Four Things I Learned This Week (November 5)

Free coffee with beans at Jim & Patty’s. One of my favorite spots in NE Portland, Jim & Patty’s, has a holiday special through December. If you buy a 12oz bag of coffee beans you get a free 16oz house coffee. And if you buy two 12oz bags of beans you get a free 16oz latte or mocha. Sound good to me. Get yourself a Pig Newton (I like the SuperJack version) while you’re at it. 4951 NE Fremont Street, Portland

100 Days of Babkas. Carly Tonini at Queen Croissants launched a project earlier this year called “100 Days of Babkas.” Yes, she’s making different kinds of Babkas for 100 days total. Here’s what she said at the start: “I knew I wanted to make something decadent for Day 1 of 100 Days of Babkas. What could be more fitting than an Oreo Cheesecake Babka! Babka is layered with Oreo cookie crumbs and Oreo cheesecake batter. It’s decadent. It’s a classic. Oreos just make me feel like a kid again.” She’s almost done (at Day 84 as of this writing, the Lasagna Bolognese Babka) but you can see her trail of creative babkas at the hashtag #100daysofbabkas on Instagram.

Moon Room opens to the public. Ecliptic Brewing is opening their second location to the public tomorrow, Saturday, November 6, in SE Portland (today is the media/industry event). They will have an “extensive tap list” eventually (up to 30 handles), a gin-focused cocktail program, and sandwich options via the Moon Room food trailer just outside the building, featuring fresh, local, and seasonal ingredients. The Moon Room opens at noon tomorrow. 930 SE Oak Street, Portland

Ben & Esther’s Vegan Jewish Deli opening date. Announced on social media, Ben & Esther’s will open at their new location on Alberta Street on Saturday, November 20, 7am. It will be totally vegan in there, plus some GF options. Look for kosher-certification (both location) soon, too. 1800 NE Alberta Street, Portland

Bonus: Mystery Restaurant coming to Roseway? While reviewing city documents I came across this tidbit: a restaurant to open at 6520 NE Sandy Blvd, which right now looks like a house hidden by trees. Their paperwork is recent (set up 10/29/21; under review 11/01/21) and includes a Change of Occupancy request (from residential to business), plenty of reconfiguring of the interior (e.g., dining, lounge, game room), and structural work. My first wave of research didn’t pull up much more than that. If you know anything, please shoot me an email.

Small Bites: City Permits Edition

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Winner Winner Chicken Dinner at Pollo Bravo. Photo credit: Pollo Bravo

Some of you may know that I enjoy perusing city documents to understand better what is going on in this city, especially when it comes to restaurants and real estate (I used to blog about Queens real estate many years ago). Here are some of the more interesting things I’ve come across lately, thanks to publicly-available city documents.

World Cup Coffee and Tea House. This is the little cafe inside Powell’s Books downtown. They’ll be doing what is considered “minor tenant improvement,” which includes changing the seating area and adding a wood-slat ceiling over the reading are of the cafe. 1035 W Burnside Street, Portland

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Get Ready for Portland’s Newest Culinary Bookstore from Vivienne

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Vivienne back in 2017.

I knew Vivienne, the little cafe next to the Hollywood Theatre, was going to make some changes (i.e., the end of brunch) but I didn’t anticipate they would be on as high a level as they are. On Friday, September 3, Vivienne’s owner Robin Wheelright sent out an email announcing the changes—departing from being a full-time cafe and turning into a culinary bookstore to be located in what has been their dining room.

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Small Bites – Norse Hall, Poke Qube, Birrieria PDX, and More

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A bunch of tidbits have crossed my desk and I thought I’d put them all together for you here.

Portland’s Norse Hall at risk. The Norse Hall over on Couch and 11th is running in the red, thanks to—you guessed it—COVID-19. Known for various Scandi cultural events, including the annual Lutefisk Dinner, I’ve spent time there for their tasty Viking Breakfast that happens during certain months of the year. It’s an important cultural space and is worth saving; the fear is out there that developers might be eyeing the property. You can help by donating to their GoFundMe campaign. 111 NE 11th Ave, Portland

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