Today’s ride to Kenton was exhilarating, and it reminded us once again how far the health of this N. PDX neighborhood has improved.  Admittedly it’s been improving for more than five years, but today’s group of four remembered how much of a struggle new commerce faced ten years ago, and how out of place a thoughtful, visually interesting, well-designed coffee shop like Presso would have been back then.   Though cozy with few seating options, which in turn limits how long some patrons may feel comfortable in hanging out, there’s no denying that Presso Coffee Bar is perfectly laid out in terms of its counter and tables, wall decor, and cheery vibe.

Discussion-wise, we were impressed that with all that’s been going on in the Supreme Court hearings, it us 30 minutes into our discussion before the name Kavanaugh was mentioned.  Instead H first told of the 20 hours that P and he just spent in Manhattan and Brooklyn – in/out easily thanks to Amtrak – to very quickly touch base with two friends; DM told of his son’s contract to handle the restaurant set-up for a Brooklyn hotel, developed by the same British group that’s working on the new hotel at Burnside/Chinatown; G talked of inspecting the inside and outside of D’s and his home from 32 years ago, pleased somewhat with how big some of his plants had grown and disappointed how others had been neglected; and M told of the joys and stresses of canvassing for the Portland Clean Energy Fund ballot measure.  

2020 N. McLellan St.                                   pressocoffeebar.com