When Flutter / Eden and Porch Light owners Cindy Rokoff and Keiran Best decided to split the space at 221 NW 11th Ave. (formerly Versailles Interiors) last spring to open two new shops, they had a good feeling about Portland's west side. Friends and former Mississippi Avenue neighbors, Best and Rokoff turned out to be far from the only business owners to sense an opportunity across the river.
There's currently an east-side exodus of shops, coffee houses and eateries moving or setting up second (or third) locations downtown, in the Pearl and in Portland's newly christened "West-End" neighborhood. In case you're an east-sider who hasn't been downtown in awhile, or a west-sider who may not yet have gotten around to exploring new neighborhood businesses, we thought we'd shine a little spotlight on some of the new additions to the west side neighborhoods!
Stylistically speaking, Eden is undoubtedly a relative of Flutter - you can find perfume, art books, gifts, candles, vintage furniture and clothing and locally designed jewelry. Eden differs from Flutter with a more refined, curated aesthetic (think less Flutter-Clutter,) taking note from London's swinging 70's, a love of nature, an exotic influence (imported textiles, jewelry and antiquities) and rock and roll
Next door neighbor Porch Light presents a decidedly different look compared to the location it moved from; while the Mississippi shop courted a flea market aesthetic, Porch Light of the Pearl features a tightly curated range of products, new and old, neatly arranged on sunlight wooden shelves and adorning the tops of found barnhouse furniture.
Halo Shoes, notable for their high-end and bespoke selection of mens and womens' footwear, moved from Irvington to the Pearl District in 2010. Find brands including Costume National, Cydwoq, Dries Van Noten, Luciano Padovan, Grenson, Moma and Wolverine 1000 Mile.
Right down the street from Eden, Popina Swimwear Boutique set up a second shop just two years ago (their first is on NE 42nd Avenue,) offering a range of swimwear and swim accessories, including some of owner Pamela Levenson's designs.
In our building, eatery Oven & Shaker moved in just a few months ago. A collaboration by Cathy Whims (of famed SE restaurant Nostrana,) ChefStable's Kurt Huffman, and Aviation gin's Ryan Magarian, this new restaurant serves up pizza, small plates and artisan cocktails.
Around the corner from Oven and Shaker, EAT Oyster Bar is currently building out the space directly next to Porch Light. The new restaurant is going to be called Parish and we can't wait to see what they cook up!
Mississippi neighbors Mee Sen Thai just purchased Jinx Cocktail Lounge, bringing the East side head count in just our building up to five!
Fellow Mississippi vintage shop Animal Traffic has happily found a second home in the neighborhood as well, with a brand new location on SW 10th Avenue. Expect to see slightly different products in the new store with the same western / heritage aesthetic that Animal Traffic has become known for!
A few months before Eden opened, Barbara Seipp moved and rebranded her clothing store (formerly Phlox) and opened Isaac Hers (also the name of the clothing line with Seipp designs) just south of Burnside on SW 13th Avenue.
New(ish) New York style pizzeria Sizzle Pie found such success on East Burnside that they opened a location on West Burnside just across the street from Powell's Books. With vegan and vegetarian options, Sizzle Pie has quickly become a crowd pleaser on the west side as well.
Fellow East Burnside business Lille Boutique opened a second location last year called Lille Trousseau, which specializes in wedding and honeymoon lingerie (conveniently it's located right next to The English Department on SW Alder Street!)
And don't worry, there's coffee, too: east-side coffee shop The Fresh Pot opened a third location last year on SW Washington Street!
We're tremendously excited to be part of a movement of businesses re-energizing, re-innovating and re-imagining Portland's West Side. We can't wait to see who joins us next!
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