Portland Gets a Weed Brunch; Hop Dog Closes

DOWNTOWN—€”After just six months, Hop Dog closed the doors to its downtown brick and mortar February 28. Opened last August by Micah Camden and Katie Poppe (Boxer Ramen, Blue Star Donuts), the restaurant seemed to have a good downtown location and to have jumped onto a still-ascending gourmet hot dog trend. But the critics at Portland Monthly and Willamette Week both gave it negative reviews, and owner Camden says Hop Dog just didn't sell enough hot dogs.

SOUTHEAST—€”After two years of planning, the long-awaited Willow tasting counter restaurant, promising "barrier-breaking" Cascadian cuisine, is now open, and chef-owners John Pickett (Biwa, Bluehour) and Doug Weiler (Bluehour) reveal an especially cozy Southeast venue. "We want people to feel that we're inviting them over for a dinner party in our apartment," says Weiler.

BRUNCHWIRE—€”Prepare for Portland's first weed brunch (pajamas optional). A pop-up on the rise, HunnyMilk will hold the inaugural Wake and Bake multi-course marijuana brunch on March 26, and tickets go on sale today. HunnyMilk owner Brandon Weeks tells Eater the legalities of a marijuana event are complicated, but Wake and Bake has navigated them successfully. If the brunch goes well, he hopes to continue Wake and Bake monthly.