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Food and Drink • EverOut

This Week In Portland Food News: A New Cocktail Lounge, A Japanese Bakery, and A Lesbian Bar

by EverOut Staff • Friday at 4:00 pm

The Japanese bakery Tanaka is now open and selling stunning treats.
The Japanese bakery Tanaka is now open and selling stunning treats. Tanaka

Welcome to July! We're starting the month off strong with an influx of fresh dining options, including an internationally inspired cocktail bar, a new lesbian bar, and a Japanese bakery. You'll find out about all of those and more, plus an upcoming vegan French taco restaurant and cookie butter cup doughnuts, below. For more ideas, check out our food and drink guide.

NEW OPENINGS AND RETURNS


CereusPDX
A new cocktail lounge called CereusPDX aims to flip the script on tiki culture. Along with co-owner Phil Chung, nationally recognized bartender Bradley Thomas Stephens is taking inspiration from the escapist ethos of tiki—minus the colonialist overtones and aesthetic. The menu features cocktails with international influences, as well as South American tapas from chef Diego Cortes.
Sabin
Pickup, delivery, dine-in

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Music

Hear in Portland: Every One of Us Brings Madjestiq-CEG to the Square, Return of the Day Fade And—Once Again—Raving about Fountaine

by Mac Smiff • Friday at 12:52 pm

MadgesdiqCEG
MadgesdiqCEG play the Square on Saturday July 2 at community event Every One of Us Courtesy of the artist

Hey Portlanders! It’s Mac, back once again with the goods on hip shows to see this weekend. Your regular music columnist, Jenni Moore, will soon return, but let’s allow her to enjoy her precious baby photo shoots and bonding time for just a bit more, yeah?

Speaking of babies, the judicial branch of our federal government is being a real downer and trying to pry away our abilities to choose when we have them. I predict some hard resistance in the weeks to come, so let’s try and lose our minds a little bit with the people we love and cherish, while we can.

With that, this weekend provides some hype and diverse entertainment options that I’m really excited about. African beat, Latino heat, and a very special healing event curated by yours truly give us more than a few ways to stay busy this Hear In Portland.

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Food and Drink • EverOut

How to Celebrate the Fourth of July 2022 in Portland

by EverOut Staff • Friday at 12:30 pm

Bullard Tavern is donating 50% of its July 4 proceeds to Planned Parenthood and Everytown for Gun Safety.
Bullard Tavern is donating 50% of its July 4 proceeds to Planned Parenthood and Everytown for Gun Safety. Bullard

Independence Day is coming up on Monday, and we're heading into a three-day weekend. If you procrastinated on procuring food for whatever social gatherings you have planned, we've rounded up some holiday-themed specials around town, from fried chicken and barbecue ribs at Holler and Bullard Tavern to some distinguished hot dogs at Straightaway Cocktails. Plus, check out our list of Fourth of July events happening this weekend, like 4th of July Spectacular. For more ideas, check out our Fourth of July calendar and our food and drink guide.

FOOD AND DRINK SPECIALS


Bakeshop
Kim Boyce's whole-grain bakery has released a number of specials just for the holiday weekend, including peach pie, marionberry pie, raspberry rhubarb pie, and "summer fruit" pie (peaches, rhubarb, and berries), not to mention marionberry scones and summer fruit hand pies. Pre-orders close at 5 pm on Thursday, June 30.
Rose City Park

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News • Environment

Portland Moves to Restrict Expansion of Fossil Fuel Infrastructure—Yet Again

by Isabella Garcia • Friday at 11:15 am

Large industrial tanks along the Willamette River. The St. Johns bridge is visible in the distance.
A portion of the CEI Hub along the Willamette River. Motoya Nakamura / Multnomah County

After six years of opposition from the fossil fuel industry and local business groups, Portland is introducing a third iteration of a policy to restrict the expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure in the city. While environmental advocates praised city leaders for their tenacity developing the ordinance, they believe additional loopholes need to be closed.

