Common Grounds Coffee House is back and better

Not only is Common Grounds in Portland's east side back, but this favorite has returned to the food and ambience it had before it changed hands a few years ago.

Much-missed bruschetta is back on the menu at Common Grounds! I haven't tried it, but it appears to be the same item. I can say that the chevre salad is lovely—cheese, walnuts and cranberries on baby greens, with a little balsamic vinegar in the dressing.

Love it or hate it, the same funky coffee house furniture remains. Small tables crowd the center floor; ancient sofas line the walls. Best bet for a computer hookup are the window bars, where you will probably be able to access an electrical socket. The southern exposure can make the contrast with the computer screen

Food includes soup, salad, panini and breakfast items like oatmeal and granola. The pastry case offers many choices; today the selection includes a savory muffin with tomato and chevre, sour cream banana bars, Hello Dolly bars (caramel and nuts), apple crisp, peanut butter bars, pumpkin bread, vegan carrot oatmeal cookies and a variety of scones, among other offerings.

Common Grounds

When I called Common Grounds' phone number to check whether they had indeed closed, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a human voice.

The shop was closed for a few months, but is is open again now under new ownership. It's at 4321 SE Hawthorne, and I will be visiting and updating shortly.

Another Portland coffeehouse closes

Chance of Rain, just off Hawthorne at 32nd, has the ominous brown paper covering its windows. Lonely picnic tables and a couch sit dismally outside. The Web sit is no more.

The shop had been one of the few in town run by a collective. I'm sorry it didn't make it.

Also closed, and much missed, is Dancing Beans, which used to be on SE 12th a few blocks south of Hawthorne. It was a wonderful place to work, partly because it was so quiet—but too much quiet is death in this business.