The 2022 Eater Portland Holiday Gift Guide

Spice blends, teas, dishware, and more — all made in Oregon

Portland’s status as a “food city” doesn’t simply refer to its restaurants: This is a town full of knifesmiths and spice merchants, distillers and master preservers. At places like My People’s Market or Wellspent, locals search for locally made hot sauces or olive oils, charcuterie or ceramics. At Vivienne Kitchen & Pantry or even Powell’s, home cooks scope out cookbooks from Oregonian chefs and authors, specializing in everything from dumplings to campout cooking. So when looking for a holiday gift, there’s no need to venture too far from home. Below, we’ve compiled some of our favorite food-themed gifts, all made by Oregonians. For more ideas, check out last year’s gift guide.

A plate with a painting of a toucan perched on a dragonfruit plant.

Gado Gado Dragonfruit Rectangle Platter by Kate Blairstone

At Hollywood District restaurant Gado Gado, diners gaze upon tropical-print wallpaper while grazing on Chinese-Indonesian dishes. Owners Thomas and Mariah Pisha-Duffly commissioned artist Kate Blairstone to design the wallpaper, highlighting Southeast Asian ingredients. Inspired by antique Peranakan porcelain, the prints are now available on platters, which can be purchased online and in-store at Cargo. —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

Lisa Congdon’s ‘Bright Side’ enamelware cup

Portland-based designer Lisa Congdon’s colorful illustrations are easily recognized by her use of fun geometric patterns. Her line of food-safe enamelware brings a touch of playfulness to any table and is durable enough for outdoor dining. —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

Turquoise-and-white bowls and mugs from Clay Factor.

Turquoise Taffy Ceramics by Clay Factor

Potter Minu Oh has mastered balancing rustic, handmade touches with a clean, finished piece. Her Taffy collection swirls pale turquoise around matte ceramic mugs and bowls, whimsical and elegant at the same time. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

Tea Bar’s London Fog

This prolific Portland chain of minimalist tea shops is known for its tea lattes, and its London Fog may be one of its loveliest. Using a foundation of organic Earl Grey, Tea Bar adds lavender sourced from the Columbia River Gorge to add floral notes to its tea. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

Wilderton Lustre

There are so many exciting non-alcoholic spirits on the market right now, but one of the coolest booze-free spirit producers is based in Portland. Wilderton’s products aren’t necessarily trying to replicate any particular liquor; instead, they lean heavily on botanicals and teas to create something captivating. The brand’s Lustre — made with orange rind, tarragon, and bergamot — is bold enough to stand up to mixers like tonic water, or to simply sip over ice. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

Eleni’s Kitchen Berbere

For more than a decade, Eleni Woldeyes has helped the uninitiated cook nuanced Ethiopian food at home with her simmer sauces and spice blends. Eleni’s offers a number of fun gift boxes, but when it comes to stocking stuffers, it’s hard to beat her classic berbere, an earthy combination of red chiles, garlic, ginger, and black cardamom. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

A box of Montelupo cavatappi, a jar of tomato sauce, a bottle of red wine, a bottle of olive oil, and a red-and-white tote bag sit on a bed of green confetti.

Montelupo Tote Bag

This Italian restaurant and market goes above and beyond when it comes to its house-made products: Not only does the shop make its own pasta, tomato sauces, and olive oil blends, it even has its own wine label. You can get all of the above in a cute, tomato-adorned tote bag — it’s basically a BYO-dinner party. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

Tiny Fish Co.’s Buddy Pack

Chef Sara Hauman endeared herself to viewers when she competed on Top Chef: Portland in 2021. Since then, the chef has gone on to launch Tiny Fish Co., hopping on the tinned fish trend. This variety pack offers a versatile sampling of Pacific Northwest seafood: rockfish in sweet soy sauce, smoked mussels en escabeche, and octopus with lemon and dill. —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

Chelo’s Sweet Habanero Hot Sauce

Chef Luna Contreras’s line of hot sauces boast an intricate layering of flavor and heat that is true to the chef’s form. The sweet habanero pairs the pepper with carrot and onion, which plays off its natural sweetness; Mexican sugar and five-spice amplifies it, adding a foundation of grounded spice for contrast. It’s fantastic in breakfast hashes, dips, and as an everyday condiment. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

Bitterman’s Taste of Portland salts on a white background.

Bitterman’s Taste of Portland Salt Six-Pack

The Meadow — Portland’s emporium of specialty salts, chocolate, and bitters — offers goods from all over the world, as well as Oregon proper. This salt set, from shop owner Mark Bitterman’s eponymous product line, will elevate a wide variety of dishes, from a couple dashes of Fleur de Hell in a steaming hot bowl of ramen to a sprinkle of blue lavender flake over ice cream. —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

Skewers of meat and vegetables grill on a Finex pan over a campfire.

Finex’s Cast Iron Grill Pan

For residents of such a rainy city, many Portlanders are partial to wood-fired foods; however, in the colder months, pulling off the flavor of a grilled vegetable or steak can be tricky. Finex’s grill pans are satisfyingly versatile: When stuck indoors, they can replicate the flavor of a backyard barbecue from an electric stove, and when the summer rolls around, they can sit squarely on the stones of a fire pit for next-level campfire cooking. —Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Eater Portland editor

The cover of “Evolutions of Bread: Artisan Pan Breads and Dutch-Oven Loaves at Home.”

Evolutions in Bread: Artisan Pan Breads and Dutch-Oven Loaves at Home by Ken Forkish

Bread and pizza maestro Ken Forkish may have left Portland for Hawaii upon his retirement, but the follow-up to his James Beard Award-winning bread bible Flour Water Salt Yeast will give home bakers pro tips on producing bakery-quality loaves. —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

A loaf of sourdough bread cut in half from Starter Bread.

Subscription to Starter Bread

For the loved one who was nursing a sourdough starter during lockdown but has since let their breadmaking hobby fall by the wayside, this bread subscription provides a weekly supply of loaves made using natural sourdough fermentation and a variety of local whole grains like emmer and barley. The resulting bread has a gorgeous crumb and depth of flavor. (Note: New subscriptions go live on November 9.) —Janey Wong, Eater Portland reporter

The 2022 Eater Portland Holiday Gift Guide

Gado Gado Dragonfruit Rectangle Platter by Kate Blairstone