Two exciting new destinations in the Central City are helping invigorate Portland’s food scene and add to downtown’s vibrancy.
Flock Food Hall celebrated its grand opening on Sunday, February 2. Located in the Block 216 building adjacent the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, the 8,000-square-foot-space is home to eight vendors: bb.q Chicken, Queen Mama’s Kitchen, Pan Roast PNW, ZapPinto Thai Kitchen, Birrieria La Plaza, and HK Café serve food alongside offerings from Prime Tap House and Tous le Jours bakery. Nest and Vine winery is scheduled to open soon.
Developed by Leeroy & Kimble, the Flock Food Hall was funded in part by a $3 million loan from Prosper Portland. This project exceeded Prosper Portland’s Building and Workforce Equity targets, with roughly 45% of construction costs ($1.2 million) going to Minority Business Enterprise firms and 35% of hours completed by apprentices, giving them access to valuable workforce experience.
Just a few blocks away, the James Beard Public Market (JBPM) has secured more than $3 million in funding as it looks to open in late 2025. With close to 40,000 square feet of retail space planned, the market will feature an event space, a teaching kitchen, a restaurant, and stalls for 40 local food vendors selling fresh produce, local dairy products, artisan cheese, local fish and meat, fresh flowers and herbs, alongside coffee, beer, wine and distilled spirits. Vendor applications are now open for the James Beard Public Market. Interested vendors can apply through Sunday, March 30. In the lead-up to opening later this year, the JBPM team is hosting the Oregon Taste of the Month event series, a public service project designed to celebrate and support Oregon’s vibrant local food ecosystem.
Prosper Portland supported this project with a predevelopment grant, and Portland food vendors are among the many businesses that will be able to access technical support and navigation assistance from the Office of Small Business at Prosper Portland, launching in Spring 2025.
“Both of these projects represent an opportunity for local entrepreneurs to share their creativity and passion with the larger community,” said Shea Flaherty Betin, interim executive director at Prosper Portland. “As the economic development agency for the city of Portland, these projects support two of the key goals outlined in Advance Portland, the city’s collaborative economic development strategy: namely activating commercial space in the central city and by promoting equitable wealth creation – both for the hall operators and the multiple food vendors who now have access to key downtown space.”
