Portland International Airport travelers will soon have even more choices with new additions to the PDX shopping and restaurant scene.
Pending the Port of Portland Commission’s approval tomorrow, July 10, staff will begin lease negotiations for nine new retail and food and beverage locations, seven of which will open in summer 2020 within the Concourse E extension; the other two outlets will open in the spring of 2021 as part of the upgrades and updates to Concourse B.
The addition of these new concessions offers even more of what travelers love about PDX – Portland’s best local products and flavors mixed with emerging and recognizable regional and national brands. All PDX shops and restaurants provide products at the same prices as at their off-airport locations.
Further, to meet the goal of helping grow small and disadvantaged businesses, the Port made some changes to the solicitation process for these spaces. As a result, this request-for-proposal was the most competitive in PDX history. The Port received 42 proposals from 30 businesses in application for nine locations. When these new concessions open at PDX, 26% of our airport’s concessions will be women- and minority-owned businesses.
“We’re always looking for ways to reduce barriers to entry into our concessions program and the overwhelming response to tweaks we made in our processes was successful,” said Shane Andreasen, interim director of terminal business and properties. “We are excited about this mix of familiar and new offerings for PDX. We focused on companies that could deliver the best customer experience possible. We also paid close attention to quality employers who appreciate the value each employee brings to the job.”
• Bambuza Vietnam Kitchen (Concourse E) – The second PDX location of this popular, local eatery makes their broths, sauces and marinades from scratch in-house and sends travelers on their journeys with earth-conscious compostable or 100% recyclable take-out packaging.
• Evergreens (Concourse E) – Boasting, “Friends don’t let friends eat wilted salad,” this regional purveyor of healthy salads, grain bowls and wraps claims to work with one common goal in mind: to change the way people eat, and to do it with personality!
• Good Coffee (Concourse B) – With the simple mission of roasting coffee and making coffee in inspiring spaces to create delight for others, Good Coffee joins the PDX coffee family bringing coffee-loving travelers a fifth brand choice for their jolt of java before or after a flight.
• Jamba (Concourse E) – Formerly known as Jamba Juice, this national brand returns to PDX with a menu of smoothies, bowls and fresh juices. The company’s menu evolution now includes more options with plant-based and no-sugar-added menu items.
• Juliett (Concourse E) – From the group that brought Portland The Sweet Hereafter, The Bye and Bye, Century and Capitol, among others, the Lightning Bar Collective will pay homage to women in aviation with this new bar, clearly inspired by the space in which it will reside.
• Screen Door (Concourse B) – This outpost of the popular Portland location, operated by Host International, serves traditional southern cooking with northwest food values and will offer breakfast all day at PDX (with shorter lines—fingers crossed!). Fried Chicken and Waffles anytime? Yes, please!
• Tillamook (Concourse E) – This restaurant will offer burgers and quick bites along with a selection of grab-and-go items. It will also feature an ice cream counter so travelers who may not have made it to the coast can still sample Oregon’s own “dairy done right”.
Retail Outlets
• Calliope (Concourse E) – From the owners of cc McKenzie Shoes & Apparel comes a new shop focused on accessories and gifts. Calliope takes its name from one of Oregon’s native hummingbirds and plans to dazzle passengers with creative and playful keepsakes.
• Tender Loving Empire (Concourse E) – Since 2007, Tender Loving Empire has been connecting people who create with people who want to live artfully. A second PDX location will expand this connection to more passengers, featuring a greater focus on the company’s record label offerings.
PDX currently offers travelers 68 shops and restaurants. The opening of these new concessions creates 254 new jobs at PDX. Current information about airport job openings can be found on the PDX Jobs board.