Quick, tasty and packed full of nutrients and antioxidants salads are a great way to pack in tonnes of superfoods in one sitting. If you’re a resident or just visiting, Portlanders make the most of the city’s rich food scene by following various trends, ranging from going gluten-free to eating a plant-based diet. From customizable-salad vendors to salad-buffet-style spots to bistros with colorful salad bars, the city’s salad scene features outstanding diversity. Here are the best places for salads in Portland, Oregon (in no particular order)…
1. Native Bowl – a popular food cart selling Asian-accented vegetarian food made with local ingredients
Native Bowl is a vegan food cart offering Asian-accented salads and vegan stir-fries prepared with organically sourced ingredients and house-made sauces. Whether you want to enjoy a truly vegan meal or have a little bit of chicken combined with leafy greens, you can satisfy your appetite at Native Bowl. The best part is that most items can be made gluten-free on your request.
The restaurant whips up a truly faithful take on protein-rich Asian salads, all of which come with locally made tofu and soymilk. You can pair the salads with house-brewed iced tea. After having a perfectly prepared vegan-friendly meal, you can treat your buds with cookies from Sift Bakery.
Native Bowl is open Tuesdays through Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. On Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, they stay open till 8 p.m.
Address: 4233 N Mississippi Ave, Portland, OR 97217, United States
2. Crisp Salads – Portland’s only chop-to-order salad restaurant
A laid-back counter-serve restaurant offering an eclectic mix of seasonal, customizable chopped salads with vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free, and gluten-free options. At Crisp Salads, you can savor an impressive variety of flavorful, whole foods. They serve at three locations in and near Portland: North Williams Avenue, Happy Valley Town Center Drive, and Division Street in Portland.
Crisp Salads’ take on paleolithic food is inventive and refreshing. Hunks of chicken sit atop spinach, kale, avocado, broccoli, cucumber, and cabbage to make their specialty Kaleo Paelo salad that arrives with basil lover’s dressing. The restaurant is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Address 1: 3901 N Williams Ave, Portland, OR 97227, United States
Address 2: 2045 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202, United States
Address 3: 15932 SE Happy Valley Town Center Dr, Happy Valley, OR 97086, United States
3. Garden Monsters – offers all sorts of salads including vegan, gluten-free, keto and nut-free
A salad shop offering healthy, mouth-watering off-the-grill meats and salads that allow you to experience an unprecedented level of fulfillment. At Garden Monsters, you can enjoy justifiably good salads according to your dietary preference i.e. gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, healthy fat-rich, or ketogenic.
Grass-fed beef, bacon, or grilled chicken arrives with artichoke hearts, avocado, black beans, and roasted red potatoes, all showered in parmesan cheese. You can adjust the flavor of the salads by adding condiments of your choice. Garden Monsters is open Mondays through Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. On Sundays, they close an hour early.
Address: 5029 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202, United States
4. Rabbits Cafe – an sll-vegan menu of flavorful bowls, salads, and smoothies
A counter-serve vegan cafe offering a sizable menu of salads, bowls, and smoothies in a small setting. They serve two locations in Portland: Southwest Oak Street and Northeast Killingsworth.
The Thumper Salad consists of mixed greens, quinoa, black beans, and pepitas showered in red chili sauce and tomato-corn relish. You should go for The Peter Salad if you want to enjoy a mix of chickpeas, kalamata olives, tempeh, kale, and quinoa in tahini dressing.
You can complement your bowls and salads with soy curls, black beans, lemon curry cauliflower, and ginger carrots among other sides. Rabbits Cafe is open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Address 1: 555 SW Oak St, Portland, OR 97204, United States
Address 2: 1640 NE Killingsworth St, Portland, OR 97211, United States
5. Fermenter – a cool cafe with a deli case serving homemade plant-based items including salads, bowls and kombucha
Fermenter is an easygoing cafe featuring a deli case and offering homemade plant-based items, such as salads, burgers, and kombucha. Located on Belmont Street in Southeast Portland, Fermenter is open Wednesdays through Sundays, mostly between 12 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Fermenter has a small salad menu featuring two options, namely The Bowl and Crunchy Ranch Salad. The former consists of kale, cabbage, shallot, red leaf lettuce, and shredded carrots soaked in hazelnut ranch dressing with a topping of toasted hazelnuts.
