A Second Location of Pamana Will Offer Filipino Food in the Former Expatriate Space

A second location of Pamana, a Filipino American restaurant and bar currently operating inside the Hoxton hotel in downtown Portland, is opening in Northeast Portland. They’ll be in the space that most recently was home to Expatriate, a legendary and beloved bar on NE 30th Avenue near NE Killingsworth Street. I spoke with Pamana owners Geri and Ethan Leung about their plans and here is what I learned.

But First, Expatriate

We would be remiss if we did not say a little about Expatriate. This bar, opened by Kyle Linden Webster and his wife, the late chef Naomi Pomeroy, became what I would consider to be a destination in Portland. It offered a dreamy, dark space where you could take a break from the world, have an expertly-made cocktail, and some delicious food. Popular items included the Burmese tea leaf salad, the Expatriate nachos made with fried wonton chips, and James Beard’s onion & butter sandwich, among others.

Speaking of James Beard, Expatriate was a James Beard Award semifinalist for Outstanding Bar Program in 2019; in 2020 they became a finalist in the same category.

Expatriate opened July 11, 2013 and closed February 8, 2026.

A Second Location of Pamana

When I first became aware of Pamana’s impending arrival in the Concordia neighborhood, I thought they were going to move from The Hoxton to Northeast Portland. So I asked them about that.

“It’ll be a second location for us,” Geri explained. “We’re going to continue to do our brunch service at The Hoxton, and events.” They’ll be in residence at The Hoxton for two more years, so that’s good news for folks on the west side.

Dinner Service at the Second Location of Pamana

Geri and Ethan told me that they’ll be moving just their dinner service from The Hoxton to Pamana on NE 30th Avenue; brunch service will remain at the hotel. They may consider adding brunch to NE 30th Avenue at some point, but there are no plans on the table for that right now. They really want to prioritize getting settled in the new space first, and dial in their dinner service to the level of excellence they are used to.

As far as dinner itself at the new location, it will be a continuation of what they are doing now. They plan to open in the fall—in October—so that will affect the choice of dishes as far as availability of ingredients and what tastes good in autumn. “That’ll play a huge part on the menu,” said Ethan. “We’ll definitely have more homey dishes, more stews, and things like that.”

The Size of the Space

The new-to-them space is about 1,000 square feet—about a quarter of what they have to work with currently at The Hoxton. They are looking forward to the challenge of working in a smaller space, too. “That will kind of force us to be more intentional with the product that we’re bringing in, the ingredients, what kind of dishes we can offer. I think it’s a good challenge,” said Ethan.

Cosmetic Interior Changes for the Second Location of Pamana

As for the look and feel inside, they will keep the footprint as-is but will make some cosmetic changes. These include altering the bar top, adding shelving, and their furniture. Plus, a new paint job.

“It’s exciting!” exclaimed Geri. “We do want to bring in some lightness and warmth. Something that really spoke to me about the space was the skylight. It just brings in so much lightness to the space. It’s really soft and comforting, and homey.”

She continued, “So we’re going to play off that, and leverage the light that’s coming in from the sky. We’re working with some really close friends to help us bring that to life.”

As for the color scheme, look to the shades and hues present in their current branding: lots of blues, greens, a pop of orange. “We’re going to have a lot of natural wood in the space, too,” added Geri. “The contractors that we’re working with specialize in using a lot of repurposed building materials. So we’re going to have a lot of that in the space.”

Good Things Take Time

They also plan to bring some of their own artwork—family and teen photos to make it a space where people feel like they can slow down and connect with their loved ones. “We truly want this to be a place where you can unplug,” said Geri. “So we’re focusing on the concept of ‘good things take time,’ and really leaning into the analog experience.”

Honoring Expatriate

Geri and Ethan are very cognizant that they are coming into one of those spaces in Portland that made a sizable impact on Portland’s reputation as an important U.S. food and drink city—and they have a lot respect for that. So, one way they’re expressing their respect is by not trying to replicate Expatriate.

“With the Expatriate space, there’s a lot of history there, and we want to honor that,” said Geri. “But we’re not going to be a bar like they were—those are really big shoes to fill.”

They also acknowledge that cocktail building isn’t their forte, and are going in a different direction on the beverage side: wine.

Wine

While they do not plan to develop Pamana to be a wine bar, they do want to lean into the world of wine. “What we really want to do is explore wine,” Geri explained. “Wine has always really spoken to us personally; we know a lot of people in the wine industry.”

