Almost all of Pok Pok is closing

[olivermoss]

Andy Ricker's restaurants literally shaped Portland's growth and were lauded nationally for a long time. The original location is expected to reopen, and Pok Pok Wing. But even Whiskey Soda Lounge is closing.

Unless you know the Portland foodie scene, it's hard to express what a big deal this is. People used to open restaurants on Division just to snatch up customers who couldn't get into Pok Pok.

Portland's going to be a different place on the other side of this.

We don't even have a timeline on re-opening. If most of Ricker's empire is suddenly gone, the hit the service industry is taking means a lot of jobs are going to be gone long term.

I am suddenly very nostalgic for the early days of the pandemic, when it was all about sewing and baking bread and people showing more resilience than expected. That's a weird feeling to have.

Comments

[dine]

I'm not a foodie, but hearing that on the news was a shock - I knew things were going to be vastly different, and the restaurant scene would be severely affected, but this is still a major surprise.

[olivermoss]

Yeah, Whiskey Soda Lounge being gone is a bad sign. We're losing a good chunk of an industry.