Summer 2023 was a fantastic season for restaurants and bars opening in Portland and Seattle. We usually share these new openings in our seasonal What’s Hot mailer but there were so many new openings we decided to save space and place them on our website instead!
Portland:
Clean Juice – USDA organic certified juice bar franchise has opened a new spot in Vancouver, WA! Bellpine – The Ritz-Cartlon’s new restaurant celebrates the Pacific Northwest. With a wine menu heavily representing the Willamette Valley flavors that celebrate the ingredients and culture of the region. Double Mountain Brewery & Cidery – opened a third location in Portland’s Overlook neighborhood. Sammich opens a new food cart at The Heist food cart pod in SE Portland. XO Bar – will open in the former Fremont-Mississippi Sudra space, serving whimsical cocktails, drinking snacks, and vacation vibes – tropical vegan bar with Southeast Asian flavors. Norma Jeans Soul Cuisine – Northeast 42nd Avenue, specializes in dishes meant to make the diner feel cared for. Your Side Chicks – gluten-free fried chicken with a variety of sides located at Hawthorne Asylum food truck. Community Wine Bar – Women-owned and designed to share lesser-known Oregon varietals and expansive tasting options to open the doors of Oregon wine to a wider population. The Houston Blacklight – filled with Atomic-era fantasy-themed psychedelic black light posters with fun drinks and serious bar eats. Mermosa PDX– opened earlier this summer to showcase its PNW wines and honor their French Haitian and Lowcountry roots. Sad Valley – face mortality head-on in this afterlife art-filled bar with a menu centered on comfort and cocktails named after on-theme pop-culture figures. Tita’s Juice Bar – Smoothies designed with inspiration from Lima, Miami, and Portland -the perfect combination of Latin flavors mixed with our local fruits from Oregon. Lil’ Dame – Moving away from their food cart and into a restaurant, Lil’ Dame showcases homestyle Vietnamese dishes with local Oregon produce in their monthly menus. MidTown Beer Garden – 25+ new and legacy food carts, beer cart by Fracture Brewing is fenced in with security, when the temperatures drop heated tents will be put up. The People’s Court – Pickleball and brews, wine, a sandwich shop, and a pizza parlor with soft-serve ice cream. The space also fits five bocce ball courts, six cornhole courts, six ping pong tables, and a 9-hole disc golf putting course.
Seattle Openings:
Holy Mountain Brewing – opens a second tap room in Phinney Ridge Legion of Food – Kam Chancellor and Richard Sherman, former Seahawks players, are opening a new bar featuring soul food and creative cocktails. Tivoli – Italian American-ish vibes with a menu designed by bread experts they’ll experiment with pizza styles and flavors and a cocktail and brews menu – opening the first week of August Ben’s Bread Co. opens its brick-and-mortar store in Phinney Ridge and will continue to serve its famous Roman pizzas. RockCreek Seafood & Spirits will open in downtown Kirkland’ – their first restaurant is a James Beard Nominee. Fabel – All-day cafe and natural wine bar with a menu highlighting the region’s seafood and serving regionally produced tea and local coffee. Wine will be organic and farmhouse ales will have a spotlight. Paper Cake – opening late summer, it combines the talents and flavors of European and Asian baking traditions, menu is coming soon with proposed flavor combinations of chocolate and potato chips, lemongrass lychee mousse, and masala caramel. Little Jaye Cafe and Bakery – serving baked goods “that your grandma would make” accompanied by specialty coffee and meaty sandwiches. Gyo Gyo En– Grab-n-go Japanese food in South Lake Union poke bowl, poke by the pound, sashimi options like hamachi and ama ebi as well as sashimi assortments. You’ll also find daily bento boxes, chirashi bowls, shokado boxes, and more. There are also sweets and drinks that you can grab to complete your whole meal. Bar Bayonne – “retro ’60s French-Basque concept serves as a cafe with coffee and light fare like quiches and sandwiches by day and transforms into a wine bar with ham, conservas, and oysters by night, with “wine and vinyl always.” Imo Pocha – Korean comfort food Future Primitive Beach Bar – White Center’s brewery expanded to West Seattle’s Alki Beach. Arepa Venezuelan Kitchen – BellevueVenezuelan and Caribbean food in a fast-casual space.
Press Box is a sports bar that recently opened up in Seatte’s SoDo Neighborhood for the MLB All-Star Game. There will be a grand opening in August to coincide with the start of the Seahawks training camp.
Sakana Sushi and Kitchen is a sushi restaurant created by owner and head chef Paul Kim. The restaurant combines traditional dishes with fusion flavors.
Atoma – contemporary American restaurant with influences from Melbourne to Mexico creates an inspired seasonal menu Frostē Bar in the new Phinney Station, with a rooftop deck and a front yard with firepits, bocce courts, and cornhole boards, plus three parking spaces for food trucks (2024)
First Nature is an outfitter based in Portland, Oregon that provides professional guide services for Private Tours of the Pacific Northwest as well as small group trips to several international destinations. The intent of our blog page is to help you stay up to date on exciting attractions and activities First Nature Tours has to offer. However, the skies the limit with possibilities, so use these posts as more of a jumping off point when deciding what you will do on your next adventure!
Embark on a day tour of Northwest Washington. Begin your journey with a mesmerizing visit to the iconic Snoqualmie Falls, where cascading waters create a natural wonder that has been a local icon for hundred of years. Then, indulge in delightful wine tasting experiences in Woodinville's renowned wineries and tasting rooms, savoring a variety of stellar vintages amidst the backdrop of a growing culinary destination right in Seattle's back yard.
Over the course of this immersive experience, indulge in the finest wines Washington has to offer as you traverse the picturesque landscapes of Woodinville, Yakima, and Walla Walla. Discover the artistry behind each bottle through intimate vineyard tours, expert-led tastings, and enlightening conversations with winemakers. This tour promises not only exceptional wines but also a deeper appreciation for the intricate craft of winemaking within Washington's diverse terroirs.
