Portland food news and views
SUN RICE, a Filipino restaurant serving Filipino breakfast dishes and more, has soft opened in the old XLB space in North Portland; their grand opening is later this week. I reached out to co-founder Ken Tran to learn more and here is what he told me.
Continue reading “SUN RICE Reopens in Old XLB Space in North Portland”Oregon’s first Jollibee opens today. The Oregonian has reported on this story over the past few years, and the arrival of this popular Filipino fast food chain is finally here. They open today in a former Chevy’s in Hillsboro. Popular dishes include the spaghetti with hot dogs, fried chicken, and peach mango pie.
They’ll be open daily from 9am to 11pm. I hope they’ll have one of those big smiling bee-man mascots stationed outside the entrance, too. When I lived in Queens, the kids loved posing by the one in Woodside. 1951 NW 185th Avenue, Hillsboro
L’Echelle is open. They opened their doors in the former Woodsman Tavern space this past Wednesday, with a menu of French bistro fare using “the bounty Pacific Northwest’s best ingredients.” Head there Wednesdays through Sundays, 5pm to 10pm. No reservations for now, just stop on by. 4537 SE Division Street, Portland
Rad Magic Subs celebrates one year on Gladstone Street. This very popular vegan sandwich shop is having a party on Saturday, May 31 from 9:30am to 6pm. They’ll have sandwiches and salads, vegan cupcakes from 222 Pastry, plus a prize wheel. It’s year one on Gladstone, and four years total in the business. 2824 SE Gladstone Street, Portland
Strawberry Fest at Parkrose Coffee Shop. This weekend, Saturday May 31 and Sunday June 1, the good people over at Parkrose Coffee Shop are celebrating the strawberry. They’ll have pints of strawberries grown at the Spada U-Pick Farms (they are located at NE 158th and Sandy Blvd), strawberry drink, strawberry pastry specials, and strawberry activities for the kids. 4826 NE 105th Avenue, Portland
Bonus: Nico’s Ice Cream will open at the Flock Food Hall. Great news for Portland’s ice cream lovers—Nico’s Ice Cream will have a summer residency at the Flock Food Hall until the end of August. The grand opening is today from noon to 10pm. After that you can see them Friday and Saturday, noon to 10pm; and Sunday, noon to 9pm. 917 SW Alder Street, Portland
Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:
No Sabo Will Take Over the Lilia Comedor Space in South Waterfront [with an update on the fate of Lilia Comedor]
Oui Presse Will Close in Portland
Slow Haste Coffee Joins Collector Bar Daily in NE Portland
This weekend a few place we’ve covered are opening: Sticky Wicket today, Slow Haste Saturday, and Eli Jo Coffee Stop & Shop on Sunday. The Veganizer Asian Market is also Sunday, and Oui Presse closes at the end of service Saturday.
CityFair continues and the Holi Spring Harvest Fest is Saturday. More events can be found on our Portland Food and Drink Festivals and Portland Area Cultural + Food Festivals lists.
Maybe there is life for Water Avenue Coffee Hollywood after all. Over the past couple of months, I’ve seen some trucks visiting the site of a potential Water Avenue Coffee in the Hollywood District, located in the old Joule/Wholesome Blends space. And their permit situation woke up this year—the most recent one was set up in February 2023 and was “Approved to Issue” in January 2024. What’s on it? “New Tenant — Converting a restaurant to a coffee shop.” Among other more mundane things (drains, grease interceptor, grab bars in the WC). I’ll continue to keep an eye on it. 4615 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland
PDX Sliders to open on N Williams. Looks like they’ll be taking over the Shine Distillery space in North Portland. Look for them to be open every day, 11am to 11pm, except Sundays when they close at 10pm. I know their website indicates a new NW Portland location but I think they will be a good fit in that hip section of North Portland. I tried to get more info this week but their email and contact form both pooped out on me. So it goes. 4232 N Williams Avenue, Portland
April is Filipino Food Month. All month long, you are encouraged to try some Filipino food, which you can find in Portland, Gresham, and Beaverton. In the words of the organizers, “To celebrate, we’re hosting Portland’s first-ever Filipino food tour called ‘Sobrang Sarap,’ which means ‘very delicious’ in Tagalog. Also: “April was designated Filipino Food Month to appreciate and preserve Filipino culinary heritage, as well as the farmers and fishermen who make it all possible.” For more information and to check out the participants, head to the Sobran Sarap website. Various
Chaat Wallah reopens today. Lately, every time I stop in at Junior’s Roasted Coffee, I look over at the Chaat Wallah cart and wonder when they will return. Well, I no longer have to wonder: they’re back open today! Starting at 4:30pm you can get some of their delicious food from an updated menu—one item that looks really tempting is the Butter Chicken Sandwich, made with Mary’s Chicken thighs (covered in a GF dredge), chilli oil-tossed arugula, Makhani sauce, and pickled onions. You can get it on a Dos Hermanos potato bun or a New Cascadia GF bun. A cold beer from Upright Brewing would go nicely with that sandwich. 7157 NE Prescott Street, Portland
Photo credit: Masarap
While driving along NE 82nd Avenue the other day, I noticed a new cart that has established itself on the southwest corner of NE Sandy Blvd and 82nd Avenue. It’s Masarap, “serving homemade lumpia and fresh baked goods.” A Filipino food cart? Sign me up!
Continue reading “Masarap Food Cart Open at NE Sandy and 82nd Avenue”
Chicken adobo from Baon Kainan
From June 23 to July 1, 2023, Filipino food will be the focus in our state through Filipino Food Oregon, with notable events in Salem and Portland. In Salem, there’s the World Beat Festival in particular, and here in Portland head to the city’s great Filipino restaurants and food carts during Filipino Food Week. Filipino Food Oregon, a “culinary heritage celebration highlighting Filipino cuisine,” is hosted by Philippine Department of Tourism SF.
Continue reading “Focus on Filipino Food With Filipino Food Oregon”