The latter consists of local quinoa and kale salad that arrive with seasonal veggies, braised beans, and nutritional yeast dressing in hazelnut yogurt sauce or all-purpose miso sauce.
Address: 1403 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97214, United States
6. Veggie Grill – a modern vegan chain offering sandwiches, salads, faux meats & sides
Veggie Grill is a vegan chain restaurant dishing out sandwiches, salads, faux meats, and delicious sides in a counter-service setting. Located on Taylor Street in Southwest Portland, Veggie Grill is the best place to enjoy 100% plant-based meals in their neighborhood.
From vegan tacos and burritos to veggies burgers to superfood-powered salad bowls, you have a wide range of options to choose from at Veggie Grill. The fast-casual chain restaurant is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Address: 508 SW Taylor St, Portland, OR 97204, United States
7. Laughing Planet – a menu of vegetarian, vegan, paleo, gluten-free dishes including great salads
Laughing Planet is a unique vegan restaurant serving seven locations in Portland: Happy Valley, Cedar Mill, Belmont, Hollywood, Woodstock, Lake Oswego, Northwest 21st Avenue, and Gabriel Park.
Whether you want to have a sumptuous repast or eat something just to take the edge off, Laughing Planet has a sizable menu that caters to all different food requirements.
At Laughing Planet, you can enjoy an excellent variety of soups, salads, burritos, quesadillas, bowls, side dishes, and smoothies with paleo-friendly, gluten-free, and vegan options. All branches of Laughing Planet are open daily, mostly between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m.
- Address: 909 NW 21st Ave, Portland, OR 97209
8. Harlow – an awesome cafe and juice bar serving fresh, locally sourced 100% gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian cuisine
A vegan restaurant offering gluten-free, organic vegetarian fare in a vintage setting. At Harlow, you can savor a great variety of salads and vegan bowls, all prepared with locally sourced 100% natural ingredients.
If you want to have something basic, go for the Mighty Bowl which combines brown rice, daily beans, and steamed greens showered in the sauce of your liking. For a relatively heavy meal, go for the Urban Bowl which comes with steamed kale, kimchi, mixed salad greens, sea vegetables, carrots, scallions, avocado, za’atar, and sunflower seeds doused in the sauce of your choice. Harlow is open daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Address: 3632 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214, United States
9. Kure – for delicious healthy shakes and lots of great salads
Kure is a famous grab-and-go juice shop serving four locations in Portland: Pearl District, Lake Oswego, Southeast Hawthorne, and Downtown, all of which have slightly different menus.
At Lake Oswego, you can enjoy the Mission Bowl that comes with brown rice, mixed greens, salsa fresca, avocado, cilantro-lime cashew ranch, toasted pepitas, and seasoned black beans. Kure’s in Pearl District has a curated selection of coffees including double espresso prepared in oat milk and powered with lion’s mane, cordyceps, and chaga.
Kure at Hawthorne is famous for green juices and the Downtown branch is where you’ll get exciting meal shakes. Kure is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Address 1: 4409 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97215, United States
Address 2: 518 SW Taylor St, Portland, OR 97204, United States
Address 3: 830 NW 13th Ave, Portland, OR 97209, United States
10. The Whole Bowl – for healthy ingredients and quick salads
A casual chain restaurant dishing out gluten-free vegetarian bowls at seven locations in Portland: northeast Sandy Boulevard, southeast Hawthorne, southwest 2nd Avenue, north Vancouver avenue, northwest 23rd avenue, southwest Watson Avenue, and Pioneer Square.
You can enjoy both veganized and fully-loaded versions of The Bambino Bowl and The Big Bowl, each of which comes with a unique combination of rice, cilantro, black and red beans, avocados, tillamook cheddar, and black olives soaked in sour cream, salsa, and tali sauce. All branches of The Whole bowl have different timings.
- Address: 4411 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97215
11. Evergreens – one of the best spots for salads in Portland
A fast-casual restaurant offering freshly prepared vegan meals at 16 locations in Portland. They have a small menu featuring seven exciting options for wraps, salads, and grain bowls, with additions like chicken, turkey, and avocados.
