Portland Burger Tour - Little Bird Bistro

I thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Little Bird Bistro in Portland! Little Bird is definitely what we would consider a Tier 1, gourmet bistro and burger. Since we typically do our burger tour nights on weeknights we just went in as walk-ins. We would definitely recommend making reservations if you go on a weekend. Parking is street parking right downtown so we walked a couple of blocks to get there. Little Bird Bistro has French roots so much of the menu is traditional French and some items, like the burger, can have a French twist added. In the burger's case the optional addition was seared foie gras. None of us spent the extra $20 to have that added and we loved the burger as it was!

We started off our meal with a crusty loaf of bread with butter and sea salt. We made it just to the second loaf before our burgers were ready. The burger was on a thick sesame seed bun with a 1/2 lb patty (we got ours cooked medium). It comes with lettuce, home made spicy pickle relish, sauteed onions and goat cheese. The flavor of the burger was absolutely amazing. The pairing of the meat and goat cheese was wonderful and the onions and relish complimented each other so well. It is definitely one of my favorite burgers I have had on the tour so far, and I never thought I would say that about a burger with goat cheese! We all ordered fries as our side and we all loved them. They were fresh cut potatoes, perfectly crispy and without any grease.

The crew's ratings are below:

Kendra's Ratings

Environment: 8

Burger: 8.5

Side: 8

"I loved this burger and completely enjoyed the mix of flavors and the fries were amazing!"

Chris' Ratings

Environment: 4

Burger: 6

Side: 8

Ron's Ratings

Environment: 7.5

Burger: 8

Side: 8.5

"I admit I was a little skeptical of a goat cheese burger but it pleasantly surprised me. This was an incredible burger with masterfully constructed flavors"

Lisa's Ratings

Environment: 8

Burger: 7.5

Side: 9.5

"I loved the fries!"

Burger Judge's Taste and Palette Bios

In preparation for our burger night tonight I thought I would release a post with food and palette bios for the judges panel so that viewers could figure out whose ratings were going to resonate best with their own palette. If a food and palette bio wasn't a thing before, it is now! All of our judges wrote their own bios. We are open to questions so just comment with anything!

Kendra - that's me! I would consider my taste to be eclectic. I am the type of person who loves to order something really unique whenever I am dining. I think food should leave you with a story to tell. I like to push myself out of my comfort zone and try new things. I love ethnic food and flavors. I like spice but nothing painfully hot that will detract from the other flavors. I love the collision of sweet and savory. I can't off hand think of any foods or flavors that are an absolute no for me. I can try anything once! I tend to enjoy and appreciate more of a fine dining atmosphere as well as a gourmet burger vs a tier 2 burger. When talking burgers specifically I am all about the flavor profiles rather than specific ingredients.

Chris - "I am a comfort food kind of guy. Really good quality, thick meat is the most important for me on a burger. Bacon will always be on my burger if there is the option. I also really like mustard flavors and a few of my favorite toppings are mushrooms and dill pickles. I prefer spicy flavors to sweet or tangy ones. I think a burger shouldn't try too hard and cram alot of flavors and toppings. Simplicity is key. I also love leaving feeling very full and no room for dessert." 

Ron -  " I enjoy a variety to foods, bold flavors, various ethnic dishes I like blended, complementary spices and flavors married together but also bold contrasting flavors.  When it comes to a good hamburger, it's all about how the flavors work together.  I love specialty sauces on a burger, something a little unique and different.  Smoked bacon never hurts.  Preferably something I can get my mouth around, although I don't mind stretching the limits from time to time."

Lisa - "Some say a good burger is all about the meat; if they had meat and nothing else it would be perfect. Although meat is important, I look forward to the seasonings, sauces, cheeses (especially blue cheese) pickles, onions, mushrooms, and the extra garnishes that go with the meat when looking for a good burger. I want to taste the flavors of these ingredients. And a good hamburger bun is a must! I want to think that I am adventurous with food but am probably more on the conservative side when trying new things (but I can be easily swayed.) However, I don't think that I well ever be swayed to order foie gras as a burger topping! Finally, a good burger has to have fries. Burgers and fries go hand in hand."

