Carla R.'s Profile

Shay & Company is a bulk soap and body product ingredient supplier.  I first discovered them online after searching for "soap ingredient suppliers Portland" in Google because though I can find many suppliers that's exclusively online, I want to be able to circumvent the cost of shipping and support local businesses.  

When I first drove by the shop, it was a little easy to miss since it does look like a house, but there is a sign out front letting you know you are there.  There is a small off-street parking lot.  Though they process online orders, the showroom is open to the public.  It was a little awkward walking in at first, but the employees are warm and inviting.  The showroom is small, but offers everything that's online.  There are testers for the butters, essential and fragrance oils to try out.  The people working there are willing to answer questions about the products, what's in stock and when they expect shipments of replacement products to come in.  

The prices are definitely reasonable (better than some online stores) and they had a few items on the "clearance" table.  

This store is worth checking out for your soap or body care product ingredients.

Unfortunately this restaurant  changed for the worse.  When it was still run by previous management/owner(?), the food was pretty good.  A lot has changed there in the past year, and not just the decor.  Speaking of decor, the lighting was awful.  We had to use our smartphone flash light apps to even read the menu - it was that bad.

We ordered three entrees to share and take the rest home.  The entrees were all from the stir-fry portion of the menu and when they were presented to us, they all looked exactly the same when it was supposed  to be three different items.  Even the server was confused what was what as he was placing them on the table.

Two of the three entrees were lukewarm so we sent them back to be heated up.  My guess it was popped in the microwave to satisfy us.  When the food came back, it was not only difficult to distinguish one dish from another based on how they looked, they also all tasted exactly the same.  The flavors were not distinguished or even distinct at all.  The sauces looked and tasted watered down.  I asked for spicy and they were as mild as water.  This is the point where you wish you could go back in time and go to a place that you know and love.  

The bathroom toilet was backed up and there was water on the floor.  

There are many other good Thai restaurants in Portland, so this one is completely off the list.

I love how simple, yet flavorful the food is.  Its not your typical Portland Thai restaurant cuisine, so its best to keep an open mind. The Larb Gai Tod and one of the stir fry dishes are two of my favorites.   The Salad Rolls are some of the best I've had in this city - large and full of flavor.  The deep fried whole tilapia is a fun and delicious experience that I recommend trying at least once.  

The service is a bit "casual", but always friendly.  The seating is cute and charming, but a little uncomfortable.  

I've been there several times and would definitely go back.

Their new location is a step in the right direction.  Its smaller, but its much cleaner than it was when I posted my original review.  The tea is decent, but they still use water that's way too hot for certain types of teas.  At least they made an improvement...

Super modern decor, green apples, and "Bliss" toiletries - what's not to like?  

As difficult as it was to find the entrance to the hotel to drop off the luggage and the car, it wasn't fun being told that the valet parking lot was full(!) and that we had to quickly drop off our bags and circle around to the garage next door.  This is after an almost three hour drive to get there.  Thankfully it wasn't a big deal, but it would of nice if the bellhops wasn't so laissez faire about it.

Other than that, everything else was perfect. Comfortable accommodations, soft bed and pillows, ample seating areas and great views.  There was a party next door and thankfully you couldn't hear a sound.

This is a great place to stay for short or long term stays with their  comfortable recently remodeled accommodations with kitchens.  The staff are very helpful and friendly and housekeeping was always early in the day and very thorough.  There is a "happy hour" some evenings where they serve beer and wine, but skip the breakfast if you don't mind eating fake eggs, cereal, pastries and coffee with "creamer".  

The location is OK depending on your preference. You'll be near a lot of shopping areas and strip malls with not a lot of decent food choices (fast food, chain restaurants, etc); unless you don't mind taking a drive somewhere else.  The freeway entrances and exits are just a couple blocks away which made this place worthwhile.

Surprisingly, there is no WiFi, you will be connected via a cable.

One of the best salad bars, juice bars (include fruit free options), and large selection of organic, gluten-free, refined sugar free grocery items.  Some things are pricier than other stores, others are comparable or even cheaper - it really depends on what you're comparing it to and the quality of the food selection: Whole Foods? Wal-Mart? Safeway?    

This will be the only food store lll go to whenever I visit the area.

My review is of the store, not the salon.

I walked into Ulta a little over a month ago and immediately fell in love.  I've been a Sephora fan since their beginning living in the Bay Area, but finally there's a store where I can buy *everything* I need and not break the bank.  I can buy Aveeno, Bare Minerals, Orly, Phyto and Garnier at the same store.  

The staff are attentative, but not intrusive. I wish the inventory didn't have so many gaps, but that usually happens when there's a big sale.  

I wish there was a location in Portland, but I will keep coming back to this one!

Going by the mostly 4-5 star reviews, I decided to check this place out very recently.  I was a little nervous because the first thing I spotted  upon entering was the sushi boat thingy. I usually run the other direction when I see those, but there were three Sushi  chefs working hard to prepare for happy hour so I assumed they Sushi was fresh. I was right, it wasn't bad at all.  Not great, but what do you expect for $1.50?

The service was attentive from the server, manager and the Sushi chefs were pretty personable.  

What went wrong?  My "spicy chicken" was both very bland and dry.  The pieces of chicken were aged and hard as a rock.  Why did they need to give me 5 cups of rice with that dish?  I generally don't eat a lot of rice and usually leave most of  it behind on my plate, but that was enough to feed 5 people.   The tempura was dry, hard, cold and almost stale.  It almost had the feeling/taste that it was pre-cooked hours ago.  

When the bill came, the owner/co-owner/owner's wife? came over to chat with us for a few minutes.   She asked me specifically if I've been there before, she swore she recognized me.  I kept telling her "no, this is  my first time here" and she almost didn't believe me (I guess we all look alike, LOL).  She then noticed that she forgot to charge me for one dish, took the bill to the register and re-billed me. Tacky!  It was only  for 1.50, which I could have made up in the tip.

Why charge for wasabi?

I've been to The Tao of Tea several times for tea and sometimes a meal.  The environment is instantly calming; a place I could spend hours at without knowing  it.  Though I'm normally not a fan of chai teas, their chias is the best I've ever had and served with a choice of milks and sweeteners on the side so I can control how much I want.  Of course you have your choice of some of the best green, white, oolong, etc  teas you can find as well.

The food is pretty tasty as well - normally not my first choice, but there is nothing on the menu I would turn down.

The only thing that bothers me at The Tao of Tea is the lack of ventilation, how warm/hot it can get indoors, the limited restroom facilities and how unstable some of the "fancy" seating is.  Sometimes I feel like I'm going to fall off my stool.