Opening almost two months ago was the Skinny Cart BBQ at 202 Washington Ave. While . . . → Read More: Portland Food Update April 2010]]> The past few months have seen some changes in the Portland food scene (I’m talking the one I’m interested in – pizza, bbq, hot dogs, bacon-dusted fries, etc., not that fancy or healthy stuff!). Here’s a quick update:

Opening almost two months ago was the Skinny Cart BBQ at 202 Washington Ave. While I was off in Austin consuming as much BBQ as I could possibly find, Portland was getting its own fill of some delicious new smoked, grilled, and messy meats. Ron Gan opened the cart in the bright green shack next to his house and plans to add more mobile carts to his arsenal before too long.

From one friend who hadn’t yet tried the food, it “looked legit.” I knew what he meant before even laying eyes on it – as many foods go, especially of the barbecue variety – the more dilapidated the restaurant/cart/truck looks, the more delicious the food is. As it turns out, this theory holds true with Skinny Cart.

The menu is very limited – to just two items, in fact. Their names seem to change, but basically you can either get a beef or pork sandwich. On this trip I had the pork – listed that day as “pulled pork” though what ended up on the bun was less the stringy stuff and more full chunks of shoulder pork, which is fine by me! I was surprised on my first bite (through some tangy peppers and onions on top) when I felt the crunch of – yes, here it comes, folks – bacon! Full, tasty, crispy strips of bacon inside the pork sandwich. Perfect!

While there’s no proper seating to rest while you enjoy your meal (I recommend stopping by on a bike trip, it’ll make you justify the meaty goodness if you’re one of those calorie-conscious people – I’m not) though there are some concrete blocks by the driveway which provide a partial view of the city. Hours are 11am-3pm (I think…) most days.

In other food news, my favorite pizza joint in town, Otto, is growing up a bit. The owners have opened Enzo next door. The beer-and-wine bar has table where you can order drinks and full pies from next door, which are passed through a pizza-sized window in the wall.

Finally, in what will certainly be even more of a bummer in the summer, when cheap hot dogs and onion rings are what you want at 2 am, Papaya King on Dana Street is long gone. Oh well, it was good while it lasted.

Again we take an optimistic look at late night pizza options in Portland. The other day I spotted this Craigslist ad (thanks, job search rss feed!), and then the Psst! confirmed it: a new restaurant by the name of Otto’s Pizza . . . → Read More: Music Fans Need Food Too: Otto’s Pizza]]> Let’s get one more food post in, while we’re on a roll.

Again we take an optimistic look at late night pizza options in Portland. The other day I spotted this Craigslist ad (thanks, job search rss feed!), and then the Psst! confirmed it: a new restaurant by the name of Otto’s Pizza would be opening up at 576 Congress Street. Today was apparently the soft opening, advertised by a cute sign constructed with paper plates.

Read on for the full review and more photos!

Inside is a fairly small space – just enough room to grab your slice and get out (though I anticipate some Friday night bottlenecks). The pizza they’re serving up isn’t your average greasy thin-sliced business, this is serious pie. Owners Mike and Anthony seem to be still working out some of the details about hours and price (and decor) but they’ve definitely got the goods down. I got to try a couple different slices and everything was delicious.

Now, about those hours. Though things are still being finalized, according to the owners the plan is to be open until about 9pm most nights, then later on the weekends. We’re talking 1am, maybe later. That’s exactly what we need on Congress Street! Between that, the newer late night options in the Old Port, Becky’s take out window, rumors of a taco truck, and the possibility of El Rayo Taqueria being open in that same last call range, things are looking up for late night snackers who don’t want to go the 7-11 route (though you know there’s always that temptation of the Combos).

After this first taste, I’m excited to see Otto’s Pizza come together and really get up and running. Located right next to Strange Maine, across from Empire, and just a block from SPACE and the White Heart, it’s pretty much guaranteed to find a devoted audience in the nightlife-loving crowd.