Small Bites: Día de los Muertos and Diwali, Openings, Closings, Food Carts, and More

A colorful rangoli. — Example of a colorful rangoli.

Pan de muertos sources in the Portland metro area. Today and tomorrow is Día de los Muertos, aka Day of the Dead, an important holiday in Mexican culture. This is when it is believed that spirits of the dead come to visit, as the veil between the dead and the living has thinned. The sweet pan de muerto is a traditional food for this holiday, and The Oregonian put together a great list of where to find them in our metro area. Check it out. Various locations.

Day of the Dead at Midtown Beer Garden. This big food cart pod on SW 5th and Harvey Milk Street built a communal altar this week for Día de los Muertos, and you are invited to come by. Bring pictures, mementos, or remembrances of your loved ones and add them to the altar. On Saturday, November 2 from 2pm to 7pm there will be some snacks, kids activities, and a DJ. Saturday the Midtown Beer Garden‘s altar’s final night, so stop on by and hang for a bit, remembering those beautiful souls who have left us. 431 SW Harvey Milk Street, Portland

And a Día de los Muertos ofrenda at the PSU Farmers Market. Also on Saturday, November 2, the PSU Farmers Market is set to honor Día de Los Muertos with a community ofrenda. From 9am to 2pm, there will be “multiple vendors with a direct cultural connection will honor the holiday with their special traditions.” The community ofrenda is curated by a PFM staff member with cultural ties to this holiday. “All are welcome to bring a picture of deceased loved one to display on the ofrenda.” SW Park and Montgomery, Portland

Diwali at CORE. Also on Saturday is the Diwali celebration at the CORE food truck pod. Diwali began on October 31 and lasts for five days, and is the Hindu festival of lights (it’s also celebrated by Jains and Sikhs). There will be good food and drink, henna, a vibrant rangoli, and Bollywood music. Enjoy Indian food from Platter Division, including a build-your-own chaat station, a special cocktail from Publican Beer Room, and dessert by HeyDay Donuts. Head there from 4pm to 8pm in East Portland. 3612 SE 82nd Avenue, Portland

Stumptown’s 25th. Can you believe Stumptown Coffee has been around for 25 years?!? I first encountered them back in 2009 in NYC at a great little cafe called Sweetleaf, and it felt like a big deal. They are celebrating this Saturday at their SE Division Street location with coffee, giveaways, music, a raffle, free drinks, swag, music, and more. Some specifics:

The raffle: Three winners will be selected to each receive two round-trip flight vouchers for Alaska Air.
Free coffee: The first 100 guests to the cafe get a free beverage, thanks to Oatly.
Screen Printing: Bring a t-shirt with you to get screen printed! Misplaced Screen Printing is doing the printing and the other company involved is … Oatly.
Live music: 10am to noon.
Cocktails: Coffee-themed cocktails by Straightaway Cocktails from 2pm to 4pm.

4525 SE Division Street, Portland

Fantastic donut fall flavors from Mikiko Mochi. I was perusing the Mikiko Mochi Donuts Instagram Stories and saw the new flavors for November, which sounds so delicious and certainly of the season: Maple Cranberry, Smoky Cardamon Chai, Pumpkin Salted Caramel, and Purple Sweet Potato Pie. 300 NE 28th Avenue, Portland and 3905 SW Orbit Street, Beaverton

Oathbreaker Pie’s grand opening is today. Eater reported on this new pizza cart in the Hinterland pod. It’s from the Paladin Pie guy, Leo Brill. The word “oathbreaker,” like “paladin,” is part of the D&D/RPG world. According to the article, “Oathbreaker will serve crispy-bottomed New York-style slices sturdy enough to support themselves under the weight of toppings,” and on the Oathbreaker Instagram they describe their pies as “more Brooklyn-er.” Does that mean standing in long lines like you do in Brooklyn? This Queens girl wonders … but I’m really j/k, Oathbreaker.

Apparently they will also offer garlic knots, Stromboli, and a Caesar salad. I’ll repeat from an earlier article: my kingdom for a good any pepperoni roll in this city. 2216 SE 50th Avenue, Portland

Best Fresh Super Market is open in East Portland. Thanks to Bill Oakley for highlighting this new International market on 165th and Division that opened a couple of months ago. They serve the Indian, Pakistani, and Middle Eastern communities. There’s plenty of food on the shelves, some cooking implements, frozen food, and it would not surprise me if there was a halal meat counter. I suspect all items in the store are halal, too. Yet another supermarket alternative to check out. 16544 SE Division Street, Portland

