Scoop: Furor Over Franz's New Hot-Dog Buns

The gluten is making you fat, not the gossip.

SHUT UP AND EAT
By WW Culture Staff
  1. BETWEEN THE BUNS: Portland hot-dog vendors are red hot over Franz bakery’s new lighter, smaller hot-dog buns. “It came as a real surprise,” says Mark Atkinson, owner of Big Tommy’s Brooklyn Dogs near Delta Park in North Portland. “Some of my customers get the whole shebang. You try to put ketchup, mustard, pickles, sauerkraut, Mancini fried onions and jalapeños on it and it won’t fit. They’ve altered the product to the point it’s unsuitable.” Atkinson was told Franz is still making buns to the old specifications for Costco. “I don’t want to buy a membership,” he says. “I go to Franz every day. I’ve figured out how the bread was made-—not by the sell-by date but by their code.” Franz had no comment.
  1. OPEN UP: Beloved Division Street food cart Shut Up and Eat plans to open a brick-and-mortar eatery at 3848 SE Gladstone St. Shut Up and Eat’s giant sandwiches and freshly fried potato chips have been a longtime favorite of Scoop, and we’re proud to see an Eat Mobile alum moving on up. >> Meanwhile, Shut Up and Eat’s neighbors, Run Chicken Run, might be making a similar move. Pitan Ponlakhan—who we assume is the same Pitan Ponlakhan who owns the Thai cart in the D50 pod—is opening a brick-and-mortar eatery called Nudi at 4310 SE Woodstock Blvd., replacing short-lived Japanese restaurant Momoyama. >> Going the opposite direction, inner-Southeast’s Slow Bar is spinning off its popular burgers into a stand-alone joint—called Slow Burger—at 2325 NE Glisan St.
  1. BRUTE GLUTE: There’s a battle brewing over the gluten-free beer market. Widmer Bros. spent lots of time and money figuring out how to remove the gluten from barley to make its new beer, Omission, only to have a federal agency say only “beers” made with rice, sorghum or the like can make the claim. More here.
  1. NEED CASH: A local director is in the final stages of a sprawling film on country-music legends the Carter Family. Beth Harrington, a Grammy-nominated documentarian, has been working on the movie-—which includes one of Johnny Cash’s last interviews—since 2003. She’s hoping to raise money via Kickstarter. To raise awareness, Harrington staged a group performance of the Carter classic “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” at the Skidmore Fountain during a recent Saturday Market. 
  1. RIP: Sean Roberts, bassist and vocalist for well-loved ’90s Portland rock trio Thirty Ought Six, died June 8 at his parents’ home in Alexandria, Va., according to Web posts. The details of Roberts’ death were unclear as of press time. Thirty Ought Six broke up in 1996 after playing dates on the Lollapalooza tour. The band brought punk energy without sacrificing melody or lyricism. “Sean was always a kind, funny, intense, energetic and very heartfelt kind of person,” says Pete Krebs of Hazel. “I’m sad to hear of his passing, and I hope that his spirit has found peace.” 

WWeek 2015

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