The Southern Saucepitality delivers refreshing tanginess by combining mixed greens, romaine, fire-roasted corn, red bell peppers, pickled red onions, aged white cheddar, and crispy red onions seasoned with smoked spices.
You can top the salads with additional veggies, fruits, dry fruits, and cheeses. You also get a large variety of dressings to choose from including lime garam masala, peppercorn ranch, greek yogurt, and caramelized onion vini among other options. Evergreens is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- 1061 NE 9th Ave, Portland, OR 97232
12. Canteen PDX – a Shaker-inspired cafe serving organic juices, smoothies, salads and bowls
Canteen PDX is where you can treat your tastebuds with fresh juices, salads, smoothies, and vegan bowls. The Walnut Taco Salad at Canteen PDX combines mixed greens with carrots, red cabbage, green onions, and avocado that arrive atop walnut-taco crumble doused in avocado-curry sauce and pico de gallo.
The Quinoa Confetti is their most famous item which comes with curried cashews, apple, celery, quinoa, mint, and cilantro drenched in balsamic vinaigrette and lime juice. You can add a dressing of mixed greens and pair the salad with the Woodstock smoothie, prepared with banana, medicinal mushrooms, and peanut butter.
They also offer exciting sides, such as rice and beans, steamed broccoli, and steamed kales among other options. They serve three locations in Portland: Bridgeport Village, Lake Oswego, and Southeast Stark Street.
- Address: 2816 SE Stark St, Portland, OR 97214
13. Market Street Salad Bar and Deli – a self-serve spot featuring a wide selection of eats sold by the pound
The most famous item on their lunch menu, the Edible Edisto Salad offers crunchy excitement in each bite. The Sunrise Sullivan Salad is for people who want to savor a well-combined mix of tomatoes, romaine, chicken, scallions, bacon, red onions, and avocado doused in citrus vinaigrette. Market Street Salad Bar and Deli is open daily between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m.
- Address: 105 SW Market St, Portland, OR 97201
14. Elephants Delicatessen – a popular and vibrant market option specializing in gourmet deli fare including delicious salads
Elephants Delicatessen is a lively market featuring flavorsome deli dare. You can combine a freshly prepared entree with vegan sides like kale chicken caesar, sesame noodle salad, quinoa and black bean salad, fresh fruit salad, and Moroccan couscous salad with dairy-free and gluten-free options.
If you want to have a salad-only meal, you should try their Willamette Valley Salad, Classic Cobb Salad, Chop Chop Salad, or House Smoked Salmon Salad. The market opens daily at 9 a.m.
Address: 115 NW 22nd Ave, Portland, OR 97210, United States
15. Papa Haydn – keeping Portland full and happy since 1978!
Papa Haydn is an upscale eatery dishing out vegan sandwiches, wraps, and salad in a romantic setting. They have a small salad menu featuring Singapore Bay Shrimp Salad, Salmon Nicoise Salad, Grape & Gorgonzola Salad, and Roasted Beet Salad.
The Roasted Beet Salad is what you should order if you want to savor a fusion of beets, arugula, tangerines, and candied walnuts dressed with Portland’s creamery goat cheese. Papa Haydn is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Address 1: 5829 SE Milwaukie Ave, Portland, OR 97202, United States
Address 2: 701 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR 97210, United States
16. Fehrenbacher Hof – a cozy family-run sit down spot which offers breakfast sandwiches and salads
A family-run breakfast spot offering homemade pastries, sandwiches, burritos, and salads in a homey setting with plush chairs and chess tables. They only offer salads as sides.
You can pair house-cooked corned beef with a steak salad of your choice. Fehrenbacher Hof is open daily between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Address: 1225 SW 19th Ave, Portland, OR 97205, United States
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Beth was born under a wandering star, with drama in her veins and ink in her pen. After stints studying theatre in Dublin and Utrecht she used her creative streak to see as much of the world as she could on as little money. She toured Italian Schools with a children’s theatre troop, lived as an au-pair in both Rome and Washington DC, explored the British countryside, worked her way through much of Europe, Salsa danced in Cuba and road tripped down America’s west coast where she discovered her spiritual home; Portland, Oregon. In between adventures she resides peacefully with her family, cats and ukulele.