friends and I hopped over to beautiful Bend, OR to conquer the Bend Ale Trail. Out of all the breweries we visited, Goodlife Brewing gets a stamp of approval in my book. 

Not only did they have a great selection of ales, but they also had a delicious Bavarian Pretzel! This pretzel consists of their own spent grain salted soft pretzel paired with their German stone ground mustard and pale ale cheese sauce. The pretzel was good (a little flaky, and had a dinner roll-like taste), but the dipping sauce made it excellent. We couldn't get enough of it! 

If you haven't been to Bend or tried to tackle the Bend Ale Trail I promise you, you won't be disappointed. However, you might be intoxicated. If you're up for the challenge, at least you know you can carb-load in style along the way...

Goodlife Brewery Bavarian Pretzel 

A Breakdown of National Pretzel Day 2013: Breakside Brewery

If there is one random holiday to celebrate, National Pretzel Day is a solid choice. This year I started out by treating my lovely Waggener Edstrom co-workers to Nuvrei's salt and cheddar pretzel bagels. What better way to start a Friday? To top off my morning, one of my co-workers bought me a Pretzel Day shirt!

After work, my friends and I then met up at Breakside Brewery to try out their pretzels and have a few beers.

While not on the menu that night, rest assured they do have a mighty fine Bavarian Pretzel. This appetizer comes with two warm pretzels from Fressen Bakery (a popular bakery for pretzels in Portland), served with Dry Stout mustard (delicious and slightly spicy), Obatzda (not so delicious), Radishes (mainly for decor) and Onions.

While the Obatzda wasn't my favorite side, it deserves some love. Obatzda is a Bavarian cheese delicacy typically served in German biergartens. Traditionally it combines aged soft cheese (Camembert or Romadur), a third of butter in addition to salt, pepper, hot paprika powder and naturally, a small amount of beer. I love cheese spreads but this spread didn't add up for my taste buds, I preferred the mustard. 

If you're dying to try this pretzel, I recommend going Sunday-Thursday from 3-6 PM and/or 9 PM to close so you can order from their Happy Hour Menu. We paid $9 per pretzels, but during Happy Hour the pretzel is only $4, quite a bargain for what you get in return.

Special thanks to all of my incredible friends for coming out to celebrate, your support for my pretzel adventures does not go unrecognized and it wouldn't have been near as much without you all there.

Cheers! 

Twist and Shout! It's National Pretzel Day!

April 26th might be just another day to some people, but for salty carbo loving folks it is a day to celebrate!

This year I decided I would go to a brewery I had never been before - Breakside Brewery. I have heard a lot of people rave about their Bavarian Pretzels so now it's time to put it to the test. Check back next week to see how it stacks up!

On a separate note, I also wanted to take a minute to congratulate a new pretzel-loving friend Andrea Slonecker, who just released a new cookbook Pretzel Making at Home. Needless to say I am excited to try some of her tasty recipes. Andrea was also recently featured in Portland Monthly Magazine, just in time for National Pretzel Day and low and behold Portland Pretzels got a little shout out! (Huge thanks to Andrea and Portland Monthly Magazine's Allison Jones!) 

Andrea Slonecker: Pretzel Making at Home

If you're celebrating National Pretzel Day send a picture of your tasty-gem to @PDXPretzels and while you're at it, give a little shout out to @AndreaSlonecker, congratulating her on her new cookbook!

Hooray for Nuvrei!

Nestled in NW Portland, Nuvrei might have some mighty fine cakes and pastries, but they also have a delightful Smoked Cheddar and Wild Salmon Pretzel sandwich. This cheddar pretzel bagel comes with a chive cream spread, smoked wild sockeye salmon and smoked cheddar.

The cheddar pretzel sandwich was the perfect portion for a little brunch snack. It was served warm and had a perfectly soft consistency.

If you find yourself strolling around in NW treat your taste-buds  and stop in to Nuvrei.

I also recently tried their "salt bagel" with a fried egg...stay tuned for that review!

Taber Tavern Has A Terrific Pretzel

After hearing about a new place in town with pretzels, my friend and I finally got to see what it was all about. Nestled on East Burnside, Taber Tavern not only has pretzels on their menu, but they serve them two at a time with a house beer mustard (spicy) dipping sauce that I couldn't stop eating.

Fressen Bakery Pretzel and Taber Tavern Pale Ale Pints

Although technically their pretzel is from Fressen Artisan Bakery, which has yet to make an appearance on my blog until today, Taber Tavern completes the picture with their delicious mustard sauce and the fact they serve them warm. I also might add that their pretzel tastes very similar to the pretzels I had the pleasure of eating when I was in Germany last September. However, fun fact - pretzels in Germany rarely get served warm. I personally like my pretzels being warm (and salty, obviously). 

There's a Whole Lotta Love for Deschutes Brewery

As soon as people wrap their heads around the fact I have a blog dedicated to reviewing pretzels that I eat in Portland one of their first questions is not surprisingly, "What's the best pretzel you have had in Portland?"

This is tough. However, my first off-the-top-of-my-head answer is usually...drum roll please...

Deschutes Brewery.

Whenever I have friends visiting from outside of the Portland this is usually where I take them. I have already blogged about their delicious pretzel (might I remind you it comes with a creamy white cheese sauce with Black Butte Porter stone ground mustard sauce around the edge), but for this post I wanted to share that not only am I a fan of Deschutes but when my friend Dalton and his wife Elaine were in Portland and I took them here they also would agree that it was a tasty little treat!

Earlier last year my friend Corey came to visit and he was in Portland for only about a week and we ended up going to Deschutes twice! I guess my taste in restaurants (pretzels) isn't too shabby! Fortunately, I live in a city that is off the charts when it comes to good places to eat!

Starting 2013 off right with a Grosse Neujahrs-Breze

Happy New Year!

My sister sent me a recipe for a Grosse Neujahrs-Breze or a New Year's Pretzel and I figured it would be the perfect way to start off 2013 for Portland Pretzels!

In Germany, pretzels are a symbol of good luck. The Grosse Neujahrs-Breze is made a bit differently than some pretzels as three strands of dough are braided before you twist it into the traditional pretzel shape.

Additionally, pennies are randomly hidden in the dough and if you find it, your New Year's wish(es) are supposed to come true! While my breze doesn't look exactly like the picture included in the recipe I followed, I can assure you that it was delicious. Essentially a puffy, soft consistency with a slight lemony/salted flavoring. The added lemon flavor was likely because my nephew poured a little too much lemon juice into the batter vs. lemon zest like the recipe called for. Luckily it didn't ruin it :) I also hid raisins in the dough to reprsent the pennies, because I thought it would be more sanitary (and tastier for that matter).



Happy New Year!

If you are interested in twisting up your New Year's traditions I highly recommend following this recipe.

Cheers to 2013!