Burger Tour - Frack Burger

Last night we diverted from our Oregonian Top 10 Burger list to add one that we had found on a few other lists. Frack burger is located in Canby and is a place we would rate on our tier 2 burger list. Tier 1 burgers are more gourmet burgers and tier 2 are what we would consider a more classic, diner style burger/environment.

Frack burger is TINY! It only has about 4 tables inside and it is honestly really easy to miss when driving by. There were several really good looking burgers on the menu but the crew ended up order the Piggy Back and the Swiss Miss Piggy. The Piggy Back is a special ½ Lb. bacon & beef infused patty with 3 crisp onion rings, BBQ sauce, 2 thick slices of bacon & topped with White Tillamook Cheddar on a grilled bun. The Swiss Miss Piggy is a seared ½ Lb. beef patty topped with grilled ham, sauteed mushrooms, grilled onions, 2 thick slices of bacon, swiss cheese & our house made roasted garlic dijon aioli on a grilled bun. We order fries and onion rings as our sides. We all really enjoyed the sides and felt like we were going to go into cardiac arrest after the burgers (in the best possible way). The burgers are massive. As illustrated in some photos below - definitely couldn't get my mouth around it.

Shout out to Aaron Porter for sharing this Groupon deal with us! If you are interested in trying Frack Burger, grab this deal on Groupon.

Click Here For Groupon Deal.

The group's full ratings are below. Keep in mind that tier 2 burger joints will be rated in their own category.

Kendra's Ratings:

Environment - 2

"Staff was friendly but the building was so small."

Burger - 6

Side(s) - 6

Chris' Ratings:

Environment - 3

Burger -7

Side(s) -4

"I felt like a champion after finishing that burger."

Ron's Ratings:

Environment - 1

Burger - 5

Side(s) - 4.5

"I felt like I needed a bath after that meal."

 Lisa's Ratings:

Environment - 1

Burger - 5

Side(s) - 5.7

"Have extra napkins when eating this burger!"

Planning a Marriage While Planning your Wedding

I was never a little girl who grew up thinking about weddings or my future wedding. I didn't care about the colors, flowers, dresses or decor. I thought a lot about the mysterious future guy and what our life would be like together.

The process of planning my wedding was a roller coaster and probably one of my least favorite things I've had to do. It's not because it was stressful because I am completely capable of dealing with stress (I think "Professional Stress Manager" is my actual life's title). I really hate the vanity of the wedding planning. I hate how everyone tells you that this wedding day is all about you and what YOU want. Lies. Total lies. The wedding day is so much about other people and is such a huge distraction to everyone about what the day really is about. My wedding was lovely, I planned 95% of the wedding myself with the help of willing family. It was elegant and beautiful and I love how everything turned out. Was it perfect, probably not. Was it everything I dreamed about, no, I didn't dream of a wedding, I dreamed of a marriage.

The thing that people forget is that after the dust settles you are left with hundreds of decorations, leftover food, party favors and your husband. What am I going to do with my decorations? I sold them all (I am not really sentimental...at all). Leftover food, eaten by family. Party favors, garbage. Husband, your life for the rest of your life. Chris and I spent time doing premarital counseling and reading books but looking back already, not even 6 months back, I wish that we had spent more. After all the talk and memory of the wedding day dies, you are left with a marriage that you probably should have taken more time to pour wisdom into. The year or 6 months or whatever time you spend planning the wedding is also the most crucial time to spend pouring time and effort into your relationship with your soon to be husband.

Below are a few of my tips (from experience) of how to plan a marriage while planning your wedding.

1. Don't get too busy that you forget the priority. Spending time with your fiance should be number one on the list, not spending days crafting handmade things for the tables that everyone will forget the day after.

2. Do make time for premarital counseling and spending time pouring wisdom into your relationship. Among others, we highly recommend the book "The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts". Knowing each other fully is the most important thing you could do leading up to the wedding.

3. Don't lash out at your fiance because you are stressed. Yes, bad moods happen to all of us and sometimes our first instinct is to take out the mood on whoever is closest to us. Likely your fiance will not be the one who is causing most of your stress, it will be your family, his family or vendors. This is a lesson for life and marriage in general but don't take your stress out on others.

4. Involve your fiance in the wedding planning process. The wedding day is about the bride and groom together not just the bride. Chris had alot of input when it came to cake flavors, photography shot list, music and ceremony schedule.

