Small Bites: Elephants Deli Burns, Mikado, Brunch, and More

Elephant deli burns.
Photo credit: Portland Fire & Rescue.

Painful and tragic: The flagship Elephants Deli burns. There’s plenty of news outlets reporting on this, but I’ll share the news releases (first, second) produced by Portland Fire & Rescue. Essentially:

“At 1am on the morning of March 10, 2026, Portland Fire & Rescue responded to a commercial fire at the Elephant’s Deli at 115 NW 22nd Avenue in NW Portland. This was a fire that was human caused on the exterior of the structure that extended to the interior of the building and into the elevated roof structure resulting in significant fire damage.”

Continue reading “Small Bites: Elephants Deli Burns, Mikado, Brunch, and More”

Four Things I Learned This Week (April 4) in Portland Food

Reeva turned 3 this week. When I saw the post from Reeva, one of Portland’s great food trucks, that started out as “Dear Reeva Family,” I thought, “Nooooooooooo, don’t close!” Thankfully, I had it all wrong—they were there to tell us that yesterday was their three-year anniversary!

At the end of the post they said, “As we celebrate this milestone, we’re filled with gratitude and excitement for what’s ahead. Here’s to more good food, great company, and unforgettable moments. Thank you for being part of our story!” Here, hear! Love having them in the Roseway neighborhood. 7727 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

There are still tickets for Sabor de Primavera. At the writing of this article, you can get tickets for the 7pm to 8:30pm of this event on Sunday, April 6. From the good folks at Veganizer, this is a fundraiser they call, “Spring Fiesta to Benefit Growing Gardens.” Growing Gardens cultivates “healthy and equitable communities through the experience of growing food in schools, backyards, and correctional facilities.”

There will be six Mexican restaurants participating: Chelo, Chilango, Machetes, Mis Tacones, Ice Queen, and Libre. You can see what they are planning to serve, plus buy tickets, which are $88 + fees. 920 NE Glisan Street, Portland

En Vida has closed. Over on Bluesky, I was told that En Vida has closed their location on NE Fremont Street. “Unfortunately this has been confirmed by the owner,” said the public tipster. On the En Vida Instagram they also state, “we are permanently closed.” The silver lining is that you can get their food at TPK Brewing—En Vida’s plate of arepitas de queso was one of my favorite bites from 2024. 1303 NE Fremont Street, Portland

Food & Wine ranks Portland as the fourth best place in the US for coffee. Food & Wine has an annual award called the “Global Tastemakers Award”—this is its third year, so it’s fairly new. It celebrates “very best in culinary travel around the world” and the number of cities included is at 165. There’s a lot of content on their landing page, so normally you’ll be clicking a lot, but KOIN extracted what Portlanders want to know: how the city fits into these rankings.

It’s only about the coffee in this case; Portland was not included in lists of top U.S. food, drink, and restaurant cities. Nine cafes/roasters were mentioned in the list: Stumptown, Heart, Cathedral, Hypnos, Good Coffee, Capitola, Prince, Never, and Upper Left. Feel free to leave your favorite in the comments. Multiple locations


Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:

Taste of Szechuan Has Opened in the Old Eastern Cathay Space in Portland
Food Waste Prevention Week in Portland
The 2025 James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards Finalists in Portland
Passover 2025 in Portland

We’ve also updated our Easter roundup. Fat Milo’s and Sabor Del Rio Cafe are both now open. And remember: Food Waste Prevention Week starts Monday.

Small Bites: Pie Spot, Prince Coffee, Publican Beer Room, and More

Enchiladas with green sauce at El Sombrero Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
Delicious Mexican food in Portland.

Pie Spot in Montavilla is closing. The second location of Pie Spot in the Rocket Empire Machine food hall has decided to “throw in the towel” after four years there. Their “lil pie window” will close after Saturday (tomorrow). 6935 NE Glisan Street, Portland

Continue reading “Small Bites: Pie Spot, Prince Coffee, Publican Beer Room, and More”

Four Things I Learned This Week (August 16)

How Convenient is coming to North Tabor. As we wait for Tréla to open there on the southeast corner of NE Glisan and 60th Avenue, we also prepare for the opening of How Convenient, an aptly-named convenience store opening in the building to the east. They are calling themselves a “bodega-style,” as in a, “soon-to-be bodega-style convenience store where you will find treats & treasures to make your day better & easier.” I send good wishes to Nathan and his mascot cat Riley all the best as they prepare the space to open. 6016 NE Glisan Street, Portland

National Knife Day is August 24. Thanks to a post by Travel Oregon, I learned that there exists a National Knife Day in amongst the other “national days” floating around out there. And you can celebrate (or at least recognize) this day at an event on August 24 at Steelport Knife Co’s factory here in Portland. Also, did you know that “five of the world’s leading knife brands make their home here”? This includes including Benchmade Knife CompanyC.R.K.T.Gerber GearLeatherman, and, of course Steelport Knife Co.

At the event at Steelport, there will be knife forging demonstrations, and local food and drink available. You’ll also can enter the ultimate Portland Knifemaker Giveaway, where you have a chance to win over $5,000 worth of knives from the above-mentioned knife-makers. It runs through 11:59pm on August 24. 3602 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

Prince Coffee is selling its stroopwafel sign. Since they retired their fresh stroopwafels a while back, they are feeling like they don’t need that neon sign. Katie, owner of Prince Coffee, explains why they don’t make them anymore at the cafes—it’s a mix of health issues and price of ingredients. If you want it, send them a DM or email katie@princecoffeepdx.com. 4523 NE Fremont Street, Portland

Shorba Arabic Food has set up in Montavilla. Thanks to a Montavilla resident who reported this: “New middle eastern cart opened up the weekend of the Montavilla street fair.” It’s called Shorba Arabic Food, run by a man named Omer. Their Google listing says “We provide verify of arabic home foods, such as plates, saj, gyro. We have a selections of foods that fit different diets.” They serve halal food. There are lots of positive reviews in various places online. 307 SE 80th Avenue, Portland


Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:

Steam Rice Roll King Is Open in the Hazelwood Neighborhood
Coq Au Vin Is Moving to North Portland
Heretic Coffee Co., SE Portland’s Nonprofit Cafe
The Paladins League Will Open on NE Fremont
Look at This Awesome Portland Trailblazers Schedule Release Video

Also, the Beaverton Night Market is happening tomorrow, Saturday, August 17, 5pm to 10pm, at The Round, 12600 SW Crescent Street
https://www.beavertonoregon.gov/390/Beaverton-Night-Market
More on August festivals in the area.