Category: Four Things

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Four Things I Learned This Week is a regular column published on Fridays, featuring four short entries of brief tidbits on Portland‘s food scene.

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Four Things I Learned This Week (May 19)

Updated grand opening date for Javi’s Breakfast Cafe. As is often the case, a grand opening gets delayed for a new spot, despite the original plans, and Javi’s joined the club. It happens. The revised grand opening date for Javi’s Breakfast Cafe is Thursday, May 25 at 7am. 6236 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

Barn & Brews at Rossi Farms celebrates Gateway Brewing. Head to Rossi Farms on Saturday, May 20 to celebrate Gateway Brewing, which is actually located in the Gateway neighborhood in East Portland. From 3pm to 6pm, Gateway Brewing will serve their eight favorite beers. $15 admission, which includes food and beer tokens. Sean Daly and the Shams will be performing. There’s a way to get a discount at the door, too—codes “Sham Fam” and “Exit 7 IPA” will get you $5 off admission. 3839 NE 122nd Avenue, Portland

Burger Thursdays in Montavilla. Every Thursday, White Pepper (a caterer in Montavilla) opens its tasting room to the general public from 5pm to 9pm for a burger popup. In their words, “Stop by for a delicious burger, house cut fries, and hand crafted cocktails.” There also might be salad. They hope to do this year-round. The only time they might not pop up is if they have a big catering job that following weekend (e.g., they’ll be closed June 8). So stop by one Thursday evening and let chef Abel Ley and his staff fix you a great burger. 7505 NE Glisan Street, Portland

End of the line for Michael’s? A Bridgetown Bites tipster sent me this: “I stopped by Michael’s Italian Beef and she said she has lost her lease after 40-some years on Sandy. Wants to move but not sure where.” 40 years is a long time. Michael’s offers Chicago-style sandwiches—Italian-style beef, sausage, various cold sandwiches, and Chicago-style hot dogs (I’ll leave it up to you to determine if a hot dog is a sandwich).

This location is a one-story triangle-shaped building on a triangle-shaped piece of property just around the corner from Hippo Hardware. My guess is that the property will be sold, maybe for apartments, but we’ll have to see. I hope Michael’s can find a new location. 1111 SE Sandy Blvd, Portland

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Four Things I Learned This Week (May 12)

Chaat Wallah cart opens today at 3pm. Over on their Instagram, the Chaat Wallah folks wrote, “This a secret just between us but you’ll be able to enjoy our nacho chaat and other goodies this Friday starting at 3pm. We’re planning on being open all weekend unless we just run out of food because you don’t keep this a secret.” PDX Eater also wrote an article on the opening of the cart, which will be adjacent to Upright Brewing and Junior’s in Cully/Roseway. Among the offerings will be a “spiced lamb smash burger with buttermilk curry, garlic chile crisp, and pickled eggplant puree.” There will be vegetarian options, too. Check it out!  7151 NE Prescott Street, Portland

Sebastiano’s has gotten themselves a second location. In an email, Dan and Elise at Sebastiano’s revealed they now have a second location (it seems the Montavilla location will remain). The main activity there will be to be their commercial kitchen, which will support their presence at the Sellwood and Woodstock farmers markets.

The ability to eat there is also in the future plans: “Over time, we hope to build out the adjoining space to create a dining area and open the space to the public. We are hesitant to put a date on it, but it feels like a good Fall project to get going on the buildout. In the meantime, you can find Sebastiano’s at the Sellwood Farmers Market which starts this Saturday!” Congrats, Dan and Elise! 8235 SE 13th Avenue, Portland

Jerusalem Rose Market to close and adjust. This week, I learned that the Jerusalem Rose Market, a place that celebrates SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) food and supports the Center for Study & Preservation of Palestine, “will not be able to go on as it is right now past this month.” The reasons? One, it has to do with money: “the financial goals have just not panned out.” And two, the fact that “[they] cannot continue to produce our prepared foods at the rate that the market requires.” There is a lot of demand. They will close the store Sunday, May 28. Read more about their plans, here. 2948 NE Martin Luther King Blvd, Portland

Milo’s City Cafe has closed temporarily. The O has reported that over on NE Broadway, Milo’s City Cafe, “known for its smoked salmon eggs Benedict and chicken and waffles topped with fried leeks,” has temporarily closed. A sign on the door says “Look for us to reopen soon.” Michael Russell mentions the closing of Zell’s in the article, which is a bummer, though I know there are mixed feelings about what Zell’s became after some revamps. I did miss the scones. Anyway, here’s to Milo’s opening sooner rather than later. 1325 NE Broadway, Portland

