Portland undoubtedly has a reputation for being “granola.” Having never been myself I couldn’t quite vouch for anything, until I made my way there on my road trip. We were staying with someone in the Pearl District and I decided to check out Hotlips Pizza. Hotlips is a sort of New York-style pizza joint with a definite Portlandish twist. Pizza options were definitely geared towards being local and on the vegan/vegetarian end. Fortunately, though, they had pepperoni.

I ordered two of their massive slices and a giant pesto breadstick. The pepperonis were massive and only looked normal-sized in the picture because the pizza was equally massive (ratio-wise at least). I started working on the pizza, but it was a struggle, because the dough just didn’t really have enough behind it to support the weight of the pizza, even when folded like a New Yorker. The ingredients were definitely quality and I loved the pepperonis, but there eventually came a point in which the oils pooled at the bottom of the plate and made the slices into a bit of a sog-fest.

When I did finish up, I needed to dispose of my trash, which was not an easy thing to do. Beyond your typical garbage and recycling cans, Hotlips had more to offer. There was also a compost can and a couple others I couldn’t even figure out. If I were living in the Pearl District, I might hit up Hotlips for a fix, but they just seemed to be a few steps off in execution.