“As we work to make our community safer, the first step is to make sure that the situation does not get worse,” said City Commissioner Carmen Rubio during a council meeting Thursday. “Continuing to allow new fossil fuel terminals and new fossil fuel storage tanks increases the risk of the surrounding industrial distract, the Willamette River, and the entire city.”

The ordinance, titled the Fossil Fuel Terminal Zoning, is an updated version of rules that city council introduced in 2016. At the time, the policy was the first local law in the nation to restrict fossil fuel expansion.

Portland is uniquely impacted by fossil fuel infrastructure. The city is home to a 6-mile stretch of industrial fossil fuel holding tanks, or terminals, in North Portland along the Willamette River, called the Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEI) Hub. The hub supplies liquid fuel to over 90 percent of the state, including all of the jet fuel for the Portland International Airport, and can store at least 350 million gallons of fuel, like gasoline, crude oil, and diesel, at any given moment. For years, the city has recognized that the CEI Hub is a disaster waiting to happen.

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EverOut

The Best Bang for Your Buck Events in Portland This Weekend

by EverOut Staff • Friday at 10:01 am

Kickstand Comedy kicks off another summer of their popular Comedy in the Park series.
Kickstand Comedy kicks off another summer of their popular Comedy in the Park series.
Your long weekend won't be complete without consulting our cheap and easy guide, with events from First Friday Summer Art Festival to Kickstand Comedy in the Park's season opener and from A Strawberry Brunch to Summer Fest. Looking for more holiday fun? Check out our guide to celebrating the Fourth of July.

FRIDAY


COMEDY


Kickstand Comedy in the Park
Kickstand Comedy is reprising its hugely popular Comedy in the Park series in Laurelhurst Park starting this Friday and running through September. Grab your pals with a sense of humor and spread out on a blanket to catch chill comedy from Zak Toscani, Imani Kent, Shain Brenden, and Julia Corrall.
(Laurelhurst Park, Laurelhurst, free)

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Good Morning, News!

Good Morning, News: No Fireworks in Portland, Mo' Strawberries at Brunch, and NYPD Plays Amazon Dress-Up

by Suzette Smith • Friday at 9:39 am

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

ONE OF THESE PUGS IS GOING TO PRISON, is how I would explain the plot to Pugs in Prison 4.
"ONE OF THESE PUGS IS GOING TO PRISON," is how I would explain the plot to Pugs in Prison 4. Darrens Pro Fotos / Gettys Images

Good Morning, Portland: Are you amped for the three day weekend? Are you already in the car? If you're still with us, the weekend is looking like a lovely, cool high 70s situation. Barbara, break out the barbie. Now, here's the news!

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• I would never dissuade you from starting you Friday morning with a terror-inducing map of wildfire likelihood by area—this is exactly the sort of stuff I thrive upon. OPB reports that the Oregon Wildfire Risk Explorer has classified the risk category of every single tax lot in the state. While the map is receiving praise for helping give firefighters ideas on where to focus fire prevention efforts, it's also looking like the map may prove costly for some property owners.

• In related news: Don't forget that Portland has banned all fireworks—other than the Waterfront Blues Festival fireworks show that happens over a river. If you choose to watch those puppies at Oaks Park, remember that post-fireworks nightmare parking lot situation and alternative transit with care.

• Also, although fireworks are not legal in the city, don't call 911 about it—I doubt I have to tell Mercury readers this, but we try to spread the word.

• Speaking of justice and liberty, it's been 16 months since Portland first fell out of compliance with the settlement agreement it made with the US Department of Justice regarding police use-of-force against people with a mental illness. Yet, the city is still a long way from again meeting the requirements. News Editor Alex Zielinski has the update.

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Good Afternoon, News!

Good Afternoon, News: Portland Out of Compliance with DOJ Settlement, PBA Opposing Charter Reform, SCOTUS Inflicts More Damage

by Abe Asher • Thursday at 3:30 pm

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

Another beautiful day at the US Supreme Court, where rights continue to crumble.
Another beautiful day at the US Supreme Court, where rights continue to crumble. Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images
Good afternoon, Portland! Here are today's headlines.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• After 16 months, Portland is still out of compliance with settlement it reached with the Department of Justice in 2014 regarding police use-of-force against people with a mental illness. The details are not flattering: of the seven sections of the settlement agreement, the city is out of compliance with six. Alex Zielinski has more.

