Specialties
Portland's first, largest, most bodacious Chocolate Shop, with truffles, boxed chocolates, and a wall of 400 bars! No, wait, we're that iconic Gourmet Salt Shop with over 100 varieties. Wait! Cocktail bitters and mixers by the dozen. Oh! Fresh cut flowers in buckets everywhere. Discover the most delicious gifts and goodies from Hokkaido to Sicily, Iceland to Tierra del Fuego. Olive oils, pastas, mustards, preserves, chili crips, miso, more! We also love local, and feature so you'll find an unsurpassed selection of Portland's best chocolatiers, bitters and vermouth makers, and food artisans on our shelves. Come see our brand spanking new shop on bustling SE Hawthorne Boulevard.
History
Established in 2006.
The Meadow was founded by Jennifer and Mark Bitterman as the inescapable outgrowth of their passion for food and travel. Salt, chocolate, bitters, and flowers is a kind of distillation of the world and the beautiful and delicious things in it. We wanted a warm and welcoming place, so Mark built the shop himself, using reclaimed old-growth Douglas fir. Our team are real people, generous and warm, with a love of learning and sharing. Together, our mission is to be one of those little shops that makes our towns and cities the places we love. We consider our shop your shop. It's home for chocolatiers, chocolate makers, salt makers, vintners, growers, potters, distillers, pasta makers, bakers, canners, and all manner of genius artisans from across the globe. We bring them together for you: home cooks and bartenders, professional chefs and mixologist... for you!
Meet the Business Owner: Mark B.
Not sure how to do this, but here goes! I'm Selmelier (think sommelier, but for salt) and owner. My inspiration: I spent years restoring a chateau in the South of France, and helped raise sheep, foraged, cooked, worked with the locals. Seeing how food, identity, and belonging could be intertwined changed me. My first book won a James Beard Award. 4 more books on cocktail bitters, amari, salt and salt blocks. (As you can sort of guess, there's an obsession here). It's a wild ride. I've lecture from Ukraine to Tokyo, been recognized as Local Food Hero by Cooking Light and Tastemaker by Food & Wine, featured in The New York Times, The Atlantic, O, GQ, Rachael Ray, Wine Spectator, GQ, Esquire, and on The Splendid Table, All Things Considered, Bizarre Foods, CBS News, ABC News, Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, the History Channel, and more. I believe little shops like ours are the beating heart of our communities. So The Meadow is really about creating and sharing a sense of belonging.