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

República returns with the high quality food they are known for.
Deliciousness at República.

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.

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Sneak Peek: Inside Gumba’s New Space

Gumba's new space: a sneak peek.
Inside Gumba’s new space—dining room in-progress.

About a month after temporarily closing for its highly anticipated move, Gumba Pasta Parlor is gearing up for its next chapter. While fans and locals await their reopening, the Bridgetown Bites team got a sneak peek of Gumba’s new space and wanted to share a preview. It’s still under construction, but here’s a glimpse at what’s taking shape ahead of Gumba’s exciting reopening later this month.

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Novel Book Bar Is Open in Northwest Portland

Chairs and banquettes and carpet in Novel Book Bar.

A relatively new spot called Novel Book Bar has opened in Old Town Chinatown in the former Mingle Lounge space. First opening their doors last December, they offer a chill vibe in a space where you can have something to drink, eat, and relax by yourself or with friends. I had a chance to stop by and check it out, and was able to chat with Novel Book Bar’s Rolando Mingledoff—here’s what I learned.

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Eyesore Coffee Is Planted In a Sunroom in Northeast Portland

The coffee setup at Eyesore.
Photo credit: Eyesore.

The other day a Bridgetown Bites tipster messaged me about something called “Eyesore” that I should know about: “So this opened right by me and it’s so cute and perfect.” Color me curious. So I reached out to Eyesore’s owner and barista, Beck, to learn more about this little coffee cart she runs out of her Irvington sunroom.

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Dick’s Pizza Has Opened in the Old Sunny’s Pizza Space in Sellwood

An illustration of the front of Dick's Pizza.
Image credit: Dick’s Pizza.

Chris Pfeifer, who you may know from The 1905 in North Portland and Original Dream Pizza in Northeast Portland, has opened Dick’s Pizza, a new pizzeria in the Sellwood-Moreland section of Southeast Portland. It’s in the former location of Sunny’s Pizza, and is located between a Cena and its private dining space Festa. Update 3/16/26: Thanks to a friend of the blog, I’ve learned that they are in soft opening pop-up mode until mid-April, when they will fully open.

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