5. Be collective in your decisions. Never contradict or challenge each other in front of people. This shows everyone involved in the wedding that this is a team decision and that you are walking in step with each other.

6. This again is a more general life/marriage rule but never ever talk bad about your partner behind their back. This is such a demeaning thing to do to anyone let alone the person you intend to spend your life with.

7. Recognize when something is coming between you and your fiance. If something or someone is taking too much time, causing you to overly stress or creating tension, release it/them from your lives. If that means you buy invitations instead of making them, fine. Marriage relationship comes before wedding.

8. Get rid of high expectations. This doesn't mean lowering your standards but it does mean forget about the comparisons. Having expectations makes it so that you feel like you are constantly competing or comparing. These are killers in relationships and marriages and should be done away with.

These are just a few thoughts that came to my mind. Don't get sucked into believing that your wedding day is the most important day. It an important day, the work after the wedding planning may stop but your work on your relationship never stops. Everyday is the most important day when it comes to marriages and relationships and we need to be putting the effort and work to help strengthen these. 

Deepening your Relationship with your Spouse - Always Learning

I love questions. I always have. I have always enjoyed figuring people out and learning more about who they are. We go through life with somewhat of a mask on display for other people and it has always been my fascination to find out more about what is behind the mask.

I feel like sometimes with the busyness of life we sometimes forget to continue to pursue knowing more about the people who we have relationships with, especially our husbands and wives. I think the most exciting part about first getting to know someone is asking questions and making conversation. It is a constant learning process. We are creating a memory bank of sorts that helps us make decisions and determinations based on the information gathered. Once you have known someone for a while whether 5, 10, 20 or 50 years, it is easy to just rely on the information we have in our heads rather than digging for new facts. But as we grow, we change. The answers I gave to questions 5 years ago when Chris and I first started dating will not be the same as the answers I have now. It is our tendency as busy people to not dig deeper and get to know people better but that is not what our relationships are about. I can't best serve and understand my husband if I don't know him and continue to pursue knowing him more.

I have put together a list of questions that I found on the internet as well as created on my own that really help delve into new realms of conversation. After getting into bed one night, I went through a lot these with Chris and was surprised at what great conversation was born out of just asking the question and how similar and different our answers were to some of the same questions. Knowing your spouse deeply is key to being able to pair your differences in the best way to tackle life together and grow in your marriage.

So I encourage you today to take time to know your spouse. Don't assume that since you have been together for years that you know everything. I can't tell you how many friends I have had tell me, "I feel like they don't even know me anymore" in conversation about a challenging time in a marriage or relationship. I want to know my husband and him to know me in the deepest way. These questions range from silly to serious but more than anything they are a way to really guide conversation and give you ammunition to really get to know the people in your life more. Let's refresh our memory banks and let's be the kind of friends, siblings, children and spouses that actively pursue relationship and knowing eachother more deeply.

Enjoy! If anyone does end up using some of these I would love to hear about what your experience was!

Ask them to give you two “truths” and a lie. Then try to guess which one is a lie.

What is your biggest pet peeve?

If you could write a note to your younger self, what would you say in only two words?

If you got to choose one restaurant to eat at for the rest of your life, where would it be?

If you had to name one thing that really makes your day, what would it be?

If you could get to see any exotic animal face to face, which would you choose?

What is a misconception others often have about you?

Whats the most valuable life lesson you have learned because of a mistake?

Who would you say has impacted your life the most?

What’s an accomplishment you are really proud of?

Who do you wish you could be more like?

Read anything interesting lately?

What’s one thing you wish you had known as a freshman in college?

What is one day you would love to relive?

When it comes to love and relationships, what is the first lesson you want to teach your children?

What is your biggest complaint about your job?

If you could change one physical & non physical thing about yourself, what would it be?

What should I know about you that I’d never think to ask about?

What is #1 thing in your life that you are not doing that you wish you were?

What do you do when you feel like giving up?

What is your least favorite household chore?

If money was no object, what would you want to do in a day?

If you could only keep one book you currently own, what would it be?

What are you most excited about in your life right now?

What was your least favorite part of your childhood?

Describe one extravagance you have for which you will never apologize.

What do you want to be known for?

In one sentence what is your biggest concern right now?

What is your favorite and least favorite family tradition?

Complete the following: There would be fewer divorces in this country if only people ________.

