Bridgetown Bites is Nine. Happy birthday to Bridgetown Bites! Today is this blog’s 9th birthday. We’ve been reporting on the Portland food and drink scene since 2017—with an increased effort starting about two and a half years ago. But this whole time we’ve worked hard to showcase the range of eating and drinking options in Portland and the metro area, with an emphasis on independently owned businesses—restaurants, bakeries, convenience stores, CSAs and farmers markets, cafes, bars, food carts, and more.
This site has been self-funded for the past nine years and it’s getting harder to do so. So, we are asking for your support. There are multiple ways: via our Patreon, through a paid newsletter subscription, or through advertising on the website. You can read more about it on our Support Bridgetown Bites page. We—and I, Meg—hope you will consider supporting us and the important work we do. We are local, were founded in Portland, remain independent, and love our community.
Thanks for spending time here, reading, commenting, sharing, and sending tips over the years. We look forward to many years of covering what to eat and drink in our fair city!
Cholados on Sunday! Cholados are one of the best things humans have ever invented. Originating in Colombia (Valle del Cauca region), it consists of shaved ice, fruit syrups, fresh fruit, coconut, and lechera (sweetened condensed milk); sometimes a cookie is added. It’s a mix of sweet, tangy, fresh, and chill. On hot days, it all melts into a wonderful combination; it is summer in a glass.
I haven’t had one since I lived in Queens, so I was beyond thrilled to see that you can get a cholado here in Portland from Milo’s Cholados on Sunday, July 5, from 2pm to 7pm at Company. I hope you check them out and love them as much as I do! 916 SE 34th Avenue, Suite B, Portland
Taste of Portland returns in October. Save the date: Taste of Portland is Monday, October 5. There will be samples from over 20 different local restaurants, wineries, distilleries, and breweries. There’s also a voting element to the evening; live music, too. This is a way to support local chefs and the Oregon Food Bank. Location TBD
An A-to-Z Guide to Storing Condiments. This NY Times guide to storing your condiments is helpful. Maybe you have some Portland Ketchup to store? Or perhaps some Sibeiho sambal. Or some Aardvark hot sauce! This guide is a good reference. Online
Mayfly will close. Their lease is up for renewal in September and Ryan, the owner, has chosen not to renew it. Their final day of service will be Saturday, September 12, 2026. He wrote this:
“A Mayfly is an aquatic insect that when it emerges from the water, it lives, breeds and dies all within one day…thus, our slogan ‘Life is Short. Be Good. Have Fun.’ I try my best to live that slogan everyday, and I hope that it resonates with you as well. Hug your friends, call your family, say hi to your neighbors and make sure everyone knows how much you love them, because life IS short and we never know what tomorrow brings.”
Note: Their loyalty program has ended and they have adjusted their pricing a bit. All draft beer is $6 everyday ($5 on Tuesdays), wines by the glass are $10 everyday ($8 on Wednesdays), no more corkage fees, and “Mayfly Munchie” prices have also dropped. 8350 N Fenwick Avenue, Portland
Level Beer turns 9. They’ll be celebrating on Saturday, July 11 from 1pm to 5pm at Level 1 in East Portland. You’ll find brewmaster beer release in draft and cans, limited-run t-shirts, Midcity Smash Burger will be popping up along with a surprise food vendor, a balloon artist and face painting, Steinholding, live music by Early Morning Ramblers from 2pm to 4pm, and general silliness. 5211 NE 148th Avenue, Portland
Brix Hillsboro is now open. They opened officially on Tuesday, June 30 after a soft opening on Friday, June 26 in the Reed’s Crossing area. 7865 SE Blanton Street, Hillsboro
ICYMI, Nai Ramen is open in the Thai Charm space. Well, I missed this back in March but I wanted to pass it on in case you are in the same boat with me. I was looking at the menu and saw their Cheese Potato—crispy potato with mozzarella cheese, fried on stick and served with spicy mayo—and now I want to eat that. The Portland Ramen sounds good, too. As for the ownership, looks like Charm Thai went through an administrative dissolution in 2025, with the current owners establishing the entity this past February. 1411 NE Broadway, Floor 2, Portland
Triple Afriq has a new home. And it’s in the Portsmouth neighborhood; they were in the SW section of Old Town not far from the waterfront, inside Lagos Restaurant & Lounge. Their new location was once home to Sassy Souk’s.
Triple Afriq is a Nigerian restaurant, and on Sunday, July 5, which I believe is their first day open at the new location, they are offering an AYCE feast—$49.99 for adults and $29.99 for kids 11 years of age and under. They’ll have Jollof Rice, Egusi, Asun (spicy roast goat), and more. 5003 N Lombard Street, Portland
Epic Belly has opened on N Interstate. They are in a space that was formerly occupied by Jesusito Market (operated by a guy named Jesus), which sold Mexican and other Latin American goods. They are next door to Michoacan Mexican restaurant.
