New Nostalgia

The Oxford English Dictionary defines nostalgia as a “sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.” In the U.S., the word nostalgic is often conflated with the idea of retro Americana—whatever that even means. It’s the greasy spoon diners, pinball arcades, independent movie theaters with brightly lit marquees, and drive-in hamburger joints. These are all great and Portland has them in spades.

Nostalgia for those who live in the United States, though, is an expansive feeling that can be felt in infinite ways. It would be a disservice and an erasure to not explore Portland nostalgia through a wider and more inclusive lens than just stereotypical Americana.

Nothing stirs nostalgia quite like smell and taste. It’s no wonder that nostalgia and food are so inextricably intertwined. By neighborhood, we are letting our tastebuds revel in nostalgia via these new restaurants and other haunts around them.

Hollywood District

The new restaurant Xiao Ye translates to “midnight snacks” in Mandarin. Entering the cozy neighborhood spot, you get a taste of playful takes on nostalgic late night eats. Midnight snacks are often a delightful scrummage around the kitchen table with those you love most—best friend sleepovers, parents who waited up for you, siblings cracking jokes. An amalgamation of the first-generation experience is shown through dishes like spaghetti with sesame and black vinegar, tempura fried sardines, and masa and mochiko madeleines. In the same Hollywood District neighborhood, find additional nodes to nostalgia via the historic Hollywood Theatre. The theater still frequently utilizes a live organ accompaniment and shows older films from makers of various backgrounds and cultures.

Beaumont Neighborhood

In Portland’s evolving pop-up scene, Javelina is holding a residency at the Morchella restaurant space to serve up comfort food. Chef Alexa Numkena-Anderson’s is of Hopi/Yakama Native and Mexican descent. Javelina specializes in fry bread, of which Javelina’s website writes, “even though this food came from necessity, our people were able to make a comfort food that is still found at pow wows and family gatherings to this day.” Up the road, another destination for comfort food is Dirty Lettuce. Owner Alkebulan Moroski has perfected his vegan reinterpretation of his family’s Mississippi recipes. Other old school haunts in the neighborhood: Beaumont Hardware and Beaumont Village Market.

Slabtown

We love this story from Portland Eater about the co-owners of Friendship Kitchen NW: From Saigon 2 Singapore, Trang Nguyen and her wife Wei-En Tan. In short, the restaurant’s laska is—in part—on the menu due to Wei-En’s mom making the dish for Trang in a way that instantly brought her back to the dish she grew up eating and was hard to find in Portland. Though they come from different backgrounds and their families from different countries, food has the power to showcase connections and overlapping diasporas. Also in the Slabtown neighborhood, hit up the forthcoming Love Shack cocktail bar. Here, the cocktail menu is inspired by the 1950s steakhouse, 1960s cocktail party, and 1970s beach bar.

Nostalgia is both undeniable and elusive. While we have shared snippets of the nostalgic tingles we observe and feel all around Portland, the truth is that nostalgia is a highly personal phenomenon. One maker or chef sharing their nostalgic-laden foods and goods is a generous offering from which locals and visitors alike can humbly, openly, and graciously learn and enjoy. While nostalgia at the surface may feel like a harking to yesteryears, it is also a radical opportunity to celebrate community and diversity of today.