REVIEW

We love the way the Pacific Northwest treats breakfast as more than a grab-a-bite afterthought. Some real consideration is given to the first meal of the day, and our “breakfast tour” of Portland turned up a number of winners, from the old-time hash-house Fuller’s to the hash specialists at the energized Bijou. Add to that the comfortable, laid-back ambiance of the J & M Cafe, a restaurant with a counterculture spirit.

Choose the mug that fits your mood, and pour your own coffee.

This Eastsider is in a scruffy little industrial neighborhood, but the place couldn’t be more welcoming. Tables are scattered about. There is an old refrigerator with a Pilsner Urquell tap for a handle (or was that an actual Pilsner Urquell tap?) Coffee is self-serve. We especially like the collection of hanging coffee mugs from which to choose.

There are a couple of very nice tables out front, too.

The blackboard menu of specials turned up, on one occasion, a three-corn scramble, which is an amalgam of corn- and polenta-spiked eggs on a corn tortilla, topped with salsa. Very good. We can also recommend the thick-sliced bacon. There were some mighty tempting looking strawberry scones on the counter that we wished we had more room to sample.

A nice place to add to your Portland breakfast repertoire.

LAF TRAK: 

FOOD: 

BEST THING TO EAT: Bacon