Epic Belly is a Vietnamese restaurant, offering up bánh mì (including a chicken katsu version), phở (including one with steak, brisket, and meatball), egg rolls (chả giò) and spring rolls (gỏi cuốn), plus french fries and a couple of flavors of wings. You’ll also find Vietnamese coffee, Thai tea, milk tea, and more. There’s room for about 20 or 24 persons inside. 7000 N Interstate Avenue, Portland
Bastille Day weekend at Bergerac. Bastille Day is not for another 11 days, but now’s the time to start thinking about how to recognize and celebrate this great holiday, which was a major point in the timeline of the French Revolution. It’s the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, releasing the 7 prisoners and killing the governor of the Bastille. You might have heard of some of the people who were imprisoned there over the years: Voltaire, the Marquis de Sade (who spent five and a half years there), and “The Man in the Iron Mask.”
At Bergerac, they’ll be celebrating all weekend, from Friday, July 10 to Tuesday, July 14. There will be free amuses for all guests, a three-course prix fixe dinner for $70 (Toast aux Chèvres; Beef Filet; and Poire Belle Hélène. They’ll also have seasonal French cocktails. You can reserve your spot on their OpenTable page. 5520 SE Woodstock Blvd, Portland
Ice Cream party at Berlu. They are celebrating one year of being in their current space, which seems unreal, as it feels like they’ve been there for much longer. Tonight, head there from 5pm to 7pm for scoops of the following flavors: pistachio pandan, rhubarb sticky rice, or roasted peanut with scallion oil. All intriguing, all vegan. You can get your scoops with a toasted slice of bánh bò nướng or xôi (warm coconut sticky rice), too, if you want.
Also: “We’ll also have a selection of pastries not typically available during bakery hours.” No reservations, walk-ins only. 661 SE Belmont Street, Portland
And Nate’s Oatmeal Cookies celebrates two years today. Head on over to their Belmont shop today from 3pm to 9pm for cookie sundaes and giveaways (happening at 4pm, 6pm, and 8pm; you do not need to be present to win—here’s more info). 10% of sales go to PIRC. 3308 SE Belmont Street, Portland
Huckleberry’s opens Monday, July 13. This is a chain restaurant that describes themselves as “Southern Cookin’ With a California Twist®.” Yes, that’s a registered trademark. The restaurant is opening in one of the Shari’s that is now being repurposed by other restaurants, including Sumo Sushi (which opened in an old Shari’s in North Portland). From what I can gather from the press release, this is the first Huckleberry’s to open in Oregon.
Menu items include Mardi Gras Beignets, Chicken & Waffles, Cajun Benedict, Shrimp Po’ Boys and Louisiana Catfish, “all served in a colorful, immersive setting complete with Zydeco music, whimsical décor and Southern hospitality.” 881 SW Highland Drive, Gresham
Riot! Coffeehouse has opened on West Burnside. Just on the southern edge of Northwest Portland, on West Burnside Street and NW Trinity Place, Riot! Coffeehouse has opened. It’s in a little slip of a space that was formerly home to Great North coffee shop. A former Great North employee, Corey, is now running this new cafe. Their first day open was Thursday, June 11.
They’ve got drip coffee and espresso drinks, chai, matcha, lemonade, horchata, a few breakfast sandwiches, and bags of Great North coffee beans. They’re open every day from 7am to 2pm. 1951 W Burnside, Portland
“I wish I had a million dollars … hot dog!” To quote George Bailey here—a million dollars is out of reach but hot dogs are not. I stopped by Maddoggs the other day and had a delicious Perro Caliente, which is a hot dog topped with smoky spicy red salsa, pineapple sauce, crushed potato chips, and Maddogg Sauce, which is that pink sauce you get on Colombian hot dogs and hamburgers.
And now I’ve learned that the Farag’s Frank is back for at least the next week or so. Finally, over at Burger Ritual they have steamed dogs (they are anti-griddled dogs—whatevs, I still like those guys). Apparently its a copycat of a hot dog served in a Russian food cart chain called Stardog!s. Looks like the dog topped with ketchup, mustard, pickles and fried onions.
Do u know where to get other great hot dogs in Portland? Leave a comment! 8627 NE Sandy Blvd, 2821 NE Davis Street, and 1207 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland
The Japanese Beer Garden event is later this month. Organized by JASO (Japanese-America Society of Oregon), this event “brings the energy of a traditional summer street festival in Japan right here to Oregon.” There will be Japanese foods paired with cold beer from Asahi and Level. To attend you must register; no tickets will be available at the door, and the organizers emphasize that the events sells out quickly.
