Pioneer Place

Elite '08

45

254

Erin M.

Portland, OR

I'm moving to Portland from San Francisco in a matter of weeks, and although I think I'll desperately miss the shopping possibilities in the Bay Area, Pioneer Place will definitely help ease my pain. My boyfriend and I were wandering around, trying to find dinner, and I saw a Guess store. I entered what turned out to be a shopping mecca! Guess, Aldo Shoes, Coach, Gap, and more... Okay maybe not a Mecca but a great place to start. :)

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Elite '08

64

512

Teresa N.

San Francisco, CA

Good layout. Clean and organized. Good selection of stores... usually anywhere with an Apple store or J.Crew gets a thumbs up for me. Especially a TWO DECKER J.Crew! Score! Validate your parking stub and it's free at the parking structure!

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Elite '08

45

158

Jenny C.

Portland, OR

"One thing I am slowly realizing... is only about 5% of the American public (maybe even the world public) has a brain or common sense. Case in point... MySpace page layouts."   - Mike M. of Seattle/Kirkland

Pioneer Place is one of those spots I go to when I have to. Need a quick lunch, need a shirt, need a gadget at the apple store... it's not a destination, but it's nice to have around if necessary.  Ultimately it feels like a trap to me.  4 city blocks in Downtown Portland is really disproportionate... it's almost too big.

It is however a happin' place made for and run by the teens of of PDX.  Seems like tourists hit it up for the most part, with the exception of the food court being packed by business folks during lunch.  

So here's a myspace-esque quiz to answer all of your questions. No common sense required. lolomgz.  

Name?: Pioneer Place
Nicknames?: The mall downtown... no not the one with the ice rink.    
Date of birth?: Late 20th Century, Getting so old.
Sex?: yes plea...i mean... uni-sex.
Height?: 3 levels connected by sky bridges plus a basement/concourse level
Pets?: None, but sometimes there are birds on the roof.
Hair color?: Low-E glazing, there are huge skylights in all of the buildings letting in natural light into the atriums.  
Piercings?: At Claire's if you can wade through the piles of stuff.
 
Favorite foods?: Just about anything...
Croutons or bacon bits?: You can get both at California Crisp.
Favorite day of the week?: Everyday!    
Favorite restaurant?: Todai sushi up on the top floor.  (Don't tell the food court or the TWO starbucks inside)
Favorite flower?: rose  .... it's plastered everywhere.
Favorite sport to watch?: Kids playing on that interactive floor screen on the lower level

Carpet color?: Faux Terrazzo with the rivers of oregon meandering in a complementary color throughout (they used to be clear/filled with water and beads and lights...)

Bedtime?: 9.00 pm Monday - Friday , 8.00 Saturday (SERIOUSLY?) , 6.00 Sunday  
Been out of country?: No, but people from out of country have been in.
What are you listening to right now?: Smooth Jazz bumpin' through the PA

What are you wearing right now?: Nothing a la stripped down shopping center design
Do you smoke?: Not indoors or within' 25 feet of the entrance yo!  
Do you drink?: Alcohol is prohibited on the premises.
Are you ghetto?: In downtown Portland? No....
Are you a player?: Oh hellz yes.  
What are your favorite colors?: Teal, Cream, Pink, Gold

Do you get online a lot?: yes... at http://www.pioneerplac...
Are you shy or outgoing?: Shy, but always there...  
Do you shower?: Maintenance is always keeping the place up

Do you want to get out of your hometown?: Might fit better in a larger metropolis
Are you spoiled?: Many classy / high end stores here...
Are you a brat?: To attract clientele, perhaps.

Do you have a cell phone?: Almost every Cell Provider has a shop or kiosk in the place.
Do you like gettin your picture taken?: All the time
Do you have a tan?: HAHAHAHAHAHA...that's a great one.  
Do you get annoyed easily?: I'm pretty tolerant  

Do you have your own pool?:  A few cool fountains can become a pool if you don't get caught.
How many languages can you speak?: The rosetta stone kisok has a ton of options.

