Welcome back to the I-5 High Five, a look at restaurant news from up-and-down the Pacific Northwest corridor.
PORTLAND: A few expansions are underway in Portland: The California-based chain Veggie Grill announced that its first locations outside the Golden State will open in Portland in early 2012, with restaurants in the suburban Cedar Hills shopping mall and in an unnamed spot in the downtown financial district. Meanwhile, two local expansions are underway, with the vegan-friendly rock 'n' roll pizza joint Sizzle Pie announcing a New Year's Eve opening date for its new west side location (across the street from Powell's Books); popular scoop shop Salt & Straw, meanwhile, will open its second location on tourist-friendly shopping street NW 23rd. The ice cream parlor/cafe is on track for a spring 2012 opening. [Eater PDX]
PORTLAND In case you're driving south for the holidays, Eater PDX has this handy map featuring restaurants open on Christmas Eve. Service journalism at its finest, folks. [-EPDX-]
DUNDEE: Taking just a minor detour off I-5 into Oregon's wine country, the Dundee Hills will soon welcome a new restaurant from Portland chef Daniel Mondok, most famously of PDX's shuttered-too-soon Sel Gris. The as yet unnamed restaurant will take over the Farm to Fork restaurant space at the Inn at Dundee Hills, and unsurprisingly, feature produce grown on nearby acreage. Projected opening: Next spring. [-EPDX-]
