Small Bites: República Returns, Dat Banh Mi, Better Half, and More

República returns. It’s true! They’ve decided to open back up for daytime service, Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 2:30pm. Founder Angel Medina posted the news on his Substack:

“Quesadillas. Tacotes. Guisados. Pozole. Maybe a surprise or two along the way.

No timeline. No promises. As long as you keep showing up, we’ll keep doing it right.

It’s our way of keeping the space alive. Keeping the idea alive. And keeping our hearts open. It might be two weeks. It might be two months. It might be two years. But for as long as we do it, we’ll make sure we do it right.

And if you miss out—well, you miss out. Because that’s all we’re doing for now.” 100 NW 10th Avenue, Portland

Crispy Cones opens today. A while back I mentioned that Crispy Cones, a chain that basically makes a version of chimney cakes and fills them with ice cream, is opening in Vancouver. They officially open today! If you follow them on Instagram you can enjoy a free pastry cone today. They’ll be open from noon to midnight. 14003 NE 10th Avenue, Vancouver

Hollywood Farmers Market’s final winter market date is today. This then means their main season—when they are open every Saturday—starts on Saturday, April 4. I love the HFM and am always happy to see this transition to a weekly market each spring. 4420 NE Hancock Street, Portland

Gateway Night Market recap. East PDX News has the details. I hope they’ll do this market again.

Latte Art Throwdown and networking event is this afternoon. It’s organized by The Coffee Board and takes place at Autumn Coffee Roasting in Northeast Portland. It’s free to attend and $10 to compete. The first pours are at 6:30pm, with a networking hang and career panel discussion from 4:30pm to 6pm. At 6pm you can start signing up for throwdowns. There will also be a raffle; snacks and drinks provided. ​Prizes for top three winners. 3286 NE Killingsworth Street, Portland

Vista Spring Cafe looks to expand. Their Instagram shows an interior shot looking outwards toward the front door of the space next door to them. That used to be home to The Heights Antiques & Consignment which closed in 2023 after the owner’s death. A comment from VSC says it’s a “lil offshoot of vista—gonna be a cool new bar / lounge area / event space.” 2430 SW Vista Avenue, Portland

Eyesore’s grand opening is tomorrow. We published a story on them on Tuesday, and I stopped by yesterday for a coffee (she made me a tasty regular latte and the Spanish latte was also very good), and saw that their grand opening is tomorrow, March 21. They’ll have coffee, of course, as well as some baked goods made by Beck. Freebies, too. She’ll be open 9am to 1pm. 2206 NE 14th Avenue, Portland

A Lavoratti Chocolate Shop will open downtown. Next Portland‘s Iain MacKenzie spied this permit for a new location in downtown Portland of this Italian artisan chocolate producer, commenting “Halo effect of the forthcoming James Beard Public Market?” The permit was set up on February 26, 2026, and issued on March 16.

The permit will let them do some minor demoing, create new walls for a storage room, and a retail area. “Finishes and elec” are also part of the permit. The space was a Cricket Wireless shop for many years. 621 SW Broadway, Portland

Nolia reveals their location. And indeed, it is CORE. Look for them to open there in early May 2026. 3612 SE 82nd Avenue, Portland

Malpractice is looking for their next Kitchen Resident. They posted on Instagram, “If you’re a chef, pop-up, food vendor or know someone looking for a home to grow your concept and be part of the Malpractice team, we’d love to connect.” DM them over there if you’re interested. 77 SE Yamhill Street, Portland

Orval Day is Saturday. Head to the 1847 Food Park for their celebration of Orval Day, an “annual celebration of the iconic, complex Belgian Trappist ale.” It is a Belgian pale ale, first brewed in 1931, with a sunset-orange color, dry-hopped aroma, and fruity and bitter taste. You’ll have a chance to taste it at the pod on Saturday. 1925 SE Scott Street, Milwaukie

Champs Burger celebrates one year this week. They are one year old this week and are celebrating with some specials. They also posted about the meat for the week: “We have some insanely amazing beef coming from Preservation Meat Collective that will be served all week—PNW raised and finished cows and 21-day whole carcass dry-aged in an amazing blend. Primo beef.”

