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Portland Mercury

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Investment for the People

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/24

How the 1803 Fund became a catalyst for investment in Portland’s Black community. by Rukaiyah Adams and Juma Sei [Editor's Note: The following article is part of BlackOut: A Five-Year Retrospective on Portland’s Racial Justice Movement, a joint publication from Donovan Scribes and the Portland Mercury. Written exclusively by Black Portlanders, the purpose of BlackOut is to remember and reflect on the May 25,

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Symbols Matter

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/24

Five years after the global protests following George Floyd’s murder, what do the demonstrations mean for the future? by Donovan Scribes (fka Donovan Smith) [Editor's Note: The following article is part of BlackOut: A Five-Year Retrospective on Portland’s Racial Justice Movement, a joint publication from Donovan Scribes and the Portland Mercury. Written exclusively by Black Portlanders, the purpose of

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For I See No Other Way

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/24

Why abolishing the police is the only choice. by Mac Smiff [Editor's Note: The following article is part of BlackOut: A Five-Year Retrospective on Portland’s Racial Justice Movement, a joint publication from Donovan Scribes and the Portland Mercury. Written exclusively by Black Portlanders, the purpose of BlackOut is to remember and reflect on the May 25, 2020 murder of George Floyd at the hands of police, and the

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Amended Budget Approval Underscores Rifts Among...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/23

Councilor Steve Novick says community centers are off the chopping block after Council agreed to divert $2M from police to parks. by Courtney Vaughn With more than 120 proposed budget amendments and nearly 12 hours of deliberations, Portland City Council worked until midnight Wednesday to pass an $8.5 billion 2025-26 budget. The budget, which is scheduled for final adoption on June 18, includes additional funding

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After 18 Years, Rontoms Bids Farewell to Their Sunday...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/23

The final show is an epic all-day mini-fest! by Jenni Moore In this economy, a free weekly concert featuring local bands at a hip, centrally located bar is something special—even in artsy, indie music-loving Portland. Ever since the spring of 2007, popular East Burnside watering hole Rontoms has been providing one such opportunity with its Sunday Sessions showcase. “We had only been open for about four months and

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The Best Bang for Your Buck Events in Portland This...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/23

VOID Street Fair and Car Show, Bloom Tour, and More Cheap & Easy Events Under $15 by EverOut Staff If you're as eager as we are to start the long weekend, then save time planning with our trusty cheap and easy guide. We're suggesting you head to events from the VOID Street Fair and Car Show to the Bloom Tour and from a Poetry for Palestine gathering to Return of the Dragon: Revitalizing Portland’s Old Town

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Good Morning, News: Portland Baby Elephant Awarded...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/23

by Suzette Smith If you appreciate the Mercury's interesting and useful news & culture reporting, consider making a small monthly contribution to support our editorial team. Your donation is tax-deductible. A Bit of Housekeeping: Since Monday, the Mercury has been publishing stories from BlackOut: A Five-Year Retrospective on Portland’s Racial Justice Movement which you'll also find in print all over Portland, inserted into the

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The Truth Is… Somewhere?

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

Talking with the true believers at the McMinnville UFO Fest. by Corbin Smith On May 11, 1950, Evelyn Trent saw a bronze and silver object floating in the sky over her Bellevue, Oregon, farm house. The object was quiet, but it kicked up a furious wind. She picked up her Kodak camera and snapped a picture. She and her husband kept the photo to themselves for a while, but eventually they told a friend, who put a copy

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Updated May 2025 Special Election Results: Portland...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

After a surge of ballots received on Election Day, Multnomah County reports 25 percent voter turnout as of Thursday. by The Mercury Election Strike Force Updated 11:30 am Thursday, May 22 Multnomah County voters chose new school board leaders and decided the fate of a massive bond for Portland Public Schools on Tuesday. The May 20 special district election primarily included school districts, with a few service and

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POP QUIZ PDX: Sassy Trivia Qs About Nightmare...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

See how well YOU score on this week's super fun trivia quiz! by Wm. Steven Humphrey GREETINGS, BRAINY BOTTOM! It's time once again to put your brainy-brain to the test with this week's edition of POP QUIZ PDX—our weekly, local, sassy-ass trivia quiz. And in this edition, we're testing your knowledge on a variety of topics including Twin Peaks character look-alikes, local nightmare sausages, and... wait... "Big

