Food News

This Week In Portland Food News: Kann Opens At Last, Jeffrey Morgenthaler Launches a Bar, and Nico's Ice Cream Plans a Cantina

August 5, 2022 Edition
August 5, 2022
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Gregory Gourdet's Haitian restaurant Kann is finally here. (Eva Kosmas Flores)
The arrival of Top Chef fan favorite Gregory Gourdet's long-awaited Haitian restaurant Kann definitely qualifies as the biggest food news of the week, but there's plenty of other exciting happenings going on in the local restaurant world, from a new bar by Jeffrey Morgenthaler to an upcoming cantina from Nico Vergara of Nico's Ice Cream. Read on for all of that and more updates. For more ideas, check out our food and drink guide.

NEW OPENINGS AND RETURNS

Chop Shop PDX Add to a List
This cart opened near Ship Ahoy Tavern Add to a List at the end of July, serving hearty pork chop sandwiches, chopped barbecue sandwiches (with a choice of chicken, pork or jackfruit), patty melts, salads, fries, mac salads, and rotating seasonal specials.
Creston-Kenilworth
Pickup

Kann Add to a List
At last: Top Chef star Gregory Gourdet debuted his highly anticipated wood-fired Haitian restaurant Kann, which has been in the works for over three years, on Thursday. The lucky diners who manage to snag a seat can look forward to dishes like akra (crispy taro root fritters), coffee-rubbed and smoked beef ribs, and twice-cooked griyo (Haitian fried pork). A downstairs pan-Caribbean bar called Sousòl Add to a List (Haitian Creole for "basement") is set to follow in two weeks. Gourdet has been vocal about his sobriety, and both the bar and restaurant will feature plentiful zero-proof options in addition to cocktails, beer, and Oregon wine.
Buckman
Dine-in


Sugar Hill Add to a List
This '70s-inspired bar launched in the former Circa 33 Add to a List space on bustling SE Belmont in July. Cocktails include "pornstar martinis" (vanilla vodka, passionfruit, lime, and Prosecco), pandan coladas, pineapple mojitos, amaretto fizzes, and a rotating boozy slushie, while the food menu features bites like coconut shrimp, crispy oysters, and goat cheese artichoke dip.
Belmont
Pickup, dine-in

The Sunset Room Add to a List
Hot on the heels of the June opening of his much-buzzed-about bar Pacific Standard Add to a List , star bartender Jeffrey Morgenthaler opened a second bar inside the Kex Hotel on July 29. The spot will have a more creative and experimental vibe than the classic-leaning Pacific Standard, with whimsical cocktails, boozy slushies, and chilled beer and wine. 
Kerns
Dine-in

Todo Add to a List
In early July, this Mexican kitchen opened in the former Blackbird Pizza Add to a List space on SE Hawthorne, with a menu of birria, al pastor, cochinita pibil, and other specialties.
Buckman
Pickup, delivery, dine-in

FUTURE OPENINGS

Nico's Cantina Add to a List
Nico's Ice Cream owner Nico Vergara's next act? A Mexican bar and restaurant in Cully, set to open the last weekend of August. Vergara was inspired by the lively cantina scene of Guadalajara, where he lived for a year, and will serve free botanas (snacks) like peanuts and chicharrones alongside tacos, ice cream, and mezcal- and tequila-based drinks.
Cully

CLOSURES

Pacific Crust Pizza Co. Add to a List
The Pacific Northwest-themed pizzeria Pacific Crust's downtown location, which just opened last fall, closed recently due to the end of its lease. Independent Restaurant Concepts marketing manager Victoria Wagner told Willamette Week that the group plans to reopen in another neighborhood.
Downtown

Seastar Bakery Add to a List and Handsome Pizza Add to a List
Alas, the businesses Seastar Bakery and Handsome Pizza, which shared a space in Northeast Killingsworth, revealed this week that they will both close on Sunday, August 14. In an Instagram post, the owners wrote, "Almost exactly seven years ago, we opened Handsome Pizza and Seastar Bakery, a quirky, collaborative restaurant project that tested our creativity and connected us with our neighborhood. It was a challenge beyond what we could have imagined, and it was lovely, too." The statement did not give a reason for the closure.
Vernon