They have some specials: Today they’ll be doing Fried Onion Burgers (OKC’s) until sold out. Saturday they have their regular menu but with a bunch of fan favorite cookies. And the Away Days Brewing Dream Team WC Pilsner collab beer will be on tap. Champs hopes you can stop by and celebrate with them. 1234 SE Cora Street, Portland

Chém Gió is back. They had to go through a couple weeks of construction and renovations there at Mosaic Taphouse, but they are excited to be able to open again, which they did this past Tuesday, March 17. Good news, though—despite the time it took with the closure, “The old exhaust hood has been replaced with a new and more robust one.” That’s gotta make everyone happier. Stop by and get some boss Vietnamese street food in your mouth (that Bột Chiên Trung is really speaking to me rn). 7955 N Lombard Street, Portland

Second Oven Pizza has opened on North Williams. A Bridgetown Bites tipster asked me about them, and shortly after that they showed up in my Instagram feed. It’s in the old Penny’s Pizza space, but after looking at the ORSOS docs, the Authorized Representative is … PENNYS PIZZA X, LLC. So, it looks like the business has possibly been renamed. They offer thin, tavern-style Chicago pizza. They are open Tuesday through Saturday 3pm to 9pm. 4327 N Williams Avenue, Portland

Jebale Coffee has opened a second location in Portland. They started in Vancouver and operate a very popular cafe in The Portal, which I believe is associated with Vancouver Vineyard Church. Their Portland location used to be a Nossa Familia on NW Lovejoy. Their specialize in single-origin Ugandan coffee beans “and giving back to the farming communities that grow them.” They soft opened Saturday, March 14. 1350 NW Lovejoy Street, Portland

Pelican Brewing Company will open a new location on the Oregon coast. Pelican has purchased a property in Yachats, making this their sixth coastal location. The location is along Highway 101—most recently it was the Whale’s Tail Diner, and for the prior 45 years it was home to LeRoy’s Blue Whale. Pelican co-founder Jeff Schons knows this location well, having eaten many meals at LeRoy’s over the years when he and his wife would visit his mom, who lived in Yachats for 15 years.

They’ll be spending the next few months renovating the space, and are looking to open there in the second half of 2026. 580 Hwy 101 N, Yachats

Join the Portland Potato Party. No politics involved. It’s an event this coming Thursday, March 26 from 5:30pm to 7pm at the Heathman Hotel. This is an Oregon Taste gathering. Upcoming tasting evenings are All About Asparagus on Thursday, April 30, Mushrooms! on Tuesday, May 26, and Strawberry Shortcake (my favorite) on Friday, June 26. 1001 SW Broadway, Portland

Current fab dessert at Paadee. It’s a Thai Tea & Chocolate Tart that sounded so good, I had to share it here. It’s a creation of Maya Okada Erickson and is described as this: “Silky Thai tea poured over a deep, dark chocolate ganache in a perfectly crisp tart shell. Topped with a sesame crumble that gives just the right amount of crunch.” Just … wow. 6 SE 28th Avenue, Portland

More dessert. One of my favorite cake makers in Portland is Erin Sosnowchik of Riley Seasonal Cakes. She’ll be doing a pop-up at Vintish Interiors this Sunday, March 22 from 10am to 2:30pm. You can get a slice or a mini cake. Only one cake this time, a carrot cake made with Sonora and spelt flour from Camas Country Mill, with an orange zest cream cheese mousse and salty hazelnut buttercream. 5824 NE 42nd Avenue, Portland

