NW 23rd Avenue
A bustling commercial corridor lined with boutiques, restaurants, and cafes, often called "Trendy-Third."
NORTHWEST DISTRICT · PORTLAND
Northwest District
Northwest District Association
43 spots to discover in this neighborhood
“Nob Hill 23rd. Tree-lined NW row of cafes and boutiques.”
- Triangle hood
- Bike-friendly
- Up-and-coming
- Walkable corridor
- Eclectic eats
LIVE ACTIVITY
Avg Rating
4.3
Average across 43 businesses
Reviews
16,339
Across 43 businesses
Open Now
14
Live
Right now
Top Categories
- Shops 14
- Auto Repair 11
- Bars 4
NEIGHBORHOOD IDENTITY
What Northwest District Is Known For
“Nob Hill 23rd. Tree-lined NW row of cafes and boutiques.”
Foster corridor
Triangle loop
Local evening
“Nob Hill 23rd. Tree-lined NW row of cafes and boutiques.”
— Northwest District, Portland
The Vibe
What Northwest District Feels Like
Walkable historic shopping and dining
The Northwest District is energetic, walkable, and quintessentially Portland. NW 23rd and 21st Avenues bustle with shoppers and diners, while the tree-lined residential streets just off the main drags are calm and stately.
It blends historic charm with urban vitality: century-old homes, independent boutiques, beloved restaurants, and a steady pulse of pedestrian life. The neighborhood appeals to those who want city living with character, density without losing the human scale.
History
How Northwest District Came To Be
The Northwest District, known affectionately as Nob Hill and the Alphabet District, is one of Portland's oldest and most cherished neighborhoods. It developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a streetcar suburb, filling with Victorian and Craftsman homes, apartment buildings, and a vibrant commercial spine along NW 21st and 23rd Avenues.
The "Alphabet District" nickname comes from its lettered east-west streets, which run in alphabetical order from Burnside northward. The area's elegant early housing stock and walkable commercial streets made it a fashionable address, and it has remained one of the city's densest and most desirable urban neighborhoods.
Through waves of preservation and reinvestment, the Northwest District retained its historic architecture while evolving into a lively district of boutiques, restaurants, and cafes, a model of the walkable, mixed-use urban living Portland is known for.
Character
What Defines Northwest District
Alphabet streets
The lettered east-west streets run in alphabetical order, a distinctive feature that gives the district its nickname.
Historic architecture
Victorian, Craftsman, and early apartment buildings give the neighborhood a richly textured, walkable character.
43
Businesses
72%
Verified
3.8
Avg Rating
Services
Top Category
Categories in Northwest District
Landmarks
Notable Places in Northwest District
NW 23rd Avenue icon
NW 23rd Avenue
A lively shopping and dining district known as 'Trendy-third' lined with boutiques, cafes, and restaurants.
Wallace Park icon
Wallace Park
A neighborhood park adjacent to Chapman Elementary with sports fields and playgrounds.
NW 21st Avenue icon
NW 21st Avenue
A bustling commercial corridor with restaurants, bars, and the historic Cinema 21 movie theater.
Getting Around
Northwest District
Schools
-
Metropolitan Learning Center
A K-12 alternative public school in Portland Public Schools.
-
Chapman Elementary School
K-5 Portland Public Schools, famous for its annual roost of Vaux's Swifts in the chimney.
Outdoors
Parks & Greenspaces in Northwest District
Wallace Park
A popular neighborhood park with sports fields, a playground, and a busy off-leash dog area.
Couch Park
A leafy park with a playground and open lawn, a gathering spot in the heart of the district.
Real Estate
Homes & Architecture in Northwest District
A dense, historic urban neighborhood of Victorian and Craftsman homes, vintage apartment buildings, and condos amid one of Portland's most walkable commercial districts.
Victorian
Craftsman
Foursquare
Vintage apartment
Condominium
Explore
Discovery Paths
Three ways to experience Northwest District.
Foster corridor
- 1 Small cafes on SE Foster Rd
- 2 Eclectic eateries (Stella Taco, Pieper Cafe)
- 3 Bike-friendly side streets
Triangle loop
- 1 Foster Powell Park
- 2 Local restaurants
- 3 Mt. Scott / Holgate bike greenway
Local evening
- 1 Bar Carlo
- 2 Pieper Cafe
- 3 Stella Taco
Civic Infrastructure
The associations, meetings and shared resources that hold Northwest District together.
Active associations
-
VisitNorthwest District Neighborhood Association (NWDA) neighborhood assn
Northwest District triangle: SE Powell Blvd (north) to SE Foster Rd (south) to SE 82nd Ave (east) — bounded by SE Holgate to the north on the SW corner
Businesses in Northwest District
View all
All clusters
Food & Bev
(2)
Retail & Shopping
Health & Wellness
(1)
Professional Services
(3)
Auto & Transport
Industrial/Maker
(2)
Family Services
Hidden Gems
(3)
General
(3)
Loading businesses...
Business Associations in Northwest District
Browse allNWPBA
1,700 members
Representing over 1,700 businesses along NW 21st and 23rd Avenues and surrounding streets.
PMC
2,200 members
The Portland Metro Chamber of Commerce represents over 2,200 member businesses across the greater Portland metro area.
SDBA
Supporting businesses in the Stadium District near Providence Park in Northwest Portland.
SIGNATURE FEATURE
Hidden Gems in Northwest District
Highly rated. Under the radar. The spots locals know about but tourists don't.
Curated by locals
Hidden Gem
5 reviews
D
Dynalectric-Portland
Services
★★★★★
5.0
Discover this gem
Hidden Gem
3 reviews
K
KLEAN Treatment Centers
business
★★★★★
5.0
Discover this gem
Hidden Gem
3 reviews
S
Sniper Response Towing Services
Services
★★★★★
5.0
Discover this gem
Hidden Gem
17 reviews
A
A1 Portland Commercial Refrigeration Repair
Services
★★★★★
4.8
Discover this gem
Hidden Gem
15 reviews
A
Alder Technology
Services
★★★★★
4.7
Discover this gem
Only 5 sponsorship spots in Northwest District
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Nearby
Bordering Neighborhoods
Sources
Portland.gov · Population (11,455) from Wikipedia (Census 2000).
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