Update from The Back Patio. This little spot in Cully has been sitting there for many months and neighbors have been curious as to its status. I heard from one of the owners via email when I inquired about whether or not the business was still on target to open: “We still are not open sadly due to waiting on the city for permits.” Hurry it up, City of Portland! This is getting old. 3944 NE Cully Blvd, Portland

And an update on Spella Caffè downtown location. A reader of our recent article on the James Beard Public Market lamented the lack of coverage by all outlets regarding the future of the Spella Caffè currently in the building that the JBPM will be located. Good news: it’s staying put. Here’s my response:

“I did have a chance to ask Andrea Spella about the fate of the Spella Caffè there at SW 6th and Alder. The good news is that they are joining the project and will stay open in that location, bringing Pronto Gelato and Woodblock Chocolate along with them.” 608 SW Alder Street, Portland

ÄNIKS has closed. A reader forwarded to me the Instagram post announcing their closure on October 28: “After much consideration, we have made the difficult decision to close ÄNIKS, effective today …. While this marks the end of this chapter, we will be focusing our efforts on opening a new concept in our current space. We hope to host you again soon!”

ÄNIKS was the creation of Ryley Eckersley, and they offered a 10-course tasting menu incorporating local and seasonal ingredients. They also did an afternoon tea. 510 NE 28th Avenue, Portland

The Houston Blacklight will also close. Their final service will be on Saturday, November 2 with an “end of days RAGER” as a sendoff. Their reasoning? “The truth is, we love the neighborhood, we love the bar, the team is INCREDIBLE, but it has never been financially sustainable and we don’t have the resources to give it another go.” They are also the people behind Gado Gado and Oma’s Hideaway, both excellent restaurants in our fair city.

Also: ” If you know someone who is looking to take over a killer lease or if you’re looking for an event space in the next few months, hit us up!” 2100 SE Clinton Street, Portland

The University Station food cart pod is open. This pod is located in a lot adjacent to Mak’s Mini Mart in SW Portland. I had seen the plans for this a while back but hadn’t been able to find anything else on the location at the time. Turns out it’s this pod with eight carts and space for eight more; plus there’s a beer garden. 616 SW College Street, Portland

And The Heist’s Michael Shall is opening a new food cart pod in the Richmond neighborhood. Willamette Week reports on a new food cart pod from Michael Shall, who developed The Heist in Woodstock. It will go up where the Authentic Thai restaurant was, which closed in 2023 due to livability issues (persistent graffiti, for one). He hopes the carts will be operating there next summer. 3829 SE Division Street, Portland

UFCW Local 555 members at Fred Meyer and QFC ratify new contract. If you’ve been boycotting Fred Meyer and QFC because of labor issues, you can stop—they have a new three-year contract. “This agreement ensures significant wage increases, maintains industry-leading healthcare coverage, enhances dental benefits, and strengthens retirement security for more than 11,000 workers.” Various locations.

Best of India is open. A while back we reported that Best of India was preparing to open in that little mall in Argay on NE Sandy Blvd and 138th (same mall that holds the Sandy Hot Wings cafe, and previously, Hummus Vitality). Well, they are indeed open for business! I have no idea the quality of the food, but their menu looks good. Lots of familiar dishes: curries, tandoori meat items, biriyani, breads, dessert. They can accommodate vegetarian and vegans, too. 13882 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

Underrated Thai Restaurants. One of my favorite local flood influencers is Yvette Chau, aka yvetteciao. I love her choices for content and her voiceovers. She recently did a reel of underrated Thai restaurants that makes me want to go to all four: Khamdee Thai Cookhouse, Phaya Thai Express, Lanna Thai Kitchen, and Rama Thai.

Her narration of Khamdee Thai Cookhouse is my favorite part of the reel, featuring the fact that you can choose between five different types of noodles for your noodle soup, the green curry with avocado (!), and their boat noodles had her “levitating.” Dang, I love boat noodles.
11793 SW Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy, Beaverton (Khamdee); 4334 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, (Phaya); 3829 SW Hall Blvd, Beaverton (Lanna); 12874 SW Canyon Rd, Beaverton (Rama Thai)

Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:

The Lime Stand: Hand-Smashed Lime Tea in Portland
The James Beard Public Market: It’s Coming To Downtown Portland
Friends Share Cà Phê Opens November 3
November Is World Vegan Month in Portland

As for festivals coming up in November, there’s Sausage and Sauerkraut Dinner in Forest Grove this Saturday, November 2. And mark your calendars for the Hmong New Year on Saturday, November 9, and as of the writing of this article, there are two seatings for the annual Lutefisk feast: Sunday, November 10 at noon and Sunday November 10 at 6pm.