Skoal, Cheers, Prost: Drinking lite ain’t what it used to be
According to recently released beer industry figures, lite beer sales are down are whopping 9 percent while craft (microbrew) beer sales are up an equally whopping 12 percent. An easy case can be made for the fact that craft beers simply taste better and lite beers, well, they don't taste like much and as beer…
Tricky Campaign Signs Zing Dudley
This one is too funny to pass up. Carla Axtman, one of Blue Oregon’s contributors, has posted on her Facebook page a photo of a phony lawn sign that she says is appearing around Lake Oswego.
More Video from the Bend Roots Revival
We’re in the process of editing down the hour-plus of footage we collected over the weekend at the Bend Roots Revival, which I’m going to go ahead and say was one of the coolest things I’ve seen during my time in Bend. Festival founder and creative director Mark Ransom told me that he figured more…
Top Chef cast member cooks for you!
If you watched Top Chef: Miami (season 3), you may remember Bend native Brian Malarkey steaming up the Miami location with his porkpie hats, huge smile and cooking skills, inspired by the Oregon countryside. Although he lost to Vietnamese-American cooking genius Hung, Malarkey has been doing pretty well for himself, having recently opened his own…
Election 2010: the season of spite
A guest on one of the political talk shows this past week offered: “there's nothing quite like the throw-the-bum-out energy during an election season.” How true.
Bend Roots Revival: Songwriters in the Round Video
Is the Century Center awesome, or what? Bend Roots is in full swing and tonight promises to be an epic night in local music. I took a break to bring you video from the festival midday.
Right-Wingers Stage a Video Ambush in Portland
Andrew Breitbart sent two of his brownshirt “journalists” to Portland on Thursday, and they got what they were after: some video footage that could be used to embarrass Democratic governor candidate John Kitzhaber. Breitbart is a right-wing agent provocateur who excels at, shall we say, creative video editing.
Bend Roots Revival: Friday in Review, Saturday Preview
The Bend Roots Revival is in full swing at the Century Center (if you’re still having trouble finding it, just turn off of Century at the new US Bank) and last night was a hell of a coming out party for the fest’s new venue. By the time Moon Mountain Ramblers hit the BIGS Stage…
Big Easy Eating: Bourbon Street comes to Bend
First, a disclaimer: I have never been to New Orleans. But this hasn't stopped me from developing a far-away love for the food, culture and history of this unique American city. So I was thrilled when Bourbon Street Bend, the New Orleans-style eatery, opened this summer in the old Staccato location on Minnesota Ave.
I…
Howdy, Neighbors! New owners give Riverside Market a much-needed facelift
Neighborhoods are defined not just by their residents, but the shops, cafes and markets that hold them together. Neighborhood businesses are a reflection of the hood's personality – they employ neighbors, act as meeting places, organize get-togethers and events.
Such is the case with Riverside Market, the casual café and corner store between NW Congress…
Bend Roots Kick Off Video: A Whole Lotta Grateful Dead
The Bend Roots Revival kicked off last night around town and I made it down to the Victorian Cafe where Rising Tide, Bend’s own Grateful Dead tribute band was kicking off the festival, as is becoming tradition. As longtime Bend Roots fans know, there tends to be plenty of Dead covers (or covers of songs…
A is for Awesome: 10 Reasons why Easy A is amazing and you should see it immediately
There are several films I have been looking forward to this fall, chronologically the first being Easy A, starring Emma Stone as Olive Pendgerghast, a Hester Prynne for the digital age. Going in with such high expectations often times can be a downer when the movie doesn't live up to those, but Easy A was…
The Bend Roots Revival Survival Guide
The Revival Survival Guide Now in its fifth year, the Bend Roots Revival, the most significant celebration of local and regional music in our area, has gotten even bigger. Previously spread between the Parrilla Grill and the Victorian Café, Bend Roots quickly outgrew that location. With some 100 acts and workshops going down between Friday…
Bend Roots Revival Kicks Off Tonight
You’ll have to wait until tomorrow afternoon to get into the Century Center, but the Bend Roots Revival (about which we’ll be writing/posting video/raving for the next few days on this blog) is kicking into motion tonight. Here’s a link to our full festival preview, which is also a two-page spread in the print edition.
Grinderman: Grinderman 2
The thing that gets me every time – be it on a Bad Seeds' album, in his fiction or with Grinderman – is how human Nick Cave is. He is a flawed, soft-fleshed mortal creature, just like the rest of us. His humanity comes out in the way he sings like he's speaking in tongues,…
A Dishonest and Desperate Move by Democrats
Oregon Republicans are furious with Democrats for accusing them of backing a 30% sales tax – and they've got reason to be mad, because they're not doing anything of the kind. A mailer sent by Future PAC, the campaign arm of Oregon House Democrats, claims that three GOP House candidates – all in the Portland…
NW Urban Grill Closes
One of Bend's recently opened restaurants, the NW Urban Grill, has closed. We've received confirmation from a reliable source that after just five months of service, the restaurant has sold to the owner of the Brickhouse in Redmond, which will open a steak and seafood joint in the location.
