Pete Cottell

Mama Bird’s Chicken Splits the Difference Between Comfort Food and Health Food

You’re guaranteed to leave smelling like a campfire—an issue that forced Gabriel Pascuzzi to briefly shutter the restaurant shortly after opening last fall, following complaints about the smoke from his neighbors.

Baes Chicken Redeems One of Portland Restaurateur Micah Camden’s Biggest Failures

In 2016, Camden pulled the plug on Son of a Biscuit, a fried chicken-and-biscuits concept he co-founded with business partner Katie Poppe just two years earlier. It’s unclear what went wrong, given that it occupied a busy corner of red-hot Southeast Division Street. But it must’ve stuck with him, because four years later, Camden is giving chicken another shot, this time in an even more central location.

Lift Off Lounge Sets Course for a 1950s Version of the 21st Century

Remember when the future was something to look forward to? Casey Maxwell does. Though the concept of the future that consumes his latest project, The Lift Off Lounge, is outdated by more than half a century, it’s certainly more comfortable than the modern idea of what the world might look like another 50 years from now.

How Does Popeyes’ Viral Chicken Sandwich Compare to the Portland-Made Versions?

We spent a week sampling sandos at popular mainstays and newcomers alike to get a more accurate gauge on the hype, and our conclusion should be no surprise—it is well deserved. Below, we’ve ranked the sandwiches we feel are better than Popeyes’ and those that are worse.

Zapapizza Tops Its Pies With Taquitos and Chilaquiles. But Underneath the Novelty, It’s Just Damn Good Pizza.

Sure, the slices are topped with taquitos and chilaquiles. But the heart of Zapapizza isn’t the novelty of the toppings. It’s the pizza itself. And that pizza is damn good.

A Grandmother’s Passion For Multinational Cuisine Inspired an Indonesian Restaurant That Knows no Boundaries

A Trio of New Restaurants Have Opened in Downtown Portland Hotels. We Went to All Three.

A trio of new hotel-bound concepts—one entirely new, the other two reboots—are making a strong case for the hotel lobby as the next great place to wine and dine when you’re downtown.

Vampire Weekend Leaned into Their New Jam-Band Aesthetics at Their Edgefield Show

Formerly buzzy indie bands face a tough decision as they enter their later years: pander to the youth and adapt to their surroundings, or double down on what made them relevant in the first place and become a legacy act. Vampire Weekend has chosen the former. But their sold-out show at McMenamins Edgefield on Sept. 28 demonstrated they’re going about it in an unconventional way.

Cat Hoch’s Debut Album Blends Psych Rock with ’80s Dance Pop

The future of Hoch’s sound feels less clear now than it ever did, but her keen songwriting chops have rendered that immaterial

Tacovore’s Tacos Are Far from the Best in Town, but They Don’t Need to Be

In a major food city like Portland, giving your audience exactly what it wants is often an underrated virtue. And if the comments in the air during a recent visit to Tacovore on Northeast Fremont were any indication, this is at least one area where the Eugene-based taco franchise has definitively succeeded.

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