The city of Portland, Oregon, United States, has experienced a boom in the number of food carts due to relatively low regulation compared to other North American cities. [1]
The city of Portland, Oregon, United States, has experienced a boom in the number of food carts due to relatively low regulation compared to other North American cities. [1]
In 1965, the first food cart in Portland, which sold kosher hot dogs, was set up across from Portland City Hall. [1] In 1976, Portland opened up all of its downtown parks to competitive bidding. [2]
A 2001 report in The Oregonian stated Portland was home to 175 carts, with fierce competition for the four cart spaces available since 1987 in the South Park Blocks. [3] [4] A bidding war in February 2001 led to a combined price of $192,000 for the spaces. [3] There was also a large cluster, often referred to as a food cart pod, at Fifth and Stark street, and one food cart had been operating since 1980. [4]
In 2010 it was estimated that there are between 450 and 671 carts citywide. [5] [6]
Most North American cities sought to make the street for cars in the mid twentieth century, and thus imposed strict regulations on food carts, which led to few food carts remaining. In comparison, Portland has low regulation, such as having nearly no requirement for a food cart to have a particular structure, which makes the cost of entry low, and thus leading to a proliferation of carts. Many regulations are also not enforced as long as health and safety are not impacted. [1]
Notable food cart pods currently operating in Portland include the Cart Blocks, Cartopia, Collective Oregon Eateries, Hawthorne Asylum, Hinterland Bar and Food Carts, Lil' America, Midtown Beer Garden, Nob Hill Food Carts, Portland Mercado, Prost Marketplace, and Springwater Cart Park (formerly known as Cartlandia).
Businesses that have operated as food carts in the city include:
Defunct pods include the Alder Street food cart pod (1990s–2019) and Carts on Foster, which closed in 2023.
Defunct food carts include Baby Blue Pizza, El Gallo Taqueria, Holy Trinity Barbecue, PDX671, and Sweet Lorraine's.
Redonkadonk is a grilled burger with ham, bacon, cheese, egg and Spam inside two grilled cheese sandwiches made with extra-thick Texas toast style bread. It was served by Portland, Oregon's Brunch Box food cart and restaurants. Brunch Box operated in Portland for 12 years, first as a food cart in downtown Portland and then two additional brick and mortar locations in the city; the business permanently closed in September 2021.
Cartopia is a food cart pod located on the corner of SE 12th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard in Southeast Portland, Oregon.
Block 216 is a high-rise building in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. The 35-story building replaced the Alder Street food cart pod and parking lot between 9th and 10th avenues and Alder and Washington streets. At 460 feet (140 m) tall, it is Portland's fifth-tallest structure. Block 216 houses the Ritz-Carlton, Portland, a food hall, and other retailers.
There were approximately 60,000 people of Hispanic or Latino origin in Portland, Oregon, as of 2020; about 10 percent of the city's population.
Carts on Foster was a collection of food carts, or "pod", in Portland, Oregon's Foster-Powell neighborhood, in the United States. Established in 2010, Carts on Foster was owned and managed by Steve Woolard. Ownership was transferred to 2021, and the pod closed in 2023.
Tilt was a hamburger restaurant with multiple locations in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Jojo is a restaurant in Portland, Oregon. Established by Justin Hintze in 2018, the business operates in southeast Portland's Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood and northwest Portland's Pearl District.
Toast is a restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States. Owner Donald Kotler opened the cafe in 2007. Known for its breakfast and brunch menu, Toast also offers happy hour and dinner options.
Shanghai's Best is a Chinese restaurant in Portland, Oregon. The business operates from the Pine Street Market, as of 2022, and has previously operated from Portland's Alder Street food cart pod and in Salem.
Birrieria PDX is a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Desi PDX, or DesiPDX, is an Indian restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
Prost Marketplace is a food cart pod in Portland, Oregon.
Hinterland Bar and Food Carts, or simply Hinterland, is a bar and food cart pod in southeast Portland, Oregon, United States.
Batterfish was a fish and chip shop in Portland, Oregon. Previously, the business operated in Encino, Los Angeles, as a food truck in Santa Monica, California, and as a food cart in Happy Valley, Oregon. Batterfish specialized in fish and chips and was featured on the Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. The restaurant closed by 2023.
MidCity SmashedBurger is a small chain of restaurants based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Chef Mike Aldridge founded the business as a pop-up restaurant in New Orleans in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, then relocated and relaunched as a food cart in Portland in early 2021. MidCity specializes in smash burgers, featuring meat pressed directly on a flat-top grill. MidCity has also operated in Bend and Beaverton. The restaurant has garnered a positive reception and has been praised for serving some of the best burgers in Portland and Central Oregon.
PDX671, or PDX Six Seven One, was a food cart that served Guamanian cuisine in Portland, Oregon. Ed Sablan operated the business from 2010 to c. 2018 when he closed PDX671 and opened Biba CHamoru Kitchen, the city's first and only brick-and-mortar Guamanian restaurant in 2019.
Mama Chow's Kitchen is a Chinese restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States. Chef and owner Jeff Chow started the business in 2014, operating in downtown Portland for nearly a decade before relocating to southeast Portland's Richmond neighborhood in 2023.
Media related to Food carts in Portland, Oregon at Wikimedia Commons
