Top 5 Posts on Bridgetown Bites, February 2025

Welcome to February 2025’s review of top posts for the month. Popular topics include restaurant openings, including the big Flock food hall. And dumplings! Dumpling Week always does well. (Because who doesn’t love dumplings?!?)

It was another good month on the site from a traffic standpoint, with 38,500 unique visitors who generated close to 52,000 page views. That’s an increase of about 24% and 20%, respectively.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by, read, shared, and commented on the articles here. And as always, big thanks to our tipsters who pass on tidbits that I can share with you.

5. Fat Milo’s Will Open a Second Location in NE Portland

The location for Fat Milo's on NE Fremont Street in Portland, Oregon.

A Bridgetown Bites tipster reached out to tell me they had come across a posted liquor license application for a restaurant called Fat Milo’s. They will open up in the old Morchella space, bringing comforting diner food— with ingredients sourced from local farmers and makers—to NE Fremont and 13th Avenue, one of my favorite corners of the city.

4. Panther Club, a New Bar, Is Open in Portland

Decorative slot machines at Panther Club, a bar in Portland, Oregon.

A new bar called Panther Club has opened in the Buckman neighborhood in SE Portland. A concept by Nate “Theo” Theobald, it offers great cocktails, tasty food, and a cool interior, but also fills a space that has been home to a number of beloved businesses.

3. Black Water Will Bring Food, Drink, Music to NE Sandy Blvd in Portland

The new location for Black Water, in the old Laurelwood Brewing space on NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, Oregon.

Black Water, an established local record label, performance venue, and vegan bar, is coming to Rose City Park. They will set up shop in the old Laurelwood Brewing pub space. This feels like a big deal, as locals have lamented the absence of a tenant in that location since the pub closed in 2023.

2. Dumpling Week 2025 Returns in Portland

Dumpling Week 2025 is almost here! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it now: Dumpling Week is one of the best food weeks in Portland. This is the 11th year that The Oregonian has put it together, and it takes place from Friday, February 7 to Saturday, February 15.

1. First Look: Flock Food Hall in Portland (Photos)

Earlier today I was able to attend a media preview of the Flock Food Hall, located on the ground floor of the Ritz-Carlton hotel at SW Alder and 9th Avenue. There are eight vendors there offering a variety of cuisines, from Korean fried chicken, to birrieria, to pastries. Plenty of seating, too. Many thanks to Genesis Burton of the Qué Chilero Group, who invited me in connection to her client Pan Roast.