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Four Things I Learned This Week (April 21)

The Choco Taco is back at Kate’s. Starting yesterday (4/20 ha ha ha ha ha), Kate’s Ice Cream is making Choco Tacos for sale. It’s made with “gluten-free waffle cones shaped into a taco stuffed with our vanilla ice cream dipped in chocolate shell and rolled in roasted peanuts.” Vegan all the way. They even have some peanut-free tacos for those who are allergic. They’ll be for sale until Sunday, April 30. 3713 NE Mississippi Avenue, Portland

There’s still a few more days for Pizza Week. Pizza Week returned this year and you can still enjoy the specials in the form of $3 slices and $20 pies through Sunday, April 23. Your options are here. One of my favorite aspects of pizza week are the puns the pizzerias come up with: “Reservoir Hogs,” “I Love You Elote,” “Mushroom: Impossible — Ricotta Protocol,” and “Is it Shawarma in here? (or is it just me?)” are a handful of great names. Various locations in Portland

Flour Market is now open 7 days a week. Flying a little under the radar, Concordia’s Flour Market is a bakery you should check out. I have had some spectacular baked goods there—the kladdkaka made with nuts was seriously addictive in taste and texture; the challah is excellent and is one of my favorite version of this bread in Portland; the dark Rugbrod offers rich flavor, serious heft, and delightful toast. I have plans to stop in for lunch for a sandwich and salad one of these days. So stop by from 8am to 2pm. Read more about Flour Market on the excellent Good Stuff NW blog. 5507 NE 30th Avenue, Portland

Lucky Horseshoe Lounge will reopen. Purchased in spring 2023 by Portland restaurant industry veterans Shan Wickham and Alan Maniscalco (owners of Rally Pizza, and founding team members of Ken’s Artisan Pizza), Lucky Horseshoe Lounge (next to the Clinton Street Theater) reopens as “an approachable Italian-inspired cocktail bar” on Friday, April 28. They will be open Thursday 3pm to 11pm, Friday & Saturday 3pm to 12pm, Sunday & Monday 3pm to 10pm (closed Tuesday and Wednesday). The food menu is available to-go, and diners are welcome to bring food to the Clinton Street Theater next door, which allows for outside food. There are seven picnic tables outside, four of which are under cover. Minors are allowed until 9pm. Hat tip to Frances Dyer for the information. 2524 SE Clinton Street, Portland

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Four Things I Learned This Week (March 31)

Vegan arepa pop-up weekly at Ben & Esther’s. One of the most successful vegan joints in town, Ben & Esther’s hosts a weekly pop-up of El Salto. This Latina-owned company offers “traditional Venezuelan food–made vegan,” including arepas. They are split and stuffed with what looks like vegan meat substitutes. Find them at Ben & Esther’s Alberta location on Wednesday nights from 5pm-9pm. 1800 NE Alberta Street, Portland

Kann accolades + Sousòl reservations. I saw this week that Kann, the celebrated Hatian restaurant from Gregory Gourdet is a finalist for Best New Restaurant for the James Beard Awards. “Thankful we get to share the story of Haiti and its rich history through food,” they say. Also, Sousòl, the bar below Kann, will take reservations via Resy starting Wednesday, April 5. But for those that don’t plan ahead, “Don’t worry we still have plenty of room for walk ins!” 548 SE Ash Street, Portland

Beaverton’s The Sudra to close. Their final day of service at their Beaverton location will be Sunday, April 2, so head on over before then if you want a taste of their delicious, flavorful plant-based Indian food in the suburbs (the Portland locations will remain open). They add, though, “Although closing is sad, it’s not all bad news. We are talking to some old friends about an exciting collaboration that will take over the space. More on that to come.” Looking forward to hearing more about it.  4589 SW Watson Avenue, Beaverton

NEW: Rice platters at Three Fifty Cafe. The good folks at Cully’s Three Fifty Cafe have a “secret menu item” that, if there’s enough interest, may go on the permanent menu. “Each platter comes with your choice of grilled pork, sirloin steak, or lemongrass chicken served with rice, fresh veggies, and sweet fish sauce. Pro tip: add an egg for the ultimate flavor experience!” So head on over and let them know what you think. 6205 NE Prescott Street, Portland