• The Portland Business Alliance is reportedly weighing a legal challenge to the charter reform ballot measure that would drastically change the format of the city's government and elections. It's not just PBA: Mingus Mapps' PAC and a PAC led by failed city council candidate Vadim Mozyrsky are also opposing reform.

• The University of Oregon has completed its purchase of the former Concordia University campus in northeast Portland and plans to re-open it as UO Portland in 2023. The purchase was financed in part by a $425 million donation from former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and his wife Connie, who is a graduate of the university.

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News • Cops

Portland Remains Out of Compliance With DOJ Settlement

by Alex Zielinski • Thursday at 1:56 pm

A scene from the 2020 racial justice protests in downtown Portland.
A scene from the 2020 racial justice protests in downtown Portland. MATHIEU LEWIS-ROLLAND

It's been 16 months since the city of Portland first fell out of compliance with the settlement agreement it made with the US Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding police use-of-force against people with a mental illness. Yet, the city is still a long way from again meeting the requirements laid out in the initial 2014 agreement, according to a report filed by DOJ attorneys Thursday.

Of the seven sections outlined in the settlement agreement, the DOJ found the city to be out of compliance with six.

The report points to continued problems with the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) adequately reporting and investigating incidents when officers use force against a member of the public—an issue that pushed the city out of compliance in 2021. In January 2020, the DOJ made the long-awaited announcement that the city had officially met all of the terms of the settlement agreement. That meant that, if the city could remain in compliance for just one more year, it could finally be released from the onerous legal agreement with the DOJ. But the heavy-handed police response to the racial justice protests of 2020 scuttled this plan. DOJ lawyers found that the PPB hadn't been following protocols to keep track of each use-of-force incident against protesters and investigate actions that went against PPB's own policy.

The latest report shows the DOJ's continued disapproval of how PPB has tracked and followed-up on officer use-of-force. In general, the report finds that PPB isn't adequately investigating and penalizing officers who use inappropriate amounts of force against members of the public.

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Good Morning, News!

Good Morning, News: Another Reason to Dislike Golf, Summer Blood Shortage, and SCOTUS vs Climate Protections

by Isabella Garcia • Thursday at 8:30 am

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

An aerial view of a the steam being released from a coal power plant.
The Supreme Court ruled the Clean Air Act does not give the EPA authority to regulate emissions from power plants.. Bernhard Lang / Getty Images

Good morning, Portland! If you happen to be my neighbor who was setting off fireworks into the wee hours of the morning, I'd like to remind you that the use of personal fireworks is banned in Portland, so if you could watch firework compilations on YouTube or jump over a lit candle in the street instead that'd be great. Now that that's out of the way, on to the news!

In local news:

• This afternoon, a golf tournament sponsored by the Saudi Arabian government will take place at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, just 20 miles northwest of Portland. Local officials and club members are publicly opposing the tournament, arguing that it is just the Saudi government’s latest attempt at investing in sports as a public relations strategy following the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

• In city audit news: From skipping workplace anti-discrimination trainings to managers doling out inconsistent discipline to employees, an audit found unreliable oversight mechanisms in place at the Portland Fire Bureau. The inconsistency is particularly harmful to women and staff of color in the bureau, who remain few and far between.

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Good Afternoon, News!

Good Afternoon, News: Outcry Against Saudi-Backed Golf Tournament, Audit Finds Problems in Fire Bureau, SCOTUS Strikes Blow Against Tribal Sovereignty

by Abe Asher • Wednesday at 4:01 pm

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

Hennie du Plessis of South Africa tees off during the LIV Invitational.
Hennie du Plessis of South Africa tees off during the LIV Invitational. Matthew Lewis / Getty Images

Good afternoon, Portland! Betsy Johnson might hate you, but I sure don't. Let's get to the headlines.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Saudi-backed LIV Golf—a $3 billion golf tour designed to challenge the PGA and bolster Saudi Arabia's international reputation—is coming to Pumpkin Ridge Golf Course in North Plains later this week, and certain local politicians and club members are none too happy with Oregon being used as a backdrop for the sportswashing enterprise. Here's more on the story.

