Have you flown in the last year and a half?
Some of you certainly have. This fall, Portland International Airport traffic is expected to be around 70% of its pre-pandemic levels, the Port of Portland reports, with newly Zoom-adept business travelers likely making up the missing chunk. That’s a far cry from last April, when PDX hosted a pandemic-time low of 77,000 people, including one day when just 1,500 passengers passed through, down 97% from pre-pandemic levels.
For those of you who haven’t been to PDX since the start of the pandemic — and even for those who have, but opted to keep their eyes down and masks up — a return to regular air travel this holiday season means visiting an airport in the midst of a complete reimagining. That includes two new concourses, a still under-construction Main Terminal set to open in 2025, and new restaurant and bar choices throughout the complex.
Below, we’ll walk you through what’s available to eat and drink right at PDX’s various concourses, plus what’s coming in the next few months, including great espresso and a proper cocktail bar, a quick-service version of one of Portland’s signature sandwich shops and local fried chicken brunch options, soon to be in stereo. (The options are presented alphabetically by Concourse, but many of the most exciting new options are found in E.) But first, let’s take a sneak peak at what the entryway to America’s best airport will look come 2025.
Main Terminal
This most ambitious project in the airport’s massive ongoing overhaul will combine the former ticketing area and Clocktower Plaza into one big, open terminal extending 150 additional feet into the air field. Above, a wavy roof made from slats of Northwest timber and plenty of natural light; on the floor, plants and trees lending a park-like vibe. The airport will send out a request for proposals next September, soliciting vendors to fill the Main Terminal’s various food, drink and retail spots, with a goal of opening some options by 2024. For now, Elephants Delicatessen and Portland Coffee Roasters are the only pre-security food options, while the Peet’s Coffee & Tea kiosk should return to the baggage claim area soon.
Concourse B
Opening in November, the new Concourse B has doubled in size after growing into the cramped former Concourse A, which was demolished. When it opens in November, the new concourse will feature six fresh Alaska Airlines gates and two exciting additions to the airport in the local cafe chain Good Coffee and fried chicken and waffle destination Screen Door, both of which expect to debut next spring.
Concourse C
The biggest change coming to this restaurant-packed concourse will be Corner Store by Lardo, a new grab-and-go version of the popular Portland sandwich shop. By January, Lardo will take over the former Kenny & Zuke’s space just past the B/C security checkpoint, next to Stumptown’s cafe and Capers Cafe and Le Bar.
Farther down the concourse, travelers can pick from an array of chains both local (Bambuza Vietnam Kitchen, Mo’s Seafood, Cafe Yumm, Portland Coffee Roasters) and national (Mod Pizza, Potbelly Sandwiches, McDonald’s, Starbucks). Drink options include wine at Vino Volo, spirits and tiny cocktails at Westward Whiskey and 32 taps of beer from the ever-busy Henry’s Tavern, the surviving airport location of a Pearl District bar that closed in 2019. (Read to the end to learn my secret for buying $2 beers at the airport.)
Concourse D
As with Henry’s, the airport’s Country Cat is the only remaining location of this beloved Midwestern restaurant, which was best known for the fried chicken and brunch at its original Southeast Portland location. You’ll find the restaurant (and full bar) just past the D/E security checkpoint, next to Capers Market, itself home to grab-and-go items, prepared food including sandwiches, lasagna and even raw oysters.
Passengers cruising down Concourse D will find a Portland Coffee Roasters, a Burgerville, a full-service brewpub from Bend’s Deschutes Brewing and Hissho Sushi, a massive sushi chain with hundreds of locations across the United States, many in grocery stores. The airport hopes to fill the former Tamale Boy space with another local Latin American option.
Concourse E
After a gorgeous remodel, Concourse E could be setting itself up as the new go-to wing for food-savvy passengers. In addition to a Jamba Juice, a brewpub from Portland’s Hopworks Urban Brewing and a salad counter from Seattle-based Evergreens, the concourse is already home to the first brick-and-mortar Tillamook eatery outside of Tillamook itself. Tillamook Market serves a similar menu of signature dairy-based items as the 110-year-old cooperative’s flagship coastal Creamery, including fried cheese curds, grilled cheese sandwiches and ice cream, all available to take away in insulated bags.
Coming this October, Concourse E will add a Starbucks and a handful of exciting local options, including a relocated Blue Star Donuts, a second airport Bambuza and a temporary Lardo grab-and-go option (eventually relocating to the post-security area between B and C in January). Stumptown plans to open a second cafe here in the new Southwest hub in December.