Even more baked items. Over at Friends Share Community Space, baker Jake will be selling a variety of things—sweet and savory—that sound simply amazing. His lineup includes spanakopita, Swedish almond-cherry fika (an almond cake), Gâteau Breton with blackberry jam, black & white cookies, and Politiko Thessaloniki (Greek semolina cake soaked in syrup with custard). Extended details are here. He’ll be selling them from 10am to 2pm on Sunday, March 22. 14814 SE Powell Blvd, Portland

Sacher torte gelato, wut‽‽ This is like a beautiful dream come true. Sacher torte is a wonderful Austrian cake and always felt fancy to me growing up. It was created in the 19th century at Hotel Sacher—it is a chocolate cake with apricot jam and is popular in Austria and northern Italy. The idea that Pinolo would translate it into gelato is just fantastic—and it’s available now.

Here’s how they describe their gelato version: “Our Sacher torte gelato, inspired by this delicious cake, is made of two layers of cioccolato gelato, homemade apricot jam in the center and covered in dark chocolate ganache. It’s rich, delicious and gluten-free.” 3707 SE Division Street, Portland

Hanami Hangout is Tuesday. So, on Tuesday, March 24 from noon to 3pm there will be the Hanami Hangout at the Japanese American Historical Plaza. Hanami is a tradition in Japan of sitting under the blooming cherry trees with friends, family, and neighbors with food, drink, and community.

They recommend you start off nearby at Goodies Snack Shop (just two blocks away from the Plaza)—the first 20 persons receive a free Goodies snack bag. Ippai will be selling onigiri and Spam musubi from noon to 1:30pm at Goodies, too. Over at the Plaza there will be a chance to hear Japanese American stories and history of the Plaza, and the surrounding neighborhood. Read more about the plans for the day, here. 98 SW Naito Pkway, Portland

Hit the Spot returns to its roots. Not only are they back at the original truck but yesterday they went back to their old way of doing things, which is “adding as many patties and strips of bacon as you’d like.” They will also bring back lettuce and tomato and their original combos. They’re pretty excited about it. Hours open are Wednesday to Saturday 11:30am to 7:30pm. 4835 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

Aztec on Broadway, FKA Aztec Willie’s, opens next month. “New chapter. Same corner. April.” I drove by yesterday and the sign still says Aztec Willie’s, though. 1501 NE Broadway, Portland

Happy five years, Cookie McCakeface! To celebrate, she’s doing “ITS CAAAAAAAAAKE”: Funfetti yellow cake cookie stuffed with chocolate fudge. She says, “yellow cake with chocolate frosting is the superior cake.” I can get on board with that: I like a contrast of chocolate frosting and yellow/white cake. Or chocolate cake with vanilla/cream cheese frosting. (I still miss you, Weekend Cake at Just Desserts.) You can get this masterful sweet thing all throughout the month of March. 4727 SE Woodstock, Portland

And help Florence celebrate her birthday! Stop by Nana’s Exquisite Confections to help owner and baker Florence Jenkins celebrate her birthday. Anytime between 9am and 4pm that day, you can stop in and wish her well. She’s also bringing her favorites to sell, and there will be a limited supply of coffee and treats served, too. 3137 NE 82nd Avenue, Portland

Dat Banh Mi opened this month. This Beaverton bánh mì shop was founded by a guy named Dat and it’s getting lots of love online. Influencer @micbanh says, “This new family-owned spot bakes their bread fresh daily for their bánh mì and serves specialty dishes like bò né and bò chảo + trứng.” Plus they have fancy toilets in the restrooms that they are proud of. 8410 SW Nimbus Avenue #400, Beaverton

Congolese cuisine in downtown Portland. On my way back from checking out the cherry blossoms on the waterfront yesterday, I came across a sign for Patience Cuisine. It’s been around for a couple of years: “Established in 2024, our mission is to bring the rich and diverse tastes of Congo to the Portland community.” It was founded by a woman named Patience, who started off doing catering, but she “envisioned a place where people could gather to enjoy authentic Congolese dishes in a warm and welcoming environment.”