What’s something that you sometimes outwardly wish more people realized about you, but you’re happy is internalized because to be able to sit on this information makes you stronger?

How many times have you been in love & what did each experience teach you?

What’s something that comes easier to you than it does for most?

What do you feel people take for granted the most?

What are you better at than 90 percent of the population?

What is something about you that would surprise me?

What is a piece of advice you often give but find yourself struggling to follow?

Describe your perfect mate in one sentence.

If you were immortal for the day, what would you do?

When is the last time you did something courageous for yourself?

What is the best and worst gift you ever received?

On a scale of one to ten, how happy are you?

What's the stupidest thing you’ve ever done for love?

When was the last time you were nervous?

What’s something many people fear that doesn’t scare you at all?

What’s something that instantly makes someone less attractive?

Would you describe yourself as more of an optimist, a pessimist, or a realist?

What would be a question you’d be afraid to tell the truth on?

What is something you wish you did more of in your life and something you wish you did less of?

Which significant other in your life has had the biggest impact on you and why?

 What is a piece of advice that you were given that if you listened to it, you would not be where you are today?

If you had to spend a year alone with one other person who would it be and why?

What was the last thing you learned that made a big impact on you or an ah-ha moment?

If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be?

If you only had 30 seconds to share one if the most important things you’ve learned with the world, what would it be?

If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future or anything else, what would you want to know?

What’s one fear you know is holding you back?

What was the last mistake you made that you’re sure you’ll probably make again?

Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?

When was the last time life left you breathless?
    

Portland Burger Tour - Ate Oh Ate

Last night we headed out to Ate Oh Ate in Portland on East Burnside. This little joint is know for it's awesome Hawaiian food. It was much less formal that all the other places we have eaten which I guess is what you would expect from a Hawaiian restaurant! The environment was relaxed and food came pretty quickly!

 

We all ordered the signature Aina Burger which was their recommended specialty. This burger had kimchi relish, crispy pork belly, iceburg and onions. It came with a side of mac salad, green salad or taro chips. I had the taro chips with mine! The burger was good, it had very distinct flavors and may be a taste that might be consider acquired. Kimchi for all who don't know is a Korean vegetable mix of cabbages that have been fermented. And pork belly is similar to bacon but very thick and fatty. We were all happy we went the adventurous route instead of ordering their standard cheeseburger!

 See the whole crew's ratings below:

Kendra's Ratings

Environment: 6

Burger: 5

Side: 5

"Super relaxed environment, it reminded me of a diner in Maui!"

Chris' Ratings

Environment: 6

Burger: 4

S: 5

Ron's Ratings

Environment: 7

Burger: 7

Side: 7

"It was a good burger, not a great burger."

Lisa's Ratings

Environment: 7.5

Burger: 4.6

Side: 5.2

Selfishness - The Marriage Killer and Finding Strength in Your Role as a Wife

Every day in marriage and in life there are choices - to be selfish or to be selfless. And I believe the choices we make each day have an impact on our marriages.

As Chris and I went through pre-marital counseling and also read many books about marriage, the theme was a common one, marriage was about sacrifice. This has been true in our marriage but in the most joyful and caring way, for me especially. I was scared of the responsibilities that I would take on in the marriage that I didn't have before. I had the perfect model of a loving wife and mother from my mom and living up to that example was a little scary. My mom sacrificed everything for our family, she quit her job a week before I was born and dedicated her life to homeschool me and my two siblings. She made sure that dinner was on the table every night, that we were chauffeured to and from every sporting event and she did it all without complaining or whining. My dad and us kids were the number one priority. I wanted to be a wife like that and someday a mom like that. She took her job as a wife and mom seriously and did it well. She never once talked about regretting quitting her job for a life of service to her husband and family.