And early next year, the end of the concourse, with its huge new windows and stunning vistas of Mount Hood, will welcome Juliett, a new craft cocktail bar with a “women in aviation theme” from Lightning Bar Collective, the group behind Portland’s Bye and Bye, Sweet Hereafter and Victoria bars. The project, opened in collaboration with global partner SSP Group as well as Portland’s ChefStable, will launch in January with a full bar and an all-day food menu developed by Dimo’s Apizza owner Doug Miriello.
Concourse E, the new home of Southwest Airlines, includes Tillamook Market, the 110-year-old dairy cooperative's first brick-and-mortar venue outside of Tillamook itself.
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Three things to know about eating and drinking at Portland International Airport before you go.
- Cover up, be kind: Masks are still required at the airport for all passengers over the age of 2 when not actively eating or drinking. Consider it good practice for your flight, when attendants will advise you to replace your mask between each bite or sip. Also note: Businesses at the airport are dealing with the same staffing and supply chain issues as the rest of the world. Be prepared for delays, variable hours and temporary closures for the foreseeable future.
- Stay in your lane: In April, the convenient walkway that once connected PDX’s B/C and D/E concourses was lifted from its moorings, chopped in half and trucked halfway around the airfield, where it will serve as a pair of new bypasses for passengers traveling during Main Terminal construction. That means travel time walking to your gate will take a few more minutes, and you can no longer pick which security section you go through based on the line. Another upshot: For the next few years, you probably won’t be checking out any new food options found on the other side of the airport.
- An app for that: That being said, PDX has signed up with AtYourGate, an airport-focused app that will deliver food and drinks to your gate from participating restaurants, even those on opposing concourses. In other words, local Southwest fans can get their Cafe Yumm fix without leaving Concourse D or E, while tourists leaving on Alaska Airlines through Concourse B or C should be able to order a box of brioche doughnuts to take home when the Blue Star kiosk opens later this month. The AtYourGate app also delivers food curbside, meaning those of us with no immediate travel plans can still drive down to the airport for some Country Cat brunch or the only Tillamook fried cheese curds outside the Oregon Coast, should you so desire.
The end of Concourse E boasts clear-day views of Mount Hood and, come January, a new craft cocktail bar with a "women in aviation" theme.Courtesy of the Port of Portland
EAT LIKE A PRO
What our food critic eats when he travels through Portland International Airport.
I might be The Oregonian’s restaurant reporter and critic, but I’m also something of a cheapskate. That’s why my favorite part of traveling through PDX has long been the “street pricing” policy, which mandates that airport vendors charge the same amount for each beer, burger or pack of bubble gum as they do at their non-airport locations. Other airports can keep their $24 cheeseburgers and $18 IPAs, thanks. I’ll head into the Made in Oregon store in Concourse C, where cold cans of Pfriem’s award-winning IPA and Pilsner will set you back just $2.10.
I haven’t done much air travel during the pandemic, but when I hopped on a flight to see relatives in New York City this summer, we did stop in the Concourse C food court for a benign cheese pizza from Mod (for the kids) and a grill bowl from Bambuza. Essentially their version of the Vietnamese dish bún thịt nướng, this bowl of grilled pork, cold vermicelli noodles and herbs might not be quite as well balanced as what you’ll find at better restaurants near the airport (Mekha and Pho Oregon come to mind). And I’ve never fancied ordering it from Bambuza’s South Waterfront location. But at $14.50, it’s a relatively inexpensive, reasonably healthy meal that didn’t weigh us down. Flying solo, I might indulge in a saucy bowl from Eugene’s own Cafe Yumm ($7.95), an occasional habit a former editor got me hooked on more than a decade ago.
We mostly fly Alaska, and I’m very much looking forward to the opening of Screen Door and Good Coffee on Concourse B, the latter of which will have the best espresso in the airport the moment it opens next spring. But if I found myself in the D/E wing, I might stop by Tillamook Market for fried cheese curds ($7), Capers extremely well-funded Market for some shucked Goose Point oysters ($2 each), or curiosity could lead me to the Country Cat to see if the once-famous fried chicken holds up in sandwich form ($14; though I would probably end up going for the turkey club, $12.50). When it opens, Lardo’s grab-and-go sandwiches should be good. And I’m looking forward to sipping a well-made cocktail while gazing out on a pristine view of Mount Hood once Juliett opens early next year.
— Michael Russell, mrussell@oregonian.com, @tdmrussell
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