You can see her menu on the Patience Cuisine website: Poulet Moambe (chicken stew that is considered the national dish of the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo), Madesu (bean stew/soup), kwanga (bread made from fermented cassava paste), sambusas, Nkovi (collard greens), and more. As I was looking at the sign a women entered the building and said about the food, “It’s really good.” 38 NW Davis Street, Portland

Duffy’s Deli & Coffee opens Saturday morning in McMinnville. This will be a neighborhood deli from Doug and Kelly Kizer, offering sandwiches, coffee, and hot dogs. To be more precise, you’ll be able to get a breakfast sandwich, a good latte, artisan bagels from Bunny Belly Bagels, and fresh pastries from Dos Hermanos. And to top it off, its home is a renovated former bank building.

Their grand opening is Saturday, March 21 at 6am and there will be free coffee and a cookie until noon. Going forward, they will be open daily at 6am, closing at 5pm. 350 NE Baker Creek Road, McMinville

Sabor del Rio returns! They’ll open back up on Friday, April 24. Stop by this restaurant on the Columbia River for some delicious Puerto Rican and American food. 3307 NE Marine Drive, Portland

Better Half will reopen in a new location. Remember a couple of weeks ago when I included a blurb on the Food Front space in Small Bites? Well, as it turns out, Better Half is moving in! They had to close operations at their N Fremont location last fall and look for a new space. And so they’ve found one.

At the new spot, they’ll offer breakfast and lunch sandwiches, the Better Half Burger, housemade chips and fries, they’ll expand their coffee program, and will be open 7-days a week. They look to open August 2026. 2375 NW Thurman Street, Portland

Update on Fremont Garage. This is the food cart pod that has been in development for a couple of years on NE Fremont and NE 44th Avenue. I reached out to the guys behind it and they said, “We will open some time in May.” More details to come. 4403 NE Fremont Street, Portland

Sugarpine Drive-in has a new spring menu. Its is “inspired by the Mediterranean, built around vibrant vegetables, bright herbs, olive oil, citrus, grains, and other feel-good ingredients.” You can catch them Wednesday through Monday, 11am to 5pm. 1208 E Historic Columbia River Hwy, Troutdale

Salmon burnt ends, who knew? Podnah’s did. They have been working on this concept and it’s now ready for prime time. It’s available by the pound, or you can choose it as one of your options on a two-meat plate. Color me intrigued. 1625 NE Killingsworth Street, Portland

Reminder: Pronto Gelato opens today. Always a great thing to celebrate there on the corner of NE Alberta and 42nd Avenue. Their pistachio is crazy delicious but their occasional gianduja and seasonal strawberry flavors are my favorites. 4205 NE Alberta Street, Portland

Update: Buvons opened Wednesday. It’s walk-ins only right now, but they are open. Catch some bubbles, maybe one of their dips, and the L’Orange cake. 1120 SE Belmont Street, Portland

Update: Corbett Taphouse opens today. Starting at noon, you can check out this brand new taphouse in South Portland. They’ll have March Madness on the TV, plenty to drink, plus Tamale Boy tacos and tamales. 21+ only. 5331 S Macadam Avenue, Suite 270, Portland

Speakeasy Saloon’s grand opening is today. There will be some menu items debuting today; their Happy Hour will launch today, too, and will run every day from 3pm to 5pm. 2135 N Willis Blvd, Portland

Today is a big day of celebration. It’s both Eid (the end of Ramadan) and Nowruz (Persian New Year), and we send Eid Mubarak and Nowruz Mubarak greetings to all who celebrate!

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Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:

Dick’s Pizza Has Opened in the Old Sunny’s Pizza Space in Sellwood
Eyesore Coffee Is Planted In a Sunroom in Northeast Portland
Novel Book Bar Is Open in Northwest Portland
Sneak Peek: Inside Gumba’s New Space