NW Urban Grill Closes
One of Bend's recently opened restaurants, the NW Urban Grill, has closed. We've received confirmation from a reliable source that after just five months of service, the restaurant has sold to the owner of the Brickhouse in Redmond, which will open a steak and seafood joint in the location.
Big Easy Eating: Bourbon Street comes to Bend
First, a disclaimer: I have never been to New Orleans. But this hasn't stopped me from developing a far-away love for the food, culture and history of this unique American city. So I was thrilled when Bourbon Street Bend, the New Orleans-style eatery, opened this summer in the old Staccato location on Minnesota Ave.
Run Without the Sun: A recap of the weekend's epic trail running events
ON THE RUN Editor's Note: This is the first installment in a semi-regular column dedicated to running, including events coverage, trail updates, conditioning and general buzz from around Central Oregon's prolific competitive and casual running scene.
A rare wet mid-September weekend brought two great running events to Central Oregon. The Bigfoot 10K, the elder…
More Than Just the McKenzie: Exploring fall colors on the wet side
Ahh, rain and fall colors. Does it get any better than this? I just rode the McKenzie River Trail (MRT) and even when it's raining you stay mostly dry underneath the high canopy of old growth forest that covers this trail. Fall colors are just beginning to show themselves and it only gets better as…
Civil War! Dispatches from post-Tea Party America
The author is reporting from Fort Pocahontas, not where John(s) Smith's and Rolfe's sexy squaw made camp, but where the United States Colored Troops defeated the Rebels in 1864.
It's Blowout Season: College football's September tradition
“This doesn't seem safe, does it?” I asked, maybe to the bartender or maybe to the only other guy sitting at the bar. Almost ten seconds of silence followed and I felt marginally stupid because when watching football in the company of other football fans, one typically doesn't strike up casual conversation by bringing into…
Know Your Bar Menu (type)
There are three distinct subsets of menu readers that diverge from the mainstream. These are people who regard the menu differently than other people – those who take it and show a distinct part of their persona by the way they handle a simple piece of paper with food descriptions and prices.
Dudley Plays Tough on Defense
Democrats on the Blue Oregon site are trying to stir up outrage over remarks by Chris Dudley that seem to indicate the affluent former pro basketball player thinks restaurant servers make too much money. In a video clip, the Republican governor candidate says: “It takes time to explain so people understand why .
Crime Pays… Sort Of: Ben Affleck tackles the tough streets of Boston in The Town
The Town is one of those movies you watch, all the while wishing it were better. It's not awful and some parts are engaging, but there is either something amiss or else too much stuff crammed into each prolonged scene. What we're left with is a decent TV show with swearing.
Dumpster Diving, True Love, Unemployment and Roller Derby: Our early picks for BendFilm 2010
It's officially autumn and as the leaves start to fall it means several things, but the most exciting in the hearts of cinephiles across the region is the return of our very own independent film festival, BendFilm. We were lucky enough to get a sneak peek at the festival's lineup, that this year features 88…
You Will, You Won't
Generally speaking, when I tell you to do something – you should do it. HOWEVER! If I tell you to do something, and I appear to be wildly intoxicated, mostly naked, and have something that may or may not be feces smeared on my face? You probably shouldn't do it. Of course, you have no…
Our Picks for 9/22-9/30: Against Me! Oktoberfest, Bend Roots Festival, Blind Pilot, and more
Little Shop of Horrors wednesday-saturday 22-25 We had the chance to check out the opening night of Little Shop of Horrors and can say with no reservations that it's downright delightful. The musical numbers are extremely well done, the set is incredible and the acting is as solid as anything we've ever seen here in…
The Minimum Wage Whiners
Oregon's minimum wage will increase by a dime on Jan. 1, 2011. The weeping and wailing from Oregon businesses, conservative politicians and right-wing think tanks will commence well before then.
Building a Better Ballot: Can a group of diverse strangers save Oregon from special interests?
Carl Killius is a political un-extremist. An unemployed contractor who specializes in carpentry work, Killius was a conservative Democrat who switched parties during the Reagan era. Now, he's a moderate Republican who finds himself agreeing with Democrats on certain issues. Still, when Killius was presented with a ballot during the last general election cycle, he…
Kroger's Big Bust
We had to do a double take this week when we saw a press release from our esteemed Attorney General John Kroger touting his latest legal takedown – the bust of 81-year-old Lafa
More News is Good News: KOHD Returns, Winter Snow Report, Happy Birthday Land Trust and More
Thirty Full Minutes Six months after pairing down its staff and trimming nightly newscasts from a full half- hour down to less than 10 minutes, KOHD has brought back its full weekday newscasts at both 6pm and 11pm. Previously, the newscast was a fast-paced data distribution of local news stories and weather, but we can…
Bend Roots Revival Coverage
You should utilize all your skills as a human being to snatch up a copy of this week’s print edition, because inside you’ll find a complete schedule to the Bend Roots Revival — the massive four-day local music explosion that is set over the new Century Center this weekend — as well as some band…
It's Called Street Smarts
Is it time for the City of Bend to file bankruptcy and outsource all services to private contractors?
