Small Bites: Pamana, Deadshot, The Indoor Trio, and More

Photo credit: Pamana.

Pamana is open. This Filipino restaurant from the folks at Baon Kainan is now open and in residence at The Hoxton hotel lobby. For their grand opening week, which started on Wednesday, September 3 and goes until Sunday, September 7, you can get:

  • Brunch from 9am to 2pm
  • NA drinks from Pamana and cocktails from Lovely Rita on Saturday and Sunday
  • One red envelope comes with every order during the grand opening week (while supplies last).
  • There will also be a local DJ spinning on the weekend.

Big congrats on the opening, guys! 15 NW 4th Avenue, Portland

Continue reading “Small Bites: Pamana, Deadshot, The Indoor Trio, and More”

Small Bites: Leikam Brewing, Nectaris, Upright Brewing, and More

Hot dog at Leikam Brewing in Portland, Oregon.
Photo credit: Leikam Brewing.

New food menu at Leikam Brewing. They’ve partnered with Nourishment PDX, which provides locally-sourced, flavorful food. A little backstory: “The two first crossed paths nearly a decade ago as vendors at the Hollywood Farmers Market and are excited to reconnect. Ramona White, founder of Nourishment PDX, was a beloved presence at the market for 19 years, serving tens of thousands of her famous breakfast burritos to customers of all ages and Leikam sold its first beers publicly at the market weekly.”

You can see their menu here, which includes mac & cheese, a mezze plate, lamb chorizo chili, deviled eggs, and more. The full menu is available 4pm to 8pm, with a modified menu after 8pm. 5812 East Burnside Street, Portland

Continue reading “Small Bites: Leikam Brewing, Nectaris, Upright Brewing, and More”

Small Bites: Whit’s Pizza Pies, Dear Sandy, Mekong Bistro, and More

Photo credit: Whit’s Pizza Pies

A lot of tidbits crossed my desk this week, so it’s time for another Small Bites. Let’s go!

Bar Asha closed temporarily. This successor to The Sudra posted on Instagram that they are taking time “to rethink what we do here.” I noticed comments are invisible, as they got some pretty intense reactions to the closing, some of which were pretty critical. Wishing them the best as they figure things out. 28 NE 28th Street Portland

Continue reading “Small Bites: Whit’s Pizza Pies, Dear Sandy, Mekong Bistro, and More”

Four Things I Learned This Week (August 26)

hit the spot! opens their first brick & mortar next week. Very happy for hit the spot!, a popular burger cart known for burgers with many patties, as well as their charitable interests, that made it to their first restaurant space. Their grand opening is going to be Wednesday, August 31 at 11am. “Enjoy the cheeseburger you’ve loved along with fried chicken sandwiches, cheese fries, milkshakes and brews.” 676 SE Morrison, Portland

Sayler’s gets some Feast love. Although Feast is known for its spendy festival and obsession with personalities of the Portland restaurant world, I was happy to see them give some love to Sayler’s Old Country Kitchen in east Portland. It’s been around for decades, is a shining example of the best of “old Portland,” and has a diehard fan base. From Feast:

“From the hottest new opening in the city, we turn our attention to what is among the city’s most venerable dining institutions: Sayler’s Old Country Kitchen. Opened in 1946 by brothers Art and Dick Sayler, the restaurant was founded around the maxim of offering a “quality steak dinner at prices that even the common man could afford.” Today, the restaurant is still owned and operated by the Sayler family, overseen in this, its 76th year in business, by third generation proprietors Bryan and David Sayler.”

Read more here. 10519 SE Stark Street, Portland

Lovely’s Fifty Fifty is coming to Netflix. The news has been spreading around Portland food media but I want to take some space and time to congratulate Sarah Minnick, the force behind Lovely’s Fifty Fifty, for being featured on “Chef’s Table: Pizza” on Netflix. I consider Lovely’s Fifty Fifty to be the best representative of a “Portland-style” pizza. I love her use of seasonal ingredients and lots of vegetables. The pizzas are delicious. You can watch “Chef’s Table: Pizza” on September 7, 2022 on Netflix. 4039 N Mississippi Avenue, Portland

Poor Richard’s in the news (so random). Willamette Week ran a story last week about the Poor Richard’s space, which closed in 2011. In 2019 I noticed activity inside, and had great hopes for a reopening of something great, but learned that it was going to be used for a Bank of America expansion (administrative needs, not customer space). A lot of Portland old-timers lament the shuttering of PR’s and remember the twofer fondly—two-for-one dinners featuring the iconic American dinner plate of steak, baked potato, onion rings, and salad.

As for what’s more current, it looks like they wanted to put up a new BofA sign (permit is still listed as Pending). Portland maps indicates it will be, “59.9 square feet with the following dimensions: 18′-11″ wide by 3′-2″ tall.” 3907 NE Broadway

Four Things I Learned This Week (April 22)

Happy Earth Day! 🌎

Hit the Spot will move on from their burger cart and open a restaurant in SE Portland. They posted on their social media this week: “We got some big news y’all! Just signed the lease and got the keys for our new restaurant. It is located at 676 SE Morrison St. It was most recently BrunchBox! It’s only 5 minutes from our current location. We’ll be open early summer!” They are also selling their cart for $50K. I’ll be sorry to see them leave their location on NE Sandy Blvd, but the restaurant sounds like progress. 676 SE Morrison Street, Portland

Jollibee is coming. Willamette Week first reported on this—they spotted a listing for the Filipino fast food giant in the mall directory of the Tanasbourne Village mall in Hillsboro. This is a big deal; Jollibee is a big deal. Yes, the chicken is a huge draw but the sweet Jolly Spaghetti with hot dogs is truly legendary; be sure to try the halo halo, too. I love the big red bee mascot. Now if only Red Ribbon Bakery would open a location in our area. NW 185th Avenue & NW Evergreen Pkwy, Hillsboro

Division Midway Alliance features Sunbela. The March DMA newsletter has a great blurb on Sunbela, the excellent Iraqi bakery and restaurant on Division near SE 125th. I stopped by recently and let me tell you, this place is terrific. I love this quote from Faten, Sunbela’s owner: “I opened this restaurant so that our community feels a sense of belonging in the new country. Food brings people together and it’s a way to celebrate life and culture. I am happy when community members tell me how much they like the food.” Definitely check it out. 12503 SE Division Street D, Portland

The Record Pub will open in Sellwood. While I was meeting a friend for breakfast at Bastion this week, I noticed a sign up in a nearby storefront for The Record Pub. I know very little about them, aside from their offerings of “Records. Tapes. Beer. Gear. Experience.” I’m definitely curious about the beer (their liquor license application doesn’t mention anything about food). It could be a pretty awesome spot to meet up for some pints and tunes. I’ll see what else I can find out (and if you know anything, send me a tip). 6034 SE Milwaukie Avenue, Portland