PDX Starting Grounds

Unexpected but very a welcome surprise to have such a nice (and quick) coffee spot in the courthouse while on jury duty. Got in line during a 10-min break with many people ahead of me, and was still back in the jurors room before break was over.

First of all, this place is in the courthouse. With that in mind, you’d expect it to be kinda bleh, but NO. Starting Grounds is delightful! Super friendly and attentive staff, and really good coffee and breakfast sandwiches. Also, the owner, Trever, who is visually impaired made a killer coffee that made my jury duty experience SO much better than it could have been. Thank you Trever!

Going through security just to get a coffee might seem more trouble than it's worth, but you can get an excellent mocha at a good price and take it up to the 17th floor to relax in a comfy chair where you can look out the windows past the river clear to Mt. Hood, almost fifty miles away.

Come up a level, to 3, go left atop stairs if you didn't elevate, in north corner adjacent to juror only area...yum including some quick grab snacks/sandwiches 🥪/soda 🥤 can/bottles

Had a Waldorf salad sandwich in a plastic triangle casing, thinking it would be mediocre but convenient—instead it was a great sandwich. The dark rye bread was fresh and tasty, the lettuce was plentiful and fresh, a healthy medium dark green, and the Waldorf salad itself was flavorful and tasted like homemade not out of a mass container. I thoroughly enjoyed it, felt like I got Real Food not agrabiz chem stuff. That place rocks!