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.

Four Things I Learned This Week (March 21) in Portland Food

East Glisan Pizza Lounge is taking a break. First there were rumors, then there was a statement from the East Glisan Pizza folks: “Starting Monday, March 17, we’re taking some space to look at the business with new eyes—to take what we’ve learned over the past 11 years & rebuild with structure & culture in place that we & our crew deserve. We look forward to a healthy relationship with a business we’re excited about, even outside of the times we get to see you.” Keep up with them on their social channels for updates. 8001 NE Glisan Street, Portland

Javelina is moving again. Javelina and Inɨ́sha will be moving from the old Lil’ Dame space, their most recent home on NE 30th Avenue, to the old Yonder space on NE 42nd Avenue. This will put them next to door to NAYA’s munk-yeʔlan sax̣ali, (pronounced “moonk-YEH-lǔn SAH-hah-lee”) AKA Munk-yelan Saxali office in Cully. Their last day of service on NE 90th Avenue is Saturday, March 29; they’ll then take a two week break and relaunch on Thursday, April 17.

The positives of moving? “With the extra space we can expand our hours and menus. Also, our indoor seating almost triples and we now have a full bar where we can really allow our beverage program to flourish.” Why they moved? “We had some unforeseen challenges within that space that we couldn’t see getting through. Also, it was too small, we couldn’t accommodate everyone that came in and quickly realized we needed more room to pursue our goals of being a restaurant, gathering place and community hub for our guests.” 4636 NE 42nd Avenue, Portland

Beekie’s PDX has opened in Parkrose. This truck that seems new to the area is currently in the Grocery Outlet parking lot, according to a Bridgetown Bites tipster. One thing indicated on the truck is that they serve “vegan soul food.” They have a Facebook page and Instagram account, and from what I can tell there, vegan offerings include burgers and tacos; they definitely serve meat, too. 10721 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

Kim Jong Grillin has left the Happy Valley Town Center. Tuesday was his last day there. Hopefully the future is bright for him and will bring good things his way. 15934 SE Happy Valley Town Center, Happy Valley

Bonus: Pronto Gelato is open again! They re-opened on Thursday after some time away. Find them Thursdays through Sundays, 3pm to 8pm.


Stories you may have missed this week on Bridgetown Bites:

Paqui Modern Mexican Will Open on NE Sandy Blvd in Portland
Hey Cricket Fans! Sticky Wicket Will Open in North Portland
Schilling Cider House Will Re-Open on SE Division in Portland
Food Loop Northwest Will Open in NW Portland’s Cordage Building

I also want to with you all a happy spring! The spring equinox was Thursday, March 20, and it looks like we have some nice mild weather ahead of us, despite the rain today. And remember: Ticket To Dine continues all month!

Black Water Will Bring Food, Drink, Music to NE Sandy Blvd in Portland

The new location of Black Water in the old Laurelwood Brewing Pub on NE Sandy Blvd. Photo credit: Laurelwood Brewing.

Black Water, an established local record label, performance venue, and vegan bar, is coming to Rose City Park. They will set up shop in the old Laurelwood Brewing pub space. This feels like a big deal, as locals have lamented the absence of a tenant in that location since the pub closed in 2023.

Continue reading “Black Water Will Bring Food, Drink, Music to NE Sandy Blvd in Portland”

Face Plant Wants To Take Down McDonald’s in Portland

Burger at Face Plant.
You put plants in your face. Photo credit: Face Plant

The other day I was perusing Instagram and came across this new account called @eatfaceplant. Turn out Face Plant is a new fast food restaurant that will offer a 100% plant-based fast food menu in what used to be a 1990’s-era McDonald’s on Swan Island. There is just something poetic about that.

Continue reading “Face Plant Wants To Take Down McDonald’s in Portland”

November Is World Vegan Month in Portland

Sweet Mary Jane, a vegan pizza at Virtuous Pie.
Sweet Mary Jane Pizza: topped with cashew mozzarella, TVP bacon, caramelized onion jam, shaved parmesan, and hot honey, at Virtuous Pie. Photo credit: Veganizer.

Portland ranks high as a vegan-friendly city in recent lists (Wallet Hub in 2023, Happy Cow in 2024). So embracing World Vegan Month is probably one of the most on-brand food celebrations of the year here. And there sure is a bounty of delicious things you can try this month that, as they say, “do not have a face.”

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