Safeway Archives - Bridgetown Bites

March 25, 2026March 26, 2026

Passover 2026 in Portland: Eats, Treats, and Celebrations

Matzo layer cake for Passover 2026. — Homemade matzo layer cake.

Passover 2026 begins on the evening of Wednesday, April 1 and runs through Thursday, April 9. This Jewish high holiday of liberation is traditionally celebrated with a Seder, a ritual meal held on the first two nights of Passover, where family and friends gather to retell the story of the Exodus. Some of the foods you can expect to see at a Seder include matzo (a flat dry unleavened cracker), bitter herbs, charoset (a paste of nuts, apples, and wine), and four cups of wine.

February 26, 2026February 26, 2026

Purim 2026: Tasty Treats and Celebrations in Portland

Edie and a plate of hamentaschen for Purim 2026. — My then 7-year-old Edie who is now a pre-teen but still loves their hamantaschen.

The holiday of Purim is almost here—a joyous holiday filled with tasty treats and celebrations, observed by Jews around the world. Purim begins on the evening of Monday, March 2, and continues through March 3 (and through March 4 in Jerusalem). The holiday commemorates the story of Queen Esther, whose courage helped save the Jewish people from Haman’s evil plot to kill the Jews of ancient Persia.

December 10, 2025December 12, 2025

Rotisserie Chickens: Another Stumptown Savings Taste Test in Portland

Pieces of rotisserie chicken for our taste test for Stumptown Savings. — All the chicken for our taste test.

I had the opportunity to participate in a taste test for rotisserie chickens, led by Bryan Vance of Stumptown Savings. I joined a handful of local food writers on Tuesday, November 18 to taste a total of nine chickens from eight stores. Bryan has published our results over on Stumptown Savings (subscription required to read—it’s free to subscribe), but I thought I’d share some additional thoughts on this very fun gathering.

July 17, 2025July 16, 2025

The Battle of the Portland Deli Salads: 9 Enter, With a Surprising Clear Winner

Salads for the Portland deli salads tasting. — The Portland deli salads.

Portland’s grocery stores compete fiercely for deli dominance, but which makes the best of the Portland deli salads? When Meg Cotner of Bridgetown Bites reached out about participating in Portland Salad Week, I jumped at the chance to settle this with an old-fashioned taste test.

April 3, 2025April 9, 2025

Passover 2025 in Portland

Passover 2025 is just around the corner in Portland! Passover, or Pesach, is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Israelites’ escape and liberation from slavery in Egypt, as told in the book of Exodus. This is the second book of the Old Testament and part of the Torah.

This year it starts the evening of Saturday, April 12 and ends on Sunday, April 20. The final day is also the date of Easter this year.