Portland food news and views
News and reviews of restaurants in Portland, Oregon.
Some of the most written about places on this blog include:
Portland Mercado [Latin American]
Ben & Esther’s [Jewish/Vegan]
Sizzle Pie [Pizza]
Bee’s Cakes [Cakes and Baked Goods]
Salt & Straw [Ice Cream]
Nepali Kitchen [Nepalese]
Vivienne[Bakery, Wine Bar, Bookstore]
Kachka [Russian]
Chin’s Kitchen [Dongbei Chinese]
Arrowood [New American]
Welcome to August 2025’s review of top posts for the month. This month it was a combination of what’s here and what’s coming as far as cafes, restaurants, markets, and food cart pods go. One thing I noticed is that most of these articles involved more photos than I’ve included in the past—this may or may not be a determining factor but it’s something worth thinking about.
Continue reading “Top 5 Posts on Bridgetown Bites, August 2025”
bb.q Chicken celebrates 30 years. The folks from Korean fried chicken chain bb.q Chicken reached out to me to inform me that this September marks bb.q Chicken’s 30th anniversary. And not only that, it’s also the birthday of their beloved mascot, ChiBBoQ. To celebrate, they are rolling out a nationwide promotion: free delivery September 4 to 7 and free ddeok-bokki (one of the best street foods ever) September 8 to 12. 2850 SE 82nd Avenue #2 and 917 SW Alder Street, Portland
Continue reading “Small Bites: bb.q Chicken, Layoffs, Frontera Sur, and More”
A little while back, I received an email from the PR person who works with Urdaneta. In it, she mentioned there was a chance to speak with Chef Javier Canteras about his work, and this topic caught my eye: “How his team is reviving lesser-known tapas traditions for a new audience.” As someone who, as a musician, was passionate about a similar thing (bring to the public music from lesser-known composers from the late Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods), this resonated with me.
We arranged a time for me to stop by—my friend and colleague Kathleen Bauer from Good Stuff NW joined me—and try some things. I had been to Urdaneta before and was confident the food was going to be the high quality I was accustomed to there; it did not disappoint. However, in honor transparency, I must tell you that this meal was comped (however, it’s important to tip well, and we did) but my thoughts are my own.
Continue reading “Urdaneta: Making the Unfamiliar Familiar in Portland”
Back in January of this year, I wrote about Bon Bánh Mì, a real mystery at the time. Originally, a Bridgetown Bites tipster first alerted me to it in December 2024, and I kept checking in on it over the months—both online and driving over to SE 122nd. It was “coming soon” for so long. So you can imagine how happy I am to tell you that Bon Bánh Mì is finally open!
Continue reading “Bon Bánh Mì Has Finally Opened in East Portland”
Yesterday I became aware of something called “Dirty Drinks.” This nationwide bar and beverage fundraising campaign from Zero Foodprint focuses on the issue of soil health. Ten Portland food and drink businesses are participating this year.
Continue reading “Dirty Drinks Are Happening in Portland”