Five Pop-Ups to Eat at This Summer

Randomly occurring Hot Plates to keep an eye out for.

Gusto. IMAGE: Hattie Watson / gustopdx.com.

1. Sibeiho

Patricia Lau and Holly Ong are out to recapture the essence of their native Singaporean cuisine with this flavor-extravagant supper club. Taking reservations of around 20 through direct message on their Instagram page, the former Nike alums craft unique seafood by taking advantage of their Pacific Northwest stock of local fish and dropping the long shipments of traditional Singaporean trawl. Ranging from fish tacos to hokkien me—an umami-rich prawn wok—they do seafood like you've probably never had it.

2. Last Supper

Last Supper pop-up stands as a space for women and gender non-conforming people in the male-dominated Portland kitchen milieu. Olivia Starkie, who crafts the menu, employs an entirely female staff who help her complete concoctions such as socca, a chickpea pancake baked with cumin, and ajo blanco, a garlic and almond purée served alongside a melange of grilled fish and crispy shallots. The tasteful plates are often hand-paired with a complimenting glass of wine. Their next exhibition will take place at Castagna on July 1. Get tickets here.

3. Tacos + Tequila

This seasonal stand occupies the South Waterfront all summer, and it's, well, pretty self-explanatory. The lush tacos incorporate traditional Mexican ingredients like chorizo, serrano, asadero and nopalina, and the booze comes in equally exciting form, from palomas to margaritas and Agua de Jamaica. They're stationed at the RiverPlace Marina from noon to 8 p.m. from Wednesday to Sunday—weather permitting, because this is Portland, and sun is never guaranteed.

4. Gusto

Kyle Christy, who used to head Dame's kitchen in Northeast Portland, has given up their eclectic selection for something truer to his childhood provisions of seafood served up at Oregon's coast. His pop-up frequents wineries like Enso, Teutonic and Bar Norman, usually on Sundays and Mondays. His partner, Jessie Manning, pairs Christy's rotating menu of fish and veggie plates with handpicked glasses of wine. Gusto is spending the summer hunkered down at Enso Winery every Sunday for lunch—go here for more info.

5. Veganizer

While not a pop-up per se, this food consulting company makes way in rendering inter-dietary groups' dinner spot arguments obsolete. Veganizer collaborates with local restaurants to make their menus vegan friendly. With it's Portland branch directed by Waz Wu, our chapter has assisted spots like Doug Fir Lounge, Yen Ha, Hot Lips Pizza and more. May your favorite meat spot soon be vegan inclusive. The Gumba cart is next on July 22.

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