Make Your Own Buffet at Beaverton’s First—and Best—Cart Pod

In many ways, BG Food Cartel is like an amusement park where the grub is the focus.

BG Food Cartel BG Food Cartel. IMAGE: Mick Hangland-Skill. (Mick Hangland-Skill)
By Andi Prewitt

Though situated just steps from the Beaverton Central MAX Station, the suburb’s first-ever food cart pod is obscured from immediate view by City Hall—so once you smell the fried food and spot the shiny, candy-colored trucks, it feels like you’ve stumbled across a secret carnival.

In many ways, BG Food Cartel is like an amusement park where the grub is the focus. There’s an assortment of indulgent midway-ready creations, including breakfast sandwiches wrapped in waffles from Smaaken, Thanksgiving dinner stuffed into a crepe at Oh My Crepe, and Fry Bar, a cart devoted entirely to french fries, which come loaded with everything from a three-bean cheddar jack chili to roasted marshmallows drizzled in chocolate.

With spots for more than 30 carts, the ever-shifting roster promises variety—pizza, wings, ramen, empanadas, even a healthy rivalry between two pitmasters.

The point, then, is not to limit yourself, but team up and tackle several carts at once. With your collection of cardboard clamshells and to-go bags in hand, find a seat at the patio bar—unlike many pods that simply spring up on an empty parking lot, this one was designed with care, which means there is a parklet carpeted in green turf, a fire pit and an indoor-outdoor bar.

If you’re not entertained by the toddlers attempting cartwheels on the fake grass, the bartender will provide a show, taking orders with the volume and charisma of an auction ringman. His closing-time notice bellowed into the crowd—”Last call for al-keee-hollll!”—drew a round of applause on our most recent visit. It’s probably the only time you’ll ever witness bargoers cheer being cut off. ANDI PREWITT.

4250 SW Rose Biggi Ave., Beaverton, 503-605-9163, bgfoodcartel.com. 10 am-8 pm Monday-Thursday, 10 am-9 pm Friday-Saturday, 10 am-7 pm Sunday.

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