Tickets are $35 for JASO members and $50 for non-members. Your ticket includes all food and drink. You can also rent a yukata (a light, summer kimono) there. 900 SW 5th Avenue, The Patio, Lobby Level, Portland
July flavors from Mikiko Mochi Donuts. That Honey Butter Cornbread flavor is intriguing; Passionfruit Curd is also calling to me. See the other flavors here. 300 NE 28th Avenue and the PDX Airport, Portland; 3905 SW Orbit Street, Beaverton
Seiji Nanbu will celebrate his birthday next week. I know him as the founder of one of my favorite coffeeshops, Electrica (RIP), and was happy to see he’ll be making coffee again for just one morning: Tuesday, July 7 from 8am to 11:30am at Sunflower Sake. “It’s my birthday week and I want to make coffee for my friends! Come hang in the morning 🫶 seating is limited and service will probably be slow lol.” 107 SE Washington Street, #121, Portland
The Noshpit now makes ice cream. This is something that owner Jeff Jones has returned to at The Noshpit—ice cream making. They currently have just vanilla and chocolate, and it sure looks good. More flavors coming soon. 1914 N Killlingsworth Street, Portland
Alice on the Avenue will open in the old Sissy Bar space. This is a project from Shelia Blay Baraga. She thinks of Alice on the Avenue as “Portland’s next neighborhood gathering spot” there in the Buckman neighborhood. She is looking at opening by end of July. 1416 SE Morrison Street, Portland
Chin Cha and 33 Cafe have soft opened. I stopped in yesterday at Chin Cha, and at 33 Cafe on June 20, their soft opening day. Chin Cha is located next to Foot Traffic on NE Fremont, and 33 Cafe is in the old Starbucks building where Cesar Chavez, Sandy Blvd, and Broadway meet. At Chin Cha I had a regular black milk tea with boba; at 33 Cafe I had a more elaborate drink, a iced matcha cloud latte. Both were ok and neither blew me away. I want to stop in after they’ve had a time to get their sea legs.
I will say, the 33 Cafe drink had a lid with cat ears that was adorable. 4010 NE Fremont Street and 1633 NE Cesar E Chavez Blvd, Portland.
So about that abandoned McDonald’s in Damascus… A Bridgetown Bites tipster says a Don Ladis Taco Shop (FKA Chuy’s Taco Shop) will open in this McDonald’s that closed back in 2023. I have not been to Chuy’s myself, but they talk about having “SoCal flavors” and an extensive salsa bar. Currently they operate in Gresham. I’ll keep an eye on it. 19850 SE Hwy 212, Damascus
The inaugural Northwest Cherry Ice Cream Train has launched. Throughout the month of July, six of Oregon’s independent ice cream and dessert shops will offer a self-guided dessert crawl focusing on cherries, one of the joys of a NW summer. Participants include Sugarpine Drive-In, Kate’s Ice Cream, Pinolo Gelato, Ice Queen, Cornet Custard, and Cloud City Ice Cream. At each spot you’ll find limited-edition cherry-inspired desserts all month. You’ll also have a chance to learn more about the people that grow the cherries.
So pick up a postcard at any of the participating shop locations, and collect a stamp at each shop. Once you collect all six stamps, return the postcard to any participating shop to receive a cherry keychain and an automatic entry into a giveaway for a cherry prize pack that includes a full picnic basket for summer. The winner will be announced on Friday, August 7.
You can read more about this cherry project, here. Multiple locations
Reminder: Salami Mammi opens on Tuesday, July 7. I am very much looking forward to having a chicken parm—and how will it compare to the one I recently had at Gabby’s Next Door? I’m happy to go this taste test. Here’s our article from last month on Salami Mammi.
Reminder 2: Here are many options for your Fourth of July celebrating. Multiple locations
Finally, pizza. Have you seen our pizza survey yet? You can find it here—and I want all your pizza thoughts, mild to spicy. Online
Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:
Summer Supper From Urban Gleaners Is a Good Time for a Great Cause
Woodstock Food Carts: Coming To Woodstock Blvd in Portland
Get Ready for Portland Salad Week 2026
Screaming Sammies Returns for the Summer in Sellwood
Top 5 Posts on Bridgetown Bites, June 2026 (Note: this is the final post in this franchise.)
Meg Cotner
Latest posts by Meg Cotner (see all)
- Small Bites: Bridgetown Bites Is Nine, Cholados, and More - July 3, 2026
- Top 5 Posts on Bridgetown Bites, June 2026 - July 2, 2026
- Screaming Sammies Returns for the Summer in Sellwood - July 1, 2026