She continued, “We really want to explore how we can amplify AAPI-owned wines and wineries. We’ve always participated in the AAPI Food & Wine Fest that happens every May. That really opened our eyes to how Asian food can break into this industry or how seamlessly it and wine can really pair well together. And I think that’s something that’s not explored enough.

“With wineries, a lot of those are built on family legacies for years and years and years of harvest, and that really aligns with what Pamana means— literally, inheritance and legacy. So we really want to keep that theme and really nurture that.”

All that said, they won’t be focusing exclusively on AAPI wines. They still want to explore the overall local landscape of wine in Oregon. “This is also super exciting for us because I think Oregon is really coming up there in terms of having a bigger presence in the overall wine industry,” remarked Geri. Along with the Willamette Valley, that could also include the Tualatin Valley, the Columbia Gorge, and Rogue Valley.

They also acknowledge the risks that come with this decision. We have seen a drop in liquor and wine sales, and there is a perception that Gen Z in particular doesn’t drink as much as previous generations (though there is new thinking on this topic). They hope their approach will be welcomed as bringing and inviting people into the experience they’re creating.

They have applied for a Limited On-Premises liquor license, so they will not be offering any hard alcohol; this license allows for wine, beer, and cider. And they’ll have NA drinks, too. At some point they may bring spirits onto the menu (which means applying for Full On-Premises Commercial license), but that would be somewhere later on. “I think Ethan and I really wanted to build this space in phases, and grow with what the community needs,” added Geri. 

The Menu at the Second Location of Pamana

The menu is still in development at the writing of this article, and they are embracing and enjoying this menu development process. “I think we have a good opportunity, since we’re still at The Hoxton we can take this time to do a lot of recipe development and play around and see what what speaks to us,” said Ethan

That said, they know they will offer some of the familiar classics of Filipino cuisine: lumpia, sisig, kinilaw, and the like. You can take a look at Pamana’s current dinner menu to see the kinds of foods they embrace at this moment in time. .

Lessons Learned

Geri and Ethan started out running the food cart Baon Kainan, and then moved into a brick and mortar (The Hoxton). No doubt they learned things from that transition, and I was curious if there is anything they learned while operating out of The Hoxton that they can apply to opening at this new place.

Teamwork

“I think for me, if there’s anything that I’ve learned, is that it’s not just Geri and I,” said Ethan. “It’s our whole team that’s making this possible.”

He continued, “When we first broke it the team that we were expanding, we told them that a lot of our time is going to be spent over there to get it ready and hopefully open on time. We’re relying and putting a lot of trust in them to hold things down at The Hoxton while we do these things.”

He added, “We really wouldn’t be in this position without them.”

Some of the staff will be moving over from The Hoxton to NE 30th Avenue, too. “We have talked to our team, and it sounds like a lot of them are interested in working at the new space,” explained Ethan. “So we’ll start with the people that we’ve already worked with. Also just in terms of strategy and time, they already know what our processes are here.” This will no doubt be a huge help.

Of course, they will be bringing on new folks, too.

The Management Side of Things

Geri said, “For me, I think, working at The Hoxton was a great learning experience. We were kind of a small business within a greater corporate structure. I learned a lot about management and business, but also that it’s still important for us to stick to our values and who we are. “

She continued, “There can be a lot of noise and a lot of advice given, and a lot of it has been good. But, you know, sometimes the best call is being authentic to who we are and not lose sight of that. So going into this new space, we’re going to bring the authenticity there and be stronger in it—have confidence in the things that we want to do. Because a lot of it is a risk—like opening a second location only after a year. 

“A brick and mortar is kind of risky, especially in this economy; doing wine is risky. But I think we have something special to offer and a unique experience that we really want to share.”

Italian Food

The second location of Pamana will be joining this little corner of Portland that has some great Italian food—there’s Estes on NE 30th Avenue just north of Killingsworth, and of course Gabbiano’s and Gabby’s Next Door across the street. That came up in conversation, and Geri said, “I love that there’s Italian food! I don’t know if you know this, but I was born in Italy.” She is going to be a happy camper with the great Italian food from her new neighbors there in NE Portland.

All the best to Geri, Ethan, and their team as they get ready to open a second location of Pamana on NE 30th Avenue!

Pamana [projected opening October 2026]
5424 NE 30th Avenue, Portland
Pamana website | Instagram | Facebook