• An audit from the city auditor's office has a damning result: the Portland Fire Bureau has an "incoherent" accountability system that disproportionately affects the 20 percent of bureau staff who are not white men. The auditor's office has recommended a complete overhaul of the system. Alex Zielinski has the story.

• Another audit, this time from Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, has found that Oregon is still not doing enough to stop physicians from overprescribing opioids in the state. The report makes the case that the state needs to make legislative changes to bolster the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP).

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Sports • News

Portland-Area Golf Tournament Makes Saudi Human Rights Issues Oregon's Problem

by Abe Asher • Wednesday at 12:59 pm

JC Ritchie of South Africa plays during the LIV Golf Invitational in England.
JC Ritchie of South Africa plays during the LIV Golf Invitational in England. Matthew Lewis / Getty Images

Estimates are that the government of Saudi Arabia has already spent in excess of $3 billion launching LIV Golf—a new golf tour designed to compete with the long-established PGA Tour and, according to experts, help bolster the Saudi government’s battered reputation.

LIV Golf launched several weeks ago with a tournament outside of London, where South African Charl Schwartzel won and took home $4 million in prize money. The tour’s next stop? Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, just 20 miles northwest of Portland, on Thursday afternoon.

The tournament has quickly made Saudi Arabia’s "sportswashing" efforts—its attempts to use athletic events to improve its battered reputation—Oregon’s problem.

“It’s the same with any kind of oppressive or authoritarian government anywhere in the world,” said Ibrahim Hooper, spokesperson for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). “They try to use whatever resources are at their disposal to try to clean up their image—and the Saudis have an unusual amount of resources.”

For the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the state-owned investment fund backing the tour—believed to be worth roughly $620 billion—the tour's $3 billion price tag is a drop in the bucket. The Saudi government has used the fund to invest in sports as a key part of its public relations strategy in the aftermath of the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

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News • City Hall

Audit Finds Accountability and Diversity Lacking in Portland Fire Bureau

by Alex Zielinski • Wednesday at 11:27 am

Firefighter recruits training at a Portland fire station.
Firefighter recruits training at a Portland fire station. Portland Fire Bureau

Portland's Fire Bureau has an "incoherent" accountability system, according to a report published by the city auditor's office Wednesday. From skipping workplace anti-discrimination trainings to managers doling out inconsistent discipline to employees, the audit found unreliable oversight mechanisms in place for one of the city's top first response departments. These faults are particularly harmful for Fire Bureau staff who are not white men (nearly 80 percent of the bureau's 700 staffers are white men).

“The Fire Bureau has set laudable goals but will struggle to meet them without a transparent and credible employee accountability system,” said City Auditor Mary Hull Caballero in a press release announcing the audit. “Firefighters of color, women, and those who identify as LGBTQ+ have earned their place in the Bureau. Portland risks losing their continued service if their workplace is viewed as one of favoritism rather than fairness.”

Auditors blamed some of the accountability issues on the bureau's unique structure. The more than 30 fire stations across Portland are run by staff on 24-hours shifts, where staff spend most of their time together.

"The Bureau’s culture is shaped by employees living together and protecting each other’s lives in dangerous situations," the audit reads. "Some employees said the close-knit culture was the best part of the job, and that firefighters look out for one another."

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News • Health

Oregon Needs to Make Legislative Changes to Tackle Its Opioid Misuse, Audit Finds

by Isabella Garcia • Wednesday at 10:02 am

A prescription pill bottle open, with some pills on the table next to the bottle
Tetra Images / Getty Images

Oregon is still not doing enough to counteract overprescribing opioids within the state, a follow-up audit from Secretary of State Shemia Fagan found. The report, released to the public Wednesday, indicates that the state needs legislative changes in order to effectively use its Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP)—a database that collects information on opioid prescriptions in the state with the intention to limit overprescribing.

