If you happen to be keen to get your biscuits buttered, head to Pine State.ДЇabiola set about giving us her three ideas of where to eat while in Portland, and while selecting between Clyde Common and Toro Bravo was difficult, we made the right choice for the evening. Since this was my second (shudder!) fried chicken biscuit sandwich in 48 hours though, IвЂ™m more amenable to the size and flavor of Tasty n Alder. Juicy fried chicken held up the melted cheddar cheese and bits of biscuit flaking off onto my fork. This meal is almost a challenge and most definitely is aiming for the eater with swagger.

When the biscuit arrived, it was of epic proportions. Slung together in seamless motion, the cooks worked so fast that watching them was its own form of entertainment. The line moved quickly and before long, the cashier stood in front of me taking down my order of The Reggie, a biscuit slathered in gravy and sandwiching cheese and fried chicken, and a cold-brewed Stumptown iced coffee.

This meal will cover the requirements nicely. Gabby had cautioned on the large portions here and itвЂ™s true. Take note, there will be a line at Pine State Biscuits, even if you arrive early. I jumped on that biscuit train with the eagerness of a teenager just behind the wheel for the first time solo. After the ridiculously good biscuit at Tasty n Alder, it set a chain of events into motion. It should be disconcerting when people warn you in advance about a restaurant and you decide to go anyway. Get there early and avoid a wait or if dining alone, make friends. If youвЂ™re staying downtown, Tasty n Alder is the one to visit. That particular day I also ordered the off-the-menu special of mini biscuits in venison gravy which resembled a redeye gravy in all the right ways and also featured a smattering of diced bell peppers for flavor and a bit of texture. On another occasion, I opted for the patatas bravas, which I shared with some strangers also set up in the front window with some friendly Portlanders. Thankfully, it is diminutive enough that any notion of wrongdoing is minimized as itвЂ™s not the behemoth-size served at Pine State (and IвЂ™d vouch is the better biscuit). Oh my goodness, the crumb on this biscuit. I donвЂ™t typically go for the whole fried chicken and egg on a biscuit with cheddar, but I heeded the serverвЂ™s recommendation and she did not steer me wrong. More directly, I blame the server who suggested that the biscuit might be good to try. While the original Tasty n Sons still holds a special place in my gut for their warm, friendly service and put an egg on it swagger, thereвЂ™s a good chance my first love has actually become Tasty n Alder. This proved true even more recently when we ambled to Tasty n Sons at 3:30 in the afternoon and found tables of hipsters congregating and filling up the communal table, noshing off the happy hour menu.

I tend to think if youвЂ™ve got 24 hours or even 48 hours and want to experience Portland through your fork, head to a Tasty N Tasty restaurant. Perhaps there is a gold star sticker for frequenters. IвЂ™m not sure there is a reward for it, but I have visited all three food emporiums in the Tasty n Sons trinity. While I would like to say I offset the indulgent and oh-so flaky crumbed days of biscuit-eating with vegan food to depose my butter and flour consumption ratio, IвЂ™m not certain I succeeded. IвЂ™m not sure what got into me, but on a recent trip (okay, trips) to Portland, I found myself knee deep in biscuits.

Pine state biscuit