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Good Morning, News: Shenanigans in Old Town, Council...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

by Wm. Steven Humphrey If you’re reading this, you probably know the value of the Mercury’s news reporting, arts and culture coverage, event calendar, and the bevy of events we host throughout the year. The work we do helps our city shine, but we can’t do it without your support. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there

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Food is Community

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

This issue is dedicated to those who feed each other—in myriad ways. by Janey Wong What immediately comes to mind when you think of Portland’s food scene? Is it the ubiquitous food carts, the nationally lauded restaurants, the abundance of craft beer and doughnuts? It’s all of those things, certainly, but when I think of our food culture, I think community. It’s the restaurant owners who have helped each

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Birds of a Feather

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

The Güero Bird Club provides coffee and companionship in equal measure. by Julianne Bell At first blush, tortas and birding might not seem like a natural pairing, but the Güero Bird Club turns that assumption on its head. As you might have guessed, the club is an offshoot of acclaimed Kerns torta shop Güero. Attendees of all ages and experience levels regularly flock to local spots like Mount Tabor, Powell

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Home Away from Home

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

Lombard’s “Little Tri-State” brings the East Coast to North Portland. by Ben Coleman Portland has a lot of transplants, but for whatever reason there aren’t a ton of transplant communities. Big cities like New York, Chicago, and LA have dozens of ethnic and cultural enclaves, a Little Italy here, a Little Ethiopia there. Historically Portland did have a few of those kinds of neighborhoods in the

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Q&A: Thuy Pham of Mama Đút Talks Gardening,...

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

The former restaurateur steps into advocating for local farmers and growing your own food by Katherine Chew Hamilton Thuy Pham gained local and national fame as one of Portland’s standout pandemic restaurant success stories. The former hair stylist started making plant-based pork belly on Instagram Live when the COVID lockdown kept salon doors closed. With a hit product on her hands, she launched Mama Đút, a vegan

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Welcome to Portland’s Kitchen

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

The James Beard Public Market will bring Oregon’s culinary communities together under one roof. by Janey Wong Counterintuitive to Portland’s food-centric culture, the city hasn’t had a public market since the closure of the Portland Public Market in 1942. Portlanders have access to a robust farmers market scene, but the city has been long devoid of a permanent public market in the vein of the Milwaukee Public

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A Pod Grows in Brooklyn

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

Southeast’s new food cart destination is a prime example of next-generation, souped-up pods. by Mercury Staff Food cart pods have a rich history here in Portland, popping up organically in the early-to-mid 2010s due to a combo platter of rising commercial rents, creative chefs looking to try something new, and the insatiable appetite of city dwellers. They’ve become a symbol of the city, and with dozens of

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Breaking Bread

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

Portland-area bakers are flipping the script with bread subscriptions, pop-ups, and more. by Andrea Damewood Just like a sourdough starter under a cloth, some of the best baked goods in Portland are bubbling away behind the scenes, out of the spotlight. For many bakers, offering subscription or pop-up based carbs is the perfect way to balance work with having a life, and single-handedly reign over quality

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Strawberry Art Forever

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

Zuckercreme’s strawberry mania reaches a fever pitch at its themed festival. by Katrina Yentch For many Portlanders, strawberry season is the official kickoff to summer. Embracing the battle for flats of bright red Hoods at U-pick farms, they emerge with buckets out and gardening gloves on, ready to pluck berries fresh off the plant. But for cutesy Montavilla cafe Zuckercreme, the strawberry frenzy is a

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The Farm Forward Appeal of 82 Acres

Portland Mercury ·

2025/05/22

The new-ish bistro takes up residence in a well-loved space on SE Clinton. by Andrea Damewood Sitting on the back patio at the new 82 Acres on a lovely warm evening, I couldn’t help but think of the four delightful restaurants that tried to make it work in this very same spot on Southeast Clinton. In 2011, Block’s Café opened, then closed; followed by the beloved Tuscan ristorante, Burrasca; and most recently, the

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