“The opioid crisis is a grave threat both in Oregon and around the country,” said Fagan in a press release. “State legislators and the Oregon Health Authority should implement [the audit recommendations] as soon as possible.”

A 2018 audit found that Oregon’s PDMP was not adequately tackling the problem of doctors overprescribing opioids within the state because the database wasn’t being used to the fullest extent by state health officials and prescribers. Doctors can use the PDMP to view the previous opioid prescriptions a patient has received before writing their own prescription, but, unlike the majority of states, Oregon doesn’t require doctors to check the database before prescribing opioids. According to the original audit, voluntary usage of the PDMP is “mediocre,” leading doctors to continue to prescribe opioids to people who display clear signs of “doctor shopping”—or, getting prescriptions for the same controlled substance from several different doctors to either misuse or sell.

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Good Morning, News!

Good Morning, News: Oregon Flame On, Pelosi Sacrament Access, and E'rebody in the Club Joining NATO

by Suzette Smith • Wednesday at 9:01 am

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

GettyImages-897029822.jpg
Shaun L / Getty Images

Good Morning, Portland! Everyone knows that "Kiss Them for Me" by UK goth punk new wave band Siouxsie and the Banshees is about Jayne Mansfield, but what if it were actually about Jesus Christ? I cannot think of a more Christ-like thing than "Kiss them for me, I may be delayed." In nomine mater et filia spiritus sancti—now here's the news!

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Nothing says summertime like ZERO PERCENT CONTAINED. The Willowcreek Fire, in Eastern Oregon, now covers 40,000 acres, signaling a grim open to Oregon's wildfire season. Seems related: earlier this week, Bike Portland compared the Biden administration's plan to cut gas prices to "outright climate arson."

• OPB reports that 80 incarcerated people at a federal detention center in Sheridan are on hunger strike over detainee treatment—the center holds those who have been charged but not convicted of crimes. Reports from inside allege poor medical care and 21-hour a day lockdowns.

• As local weather continues to avert its eyes from hot-headed Monday mistakes, don't forget that the first of Kickstand's Comedy in the Park series takes place this Friday—and it looks to be a lovely day for it.

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Good Afternoon, News!

Good Afternoon, News: E-Bikes Over Gas Cuts, Trump Said MAYBE Pence Should be Hanged, and 380 Dinos Make This City Proud

by Suzette Smith • Tuesday at 4:51 pm

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

Former top White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson gave testimony that Donald Trump told his colleagues maybe Vice President Mike Pence should be hanged.
Former top White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson gave testimony that Donald Trump told his colleagues maybe Vice President Mike Pence should be hanged. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Good Afternoon, Portland! I don't know if you also became half a person during the heat, but I am grateful that the benevolent overcast gods have returned and WILL NEVER LEAVE AGAIN. Now that it will be 70 degrees forever and evermore, let's hit the news!

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• A new report alleges a connection between one of Southern Oregon's largest homeless shelter providers and conversion therapy programs. High Country News spoke with one of the report's authors, Maig Tinnin, about the report's findings and the intersection of anti-LGTBQ+ politics and homeless services.

• US gas prices have hit record highs thanks to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and while it seems like a no-brainer for this pain at the pump to push the US towards less dependence on fossil fuels, President Biden instead seems set on temporarily lifting the federal gas tax. Bike Portland reports that everybody's favorite cannabis caucusin' Congressman Earl Blumenauer, wrote Biden, urging him to consider alternate solutions—like a bill to make e-bikes more affordable.

• Prolific and polemic Portland author Lidia Yuknavitch appears tonight at Powell's City of Books, to promote her latest novel Thrust. Read our Q & A with her—where she discusses the state of her downtown writing center, how she keeps creativity flowing, and how she thinks that post-pandemic we have a chance to " take turns resuscitating each other."

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