Cheese and Meat Festival 2026 Returns to Portland This Weekend

It’s back! Cheese and Meat Festival 2026 returns to Portland this coming weekend—and this time they’ll be at Montgomery Park in Northwest Portland. Here’s what you need to know to attend this lively food festival.

But Why Did They Change Venues?

It seems the Leftbank Annex stopped hosting events in between last year’s Cheese and Meat Festival and today. I was curious to know why, but there is not much online about it. Thinking it might be a structural issue with the building, I looked on Portland Maps and there are no permits filed; no recent property sale is evident, either (the most recent sale was back in 2005).

The website indicates contacting Elephants Catering regarding events rentals, so I reached out to them. They explained that they had an agreement to manage the Leftbank Annex around the end of 2019 came to an end around the end of 2024. Elephants still manages that URL; their contact information is on ths site in case someone wants to book one of their other venue spaces.

Bottom line, the place is closed (Google lists it as permanently closed).

The New Location for Cheese and Meat Festival 2026: Montgomery Park

I haven’t been been over at Montgomery Park in a long time. Since I was there last, there’s been talk of a streetcar extension; Vida co-working has opened there; and Roseline has opened a cafe space.

A coincidence—Elephants caters many of the events at Montgomery Park! But for the Cheese and Meat festival, it is all about samples from vendors.

The festival is “taking over ” Montgomery Park—with all their vendors, they will need a good amount of space.

Other Helpful Details

Here’s a straight-and-to-the-point bulleted list of important, helpful details for when you attend the fest at Montgomery Park:

• The Cheese and Meat Festival is Saturday, November 14, 2026.
• The remaining tasting session available at the writing of this article is 6pm to 8pm; noon and 3pm sessions are sold out.
• Tickets are $80.03 ($75 base + $5.03 fee) via Eventbrite—purchase your tickets here.
  • They ask that you bring two forms of ID with you.
  • This is a 21+ event.
• Like last year, they encourage you to wear business casual attire—comfy dress-to-impress—and refrain from using any perfumes or cologne, which can affect your tasting experience.
• They’ll have a coat check ($4 fee, cash).

The Tasting Side of the Cheese and Meat Festival 2026

Vendors will have their delicious things to taste—and for sale. The organizers recommend bringing cash for purchase, but the ability to use a credit cards will be possible. I also suspect Venmo will be in play as a payment option, too.

Event sponsors include: Travel Oregon, the Heathman Hotel (home to Bar Sprezzatura, which, by the way, is launching launching daily lunch service today), Prosper Portland, the Oregon Organic Coalition, and 101.9 KINK (I am a Gustav fan), among others.

Bridgetown Bites Favorites at Cheese and Meat Festival 2026

There will be artisanal cheeses, meats, condiments, prepared foods, NA drinks, wine, beer, and spirits at the festival. Here are some vendors you’ve no doubt seen here and there on Bridgetown Bites over the years, and what they are offering this weekend. (Note: No one has paid us for these recommendations, these are our true faves.)

Aladdin’s Cafe. They’ll be serving Basmati herbed rice and chicken shawarma with house garlic sauce, and freshly made hummus. These folks also run Foodvilla next door, which carries one of my favorite food items in the world, dried apricot paste by Mohammed El Shalati from Syria.

Beecher’s Handmade Cheese. I first discovered their delicious cheddar cheese when I lived in NYC. At the festival they’ll be serving samples of gluten-free crackers, cheese sticks, and cheese.

Caffe Umbria Coffee. They have a nice cafe in the Pearl, and Caffe Umbria is also the coffee choice of Simply Coffee in Gresham. At the festival they’ll offer Mini Espresso Drinks, Cold Brew, Espresso Spritz sparkling coffee soda, and “other surprises.”

Chio. I bought their delicious pistachio butter at the Hollywood Farmers Market and loved it. Their festival offering sounds amazing: “Visit our Pistachio Cream Fountain—a flowing fountain of silky pistachio cream where you can dip and sample.”

Daddy’s Cocktail Syrups. They make great drink syrups! I purchased one of their bottles at the Fremont Fest a few years back, and found it to be a solid product, great for mocktails. At the festival they’ll have their cocktail syrups and mocktails for you to sample.

Garliki. If you haven’t tried Garliki, you are missing out. Because it is fermented, it’s nutritional profile is higher, but it’s also so convenient to use when a recipe calls for minced garlic. It’s certainly better than your average jarlic, and I love using it in my own cooking at home. They have a variety of flavors, but I am a big fan of the original, no cap. They also have umami, herbe, creole, and chimichurri flavors. And, they may have some new flavors, too, for the occassion.

HAB Sauce. Will they have the incredible Kill Dill at this festival? One can only hope. It’s got mustard, fish sauce, pineapple, Serranos, all combined into something incredible. Aside from that, I have bought many different flavors of their hot sauces of the years and never hit a dud. They’ll have their hot sauces and chili crisps for you to taste.

Keia & Martyn’s. I first had their coffee a midnight walking event at The Sports Bra, and it’s excellent. They are also opening their own cafe very soon in the Sullivan’s Gulch neighborhood. At the festival they’ll have coffee, tea, and chai.

Laurel Foods. These guys make excellent nut oils and butters. If you run across their hazelnut oil, definitely get a bottle (or two). I first encountered them at the Mt Angel Hazelnut Festival a number of years ago, and the lusciousness of their hazelnut oil has stayed with me for years.

Lichen + Leaf. I encountered these teas at the Craft Chocolate Festival this year and really enjoyed thm. Repose and Restore was my favorite tea I tasted then, so I bought a bag of it. They’ll be serving a variety of hot herbal teas—including Repose and Restore!

MADE Finest From The Motherland. I’ve purchased their coffee a couple of times and it has always made a solidly delicious cup. They will be offering samples of the coffee (I especially like the Uganda beans).

Olympia Provisions. This company is well-known around here. I especially love their summer sausage (fun fact: one of my very first jobs was selling summer sausage for The Swiss Colony in the Esplanade mall in Oxnard, CA). At the festival they’ll feature their Italian Sopressata, French Saucisson Sec, seasonal Saucisson de Noel, bite-sized Pepperettes, and others. (I hope the summer sausage is part of that.)

Sens Botanicals. They make wonderful NA botanical spritzes; Soft Bloom (Raspberry + Chamomile) is my favorite but they’ll have their four spritzes there for your enjoyment. I first bought their spritzes when they were known as Still/Spark, and continue to find them lovely and delicious.

Sibeiho. Makers of excellent sambals with a ton of flavor. They’ll be offering “small bites perfect for sambal pairing.” I first learned about how awesome they are from Bill Oakley.

You can see the rest of the vendors over on the event webpage.

This should be a nice time filled with delicious things to try—and take home with. you. I hope you will have a good time at the Cheese and Meat Festival this year!

Cheese and Meat Festival
Saturday, November 14, 2026
Montgomery Park, 2701 N Vaughn Street, Portland
Tickets: $70 + fees, Purchase via Eventbrite
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