I consider myself a career woman. I have a stable job that I have grown in and worked at for over 5 years, I own a business and I am capable of being financially and otherwise independent. Despite all of these things I would consider myself an anti-feminist. Although I do believe that people should be treated equally I don't believe in the equality of roles in the family and home. When I became Chris' wife I made a decision in front of witnesses and God to not only to marry him but to submit to him as the head of our family. The verse we get this concept from is in Ephesians -

Ephesians 5:22-33 New International Version (NIV)

²² Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. ²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her ²⁶ to make her holy, cleansing^[a] her by the washing with water through the word, ²⁷ and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. ²⁸ In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. ²⁹ After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— ³⁰ for we are members of his body. ³¹ “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”^{[b] 32} This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. ³³ However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Each day I live in marriage with Chris I come to love this verse more and see the application of it our marriage. This works in God's holy plan because the woman is not submitting herself to a slave driver or a man who is not appreciative but she is submitting herself to a husband who loves more than her loves his own body and puts her cares above his own. Why would any woman mind submitting to a man who loves them and treated them like the precious treasure that they are? I have found the practical application of this verse in our marriage is less about defining roles but more about living selflessly every day. Making decisions that may not be our first choice but that are going to be best for each other and our marriage as a whole. Selfishness is what kills marriages. 

Practicing selflessness is something that requires work. We are not naturally selfless people, we have to rely on God to help us look at others more highly that we look at ourselves. Philippians 2:3 says, "
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves". Our marriages are the first place these words should be lived out in our lives. We need to be fostering unselfish attitudes in our homes and marriages so that we are able to give out to other people. 

No, this is not easy. We should not expect it to be. I don't always (or ever) feel like getting out of bed an extra half of an hour early to make Chris his lunch to take to work but this is an act of selflessness that makes him feel cared for. I don't always feel like having dinner on the table every night because after all I just worked 9 hours at work plus a photoshoot and I am tired of standing and probably have a headache but I do it because that is my most important job. My husband doesn't deserve to eat fast food or fend for himself to get dinner just because I put other priorities over him. This, of course, is as a rule not the perfection of our every day lives at this point. I don't feel like doing loads of laundry (how can 2 people produce so many dirty clothes?!), dishes, vacuuming, mopping, dusting and bed making but I do it so we have a beautiful place to relax. Cleanliness is very important to Chris, he hates messes and I am already a little OCD about messes so it works out well but this is an act of selflessness because I don't feel like doing it all the time. These acts of selflessness will be unique in each home but these are some we have identified in our home.

I am addressing women specifically in this post. Men have a responsibility of their own to uphold and maybe I will have Chris guest blog about his responsibilities some time but this is for the married ladies. Pursue selflessness in your marriage, women. Caring for your husbands is your number one priority! We all wear many hats in this day and age and nobody understands work as much as I do, every waking second is work when owning a business and working full time. I work ALOT and I understand that money is a non-negotiable necessity to be able to make it but we have to understand the importance of our jobs at home. We can't all afford to spend equal amounts of time at home as we do at work but when we are at home we should take our job there seriously: foster a safe, loving and clean environment to live, provide our husbands with good meals and take time to sit at the dinner table and have good conversation. Submitting to our husbands is not to be doomed to a life of unappreciated subservience. And being a housewife full time or just while you are in your home doesn't make you any less capable, independent or strong. It's time for women to embrace our roles in the home and recognize the power we have to change or affect our marriages in a positive way.

Lastly, this is one of my favorite verses addressing women in the Bible. It is a Proverb about a wife who is a hard worker, a manager and a business owner. She is beautiful and creative and strong. This is a model of hard working woman. Our society has painted a weak picture of women who are housewives and mothers but does this sound weak to you? She is independent, her husband is confident in her. She makes money. Her family is cared for. I want to be a wife of noble character above all else. This is the model of a woman that we should all strive to be.

Proverbs 31:10-31New International Version (NIV)

Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character

^10 [a]A wife of noble character who can find?
    She is worth far more than rubies.
¹¹ Her husband has full confidence in her
    and lacks nothing of value.
¹² She brings him good, not harm,
    all the days of her life.
¹³ She selects wool and flax
    and works with eager hands.
¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,
    bringing her food from afar.
¹⁵ She gets up while it is still night;
    she provides food for her family
    and portions for her female servants.
¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;
    out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously;
    her arms are strong for her tasks.
¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable,
    and her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹ In her hand she holds the distaff
    and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor
    and extends her hands to the needy.
²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
    for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
²² She makes coverings for her bed;
    she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
²³ Her husband is respected at the city gate,
    where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them,
    and supplies the merchants with sashes.
²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity;
    she can laugh at the days to come.
²⁶ She speaks with wisdom,
    and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹ “Many women do noble things,
    but you surpass them all.”
³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
³¹ Honor her for all that her hands have done,
    and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.