Cascadia Taphouse To Open in Timberview's Array Food Hall in East Portland

The other day a reader emailed me about Cascadia Taphouse opening a location in East Portland. This west-side-based taphouse will be setting up shop in the Array Food Hall, located on the ground floor of Timberview VIII, a major mass timber project that was recently completed. I reached out to Cascadia Taphouse and spoke with the owner, Rich DeCoste, to learn more.

First, About Timberview and the Array

Timberview, located on NE Glisan Street and 99th Avenue, is an 8-story mass timber structure that provides 105 units of affordable housing in Portland’s Gateway District. Curtis Rystadt, one of the developers, boasts that it is the “tallest mass timber residence in the state of Oregon.” It is also the tallest building in Gateway.

Other interesting details about this mass timber development: it’s lighter because there is less concrete involved, making it more resilient when it comes to earthquakes. It was quicker to put up, too—on one floor, it took them an hour and a half to complete half of it. The timber also stores carbon, so it is beneficial to the environment.

Access Architecture included this description of the project:

“The mass timber structural frame includes cross-laminated timber (CLT) floor diagrams, glulam beams and columns, and steel braced frames. The framework of the internal mass timber structure is expressed through the exterior massing. At the top floor a community room with outdoor terrace receives a framed view towards downtown Portland in one direction and Mount Hood in the other.”

The Array Food Hall

The Montavila News reported on this food hall back in October 2024. Here’s what they had to say:

“The publicly accessible dining hall has four food spaces and one bar business arranged in a sawtooth pattern that provides definition for each business’s counter area. When open, guests can use the shared seating that wraps around the windowed walls or take items to go. Two restaurant units have full kitchens, while the other stalls offer smaller food prep areas suitable for deli or juice bar tenants.”

It looks like commercial space will be mostly turnkey. All a tenant has to do is bring their branding and whatever special cooking equipment they need, and start right up. Rich indicated that two of the food vendors will be a taqueria and a poke/sushi spot opening in the food hall. There are two additional tenant spaces, plus the bar.

Here is the floor plan:

Array Food Hall floor plan. — Click to enlarge.

And here are some “interior perspective” illustrations.

Artist renderings of Array Food Hall, where Cascadia Taphouse will be. — Click to enlarge.

Cascadia Taphouse at The Array

Rich explained their participation in the Array Food Hall: “We are jumping in to support [Curtis’] vision of having a communal space underneath the apartments,” he said. “They will have really awesome local, micro restaurants, and then have Cascadia there to serve up drinks and be there for the community.”

Cascadia Taphouse beer. — Photo credit: Cascadia Taphouse.

He continued, “We’re focused on making sure that everyone thrives in there, and so we’re going to offer beers and ciders that complement the food being served. We want to offer a great atmosphere on the east side like we’ve done on the west side. And beer is a great conduit to help build community!”

How Cascadia Taphouse Connected With Timberview

I asked Rich what made Cascadia Taproom want to open in East Portland, and this particular location, and he said, “You know, to be 100% transparent, it’s all about Curtis,”

He continues, “So Curtis—I won’t call him a regular, but he would frequent Cascadia Taphouse. And, he just sold us on his vision of what Timberview is. And I’m going to speak for him—and I hope he appreciates this: He romanticizes about the city of Portland. It’s where he and his wife first moved.

“He loves the city, and he wants to see it get better. He sees the housing crisis and realizes that he has an opportunity to step in and do something about it—and that was to build Timberview.” Rich added, “He wants to be the change that we all want to see.”

And as far as Rich and Cascadia Taphouse go, they hope to grow a community there of folks who enjoy good beer and good food. They’ll be focusing on their end with offering tasty brews; food will not not much of a thing for them, as they will be surrounded by food vendors (similar to Paydirt in The Zipper).

They are hoping to to have a grand opening of the building the third week in March. They have been finishing up the final approvals of the restaurant space, and the folks from Cascadia were in there recently putting tables together. They also hope to have live music this summer. When they do open, look for them to operate from 11am to 10pm daily.

I, for one, look forward to checking out the food hall and all it offers. Best of luck to Cascadia Taphouse as they prepare to open in East Portland.

Cascadia Taphouse at Timberview [projected opening March 2025]
540 NE 99th Avenue, Portland
Cascadia Taphouse website | Instagram | Facebook