Bye and Bye

The Bye and Bye is a dive/bar located on NE Alberta St. in Portland, Oregon. Their food mainly consists of vegetarian and vegan items.

I arrived just a bit after noon on a Saturday, and Bye and Bye had just opened for the day (yup, no other customers in the building). I ordered their Meatball Sub ($8): a Grand Central baguette with veggie meatballs, housemade marinara, and almond-oat cheese. My choice of side: chili! My veggie meatball sub also came with a handful of tortilla chips.

Food menu (as of October 2011)

Meatball sub (Bye and Bye)

Side of chili

I didn't miss the meat at all. The vegetarian "meatballs" were juicy and delicious, a great proxy for the much more fattening, meaty counterpart. The marinara had a nice sweetness from the tomatoes. When the almond-oat cheese entered the mix, I really felt like I was eating a regular meatball sub here instead of the vegetarian and vegan components. The bread was tough to bite through...I wish I had a softer roll for this one. The ideal bread here would be firm on the outside, but, when toasted, retains that pillowy inside. Unfortunately, I didn't get that here.

The chili was just OK. Not bad on the flavor (and a little kick there), but didn't really wow me.

An above-average experience food-wise. Bye and Bye's hours (usually afternoon to late nights) generally means I won't be around the area as much to try more of their food. Other reviewers on Yelp speak highly of Bye and Bye's Weeping Tiger Sandwich ($8). Check out Bye and Bye and let me know what you think! 6.5/10