Platypus Pub Though the name is familiar—Platypus is a basement pub famous for serving hard-to-find beers—the Third Street bar has gone beyond pouring and recently entered the brewing arena with outstanding results. See the exceptional (and tongue twisterly named) Haste Ye’ Back Scottish Wee Heavy (8.5% ABV) for proof of their brewing prowess. “We’re selling […]
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Posted inFood & Drink
Top Five Restaurant Upgrades
Also, Bend’s best beer and dishes
1. Spork While we loved Spork’s global-street-food-inspired food cart, the move out of the Airstream and into a proper brick-and-mortar location is the best thing that could have possibly happened to Bend’s food scene. 2. Worthy Brewing If Spork is the best thing to happen to Bend’s westside, Worthy gets the prize for best eastside […]
Posted inCulture
Top Five Books of 2013
Also, Bend’s top celebrities and local art installations
1. The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt: The one common denominator for almost every thinking-person’s “best literature of 2013” list, Tartt’s third novel, a beautiful and epic story about tragedy (the teenage protagonist loses his mom in a bombing at an art museum) masquerading as redemption—or vice versa. 2. The Circle, Dave Eggers: His ninth book is […]
Posted inOutside
Top Five Oregon Sports Moments
Also, top local outdoor feats and recreation upgrades
1. Blazers return! With two wins over the Jazz in less than one month, the Blazers have their best season start in 20 years! 2. Jacoby Ellsbury boosts Red Sox to World Series victory. The Madras all-star center fielder and former Bend Elk finished 2013 with 31 doubles and a league-leading 52 stolen bases. Before […]
Posted inCulture
Top Five Movies of the Year
Narrative and docs!
Top Five Movies (Narrative) By Tin Pan Theater 1. Short Term 12 We laughed, cried and rejoiced with the characters in this film. It was the only movie of the year where the closing credits made us feel like we were saying goodbye to family. 2. Before Midnight The most realistic film about long term […]
Posted inMusic
Top Five Albums of 2013
Also, the year’s best EPs
Dear Miss Lonelyhearts Cold War Kids Downtown Music LLC Like cannon fire signaling the beginning of a revolutionary battle, Long Beach California’s Cold War Kids’ fourth studio album, Dear Miss Lonelyhearts, blasts away oppressive emotions from the very moment front man Nathan Willett bangs on his piano’s keys for the opening track, “Miracle Mile.” Thundering […]
Posted inMusic
Jazz Binge
The Oregon Piano Summit brings four pianists and 352 keys to The Oxford Hotel
Rarely do two pianists share the same stage. Even rarer is a performance with three. And four? That’s bonkers. Yet an ivory drubbing jazz concert featuring individual sets by four of Oregon’s premier piano artists is exactly what’s in store for Bend Dec. 27 and 28 at The Oxford Hotel. Instrumentalists Gordon Lee, Darrell Grant, […]
Posted inNews
A Logical Breakdown of the Dam
It’s been a busy and complicated year for Mirror Pond
One by one, latecomers walked to the far side of the well-lit Bend Park and Recreation District community room to retrieve a seat from the stack of black chairs on the opposite wall. The mood was solemn but anticipatory for the Dec. 2 Mirror Pond Ad Hoc work group meeting. It was a mixed bag […]
Posted inCulture
Used is the New Black
Vintage pieces go beyond standard rack items
Tucked downstairs in one of the most ignored buildings on Bond Street (number 841, home to a small wine shop, an antique store and Rich Music), down an M.C. Escher maze of staircases under Townshend’s Tea, is a new consignment shop, appropriately called “The Basement.” Opened last week, the clothing store is more of a […]
Posted inNews
Take Me to the River
If the city is working toward water conservation, why are environmentalists so upset?
During a special meeting on Friday, the Bend City Council, ostensibly, voted in favor of the environment when they pledged to limit drains on Bridge Creek, the city’s main water supply source. The small Tumalo Creek tributary remains at the center of a discussion about how to improve flows in the watershed, particularly in the […]