Have you ever been played?: Probably... Clackamas Town Center I'm lookin' at you.

Have you ever been bitched out?: yeah, angry customers are fun to deal with  
Are you rude?: not in the slightest....
Do you like getting dirty?: *bow chicka-wow-woooooowwwww*  

What is one of your bad qualities?: A lot going on... there is such a thing as too much of a good thing
What is one of your good qualities?: Something for everyone

Do you like cows?: mooo....

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6

108

Erin Q.

Ramona, CA

This mall would seem a bit out of place in such an interesting part of town were it not so friggin' huge. I agree with Brad W.'s review that most of the stores here are very high end and not very welcoming to middle class travelers. I went into the Sharper Image because it's closing down, with everything marked down at least 30% and still nothing was worth the price. Plus, most of what I found were things I would never consider purchasing, such as a "Land Before Time" lookalike dinosaur, I mean really. One interesting thing I got to witness as I was looking around was an elderly gentleman relaxing in one of the crazy massage chairs. He had the chair recline all the way back and at first I thought he was trying to get up but couldn't, then realizing that the chair was starting to do it's thing. A few seconds later, he was getting the shiatsu treatment in the back, but it made him look like he was convulsing. While I wanted to ask him if he needed help, he seemed to be enjoying it...is it sad that I laughed at him instead? Hmm...

Anyway, the mall is your typical high end mall. The food court on the lowest level had a poor variety of food to choose from. I left the place empty handed, and then I found Nordstrom Rack. Just go there instead. Super cheap and not as much to have to walk around in. Walking in Portland sucks after a while...my poor feet. Somehow, however, I came back to this mall two more times in one day to peruse...I must be addicted.

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0

18

Doogle S.

Los Angeles, CA

Great place! Modern, convenient, but needs Sephora or something.....A little confusing, but awesome place

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Elite '08

61

112

Lisa S.

Portland, OR

Have an hour to kill while you're downtown?  Stop by Pioneer Place and fiddle with all the new gadgets in the Mac store and the Sharper Image, enjoy the functional art and other eye-candy at Twist, stop by Fuzziwigs to stock up on licorice wheels, Zots and other hard-to-find sweet treats, and on your way out the door, stop to observe Silver Man, the live statue performing magic tricks right before your eyes!

My favorite place to shop downtown, Pioneer Place contains a great combination of high-brow (Coach, BCBG) and low-brow (Gap, Forever 21).  The food court is not as slimy and deep-fried as other mall food courts...you can actually get above-average Thai and Japanese food as well as sandwiches and pizza.

The restrooms are clean and the whole place is bright, well-designed and not too noisy.

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141

310

brad w.

Camas, WA

Pros: Cool, spiral design, lots of empty space.  Great people watching out front.

Cons:  Time management stores, high-end stereo store, all you can eat seafood buffet, and a bunch of high end-retail.

Crowd:  Giggling teens, lost tourists, windowlicking natives.

Movie Theater:  All the way at the top.  Not bad.  

I'll only come back if someone is demanding high-end stereo gear for a really important milestone birthday or holiday or something.  This perfectly anywhere mall exists mere steps from several truly interesting neighborhoods, not to mention the sprawling majesty of whatever that river is called that goes by downtown.  You know, the one with the boats and the bridges?

Extra Point Deducted: Mac Store.

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Elite '08

126

537

Krista T.

New York, NY

Goin shopping! Going shoppin! You take your cash tonight and I'll take my card! YEAH!
So listen, I likes me some shopping. I like with a side of shopping. I do. Pioneer has some very uniqe stores like Twist and then the usual like Gap and Victoria's secret. It has some higher end stores like BCBG and it does house Portland's only Louis Vuitton store, but for the most part it's not exceptionally extravagent. Its a nice balance for those who want to splurge a little or window shop for inspiration and actually purchase some up to date pieces without breaking the bank.

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