New Portland Indigenous Restaurant Javelina Is Already Moving

Remember less than two months ago, when we were making a big fuss about the opneing of Javelina, Portland’s only Indigenous restaurant? Well, update your address books because Javelina is moving its bison meatloaf east.

In a Facebook post this week, owners Alexa and Nick Numkena-Anderson said that their stint inside the former Lil Dame space was cut short because “we had some unforeseen challenges… that we couldn’t see getting through. Also, it was too small, we couldn’t accommodate everyone that came in and quickly realized we needed more room to pursue our goals of being a restaurant, gathering place and community hub for our guests.”

Javelina’s last day in its current home will be March 29. It will reopen two weeks later at 4636 NE 42nd Avenue, the old Norma Jeans space in Cully. Inisha, the tasting menu version of Javelina, will take a slightly longer break and reopen in May, the owners said. The new space will have more indoor seating, allow Javelina to expand its menu and owners, and also has a full bar.

On to more news you should know:

Anyone for Cricket?

Bridgetown Bites has an item about a new sports bar in St. Johns centered around cricket, a game popular in the U.K. and former British colonies that is like baseball only more so. Sticky Wicket’s owner, Michael Rasko, told Bridgetown Bites he hopes to provide a place for Portland-based cricket fans (including a lot of immigrants from cricket-obsessed countries). One of the bar’s six TVs will always be showing cricket, and Rasko plans to show other non-mainstream sports, like Australian rules football, rugby, and soccer. “The food menu will focus on simple pub food with British and Indian influences,” Bridgetown Bites reports. A grand opening is scheduled for May 23.

Fine dining with food waste

Urban Gleaners, a local nonprofit that collects food discarded by restaurants and grocery stores and “upcycles” that would-be waste at free markets, is puttting on a star-studded fundraising series, Willamette Week reports. The idea is to get acclaimed Portland chefs to cook fine dining meals using upcycled ingredients. The first one, hosted at the organization’s Central Eastside warehouse on April 6, will feautre Smith of Yaowarat and Louis Lin of Xiao Ye. Tickets are $250 (they can be purchased here) and proceeds go toward funding Urban Gleaners’ work. There will be more events in this “supper series,” but dates and participating chefs have yet to be announced.

New burger cart incoming

Finally, another one from Bridgetown Bites: Alphabet Burger Co, a new food cart, is opening in North Portland, 5215 N Lombard Street to be precise. This is notable for a couple reasons. For one, co-owner Vincent Picone runs Picone’s Quality Deli, which serves East Coast–style sandwiches. For another, they’re going to make their own buns. Finally, it’ll be a rare place to get a juicy Lucy, a Midwestern delicacy where the burger is stuffed with cheese. It plans to open later this month.