West Coast Grocery Company Add to a List
This brewery will close permanently at the end of the month. According to Eater Portland, owner Charlie Hyde IV says an instance of sexual harassment soon after the business opened contributed to the decision to close.
Buckman

Wild North Add to a List
The outdoorsy, hyper-local restaurant on NE Broadway appears to have shuttered, according to its Instagram bio.
Irvington

OTHER FOOD NEWS

Voodoo Doughnut workers file for union election
Voodoo Doughnut employees have come together to file for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board for a second time. The workers' union, Doughnut Workers United, originally formed in March 2020 and filed for an election last year, but did not receive representation from the NLRB due to the vote resulting in a tie.

POP-UPS AND EVENTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 6

Yaad Style Jamaican Cuisine's Event Add to a List
Celebrate the 60th anniversary of Jamaica gaining its independence from the United Kingdom with this joyful party hosted by Yaad Style Jamaican Cuisine. The daytime event will be free and family friendly, with games, activities, prizes, food, live music, and more, followed by a 21+ evening event beginning at 10 pm with a $5 cover.
Yaad Style Jamaican Cuisine, 12 pm

Fremont Fest Add to a List
Browse local goods and nosh on local food at this annual street fair. The family-friendly festivities will include fun for adults (a beer garden at Hi-Top Tavern) and children (a designated "kid zone") alike.
NE Fremont & 42nd, 10 am-4 pm

SlushFest Saturday Tap Takeovers Add to a List
Cool off this summer with this slushie-centric street party from Imperial Bottle Shop & Taproom. They'll feature a four-tap kegerator and slushie machine, with four beers on tap from a different local brewery each week, a different housemade slushie, and "ice bergs" (beer pours with slushie floats).
Imperial Bottle Shop and Taproom, 3-9 pm

SUNDAY, AUGUST 7

Mimosa Fest Add to a List
Pop some bottles in celebration of everyone's favorite boozy breakfast beverage with half a dozen flavor options, brunch bites, a live DJ, and other festivities for the "ultimate Vegas party experience."
Bossanova Ballroom, 12 pm

AUGUST 12-13

2022 Vancouver Summer BrewFest Add to a List
Enjoy beers from 25 different Washington breweries within the stunning surroundings of Vancouver's Esther Short Park. You'll also be able to grab nosh from food trucks like Big Dogs Grill, Poblano Pepper Mexican Food, and Southern Girl Delights and take in live music performances.
Esther Short Park

THROUGH AUGUST 14

Portland Mercury's Summer of Slushies 2022 Add to a List
The coolest, most delicious event of the summer is finally here! The Merc and Jim Beam present Summer of Slushies, which brings boozy, frozen, custom-made treats to the frugal and thirsty denizens of Portland at just $6 a pop.
Various locations

SPECIALS

Berlu Add to a List
For the summer, the James Beard-nominated Vietnamese restaurant Berlu is putting its coveted tasting menu on hiatus. In the meantime, the bakery will offer extended hours (10 am-1 pm on Saturdays and Sundays), and the spot will host an ice cream window from 4-6 pm on Saturdays (except for August 13). Expect flavors like pandan pistachio, grilled banana leaf with banana caramel, and toasted rice with mango and fig leaf, with sticky rice and Berlu's famed grilled honeycomb cake available as add-ons.
Buckman
Pickup

Lauretta Jean's Add to a List
Make the most of the limited stone fruit season with a juicy peach pie from Lauretta Jean's.
Richmond
Pickup

Salt & Straw
The artisan ice creamery is helping you get your daily dose of vegetables in with their new "Veggies You Crave" flavor series, which comes out today. The produce-packed lineup includes Carrot Cake Batter with Pralined Hazelnuts; Spinach Cake with Chocolate Tahini Fudge; Green Fennel & Maple; Charred Corn Curd, Cotija & Tajín; and Red Chili Curry & Makrut Lime Crispy Rice.
Nob Hill, Vernon, Lake Oswego, Division/Clinton
Pickup, delivery, dine-in

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