Join us in celebrating Black History Month! We always look forward to BHM events like the PDX Jazz Festival, which is being held February 18-27. This music festival is adapting to the times by continuing in a live streaming format. Black History Month gives us an opportunity to recognize the contributions, arts, history and culture of the African American community. We also encourage you to frequent the black-owned businesses and organizations listed below and throughout Portland during the month of February and all year long.
- Beaumont: Get your pizza fix at Amalfi’s, which serves classic Italian comfort food in a fun, lively atmosphere; and Pizza Nostra, which uses the highest quality cheese, meat and vegetables.
- Central Eastside: Parker + Simonne creates handmade tops and tunics from unique heritage textiles sourced from all over the world.
- Foster: For racial justice and Black Lives Matter clothing and apparel, check out Like Dat Apparel which specializes in custom screen printed apparel, as well as logo design and other promotional products. Atlas Pizza is currently offering delivery and pickup at their ‘Foster slice window.’ Assembly Brewing specializes in Detroit-style pizza and is currently offering pickup orders of crowlers, pies and a variety of appetizers and salads.
- Gateway: Mando’s is a food truck known for their classic American favorites – burgers, wings, sandwiches, cupcakes and more, made fresh every single day.
- Lents: Craving Jamaican cuisine? FiMi Kingston serves up traditional jerk chicken, pork and sausage, as well as a variety of bowls and sides (including fried plantains!).
- Lloyd: Satisfy your sweet tooth with Joe’s Brown’s Carmel Corn, which has been a Portland institution since 1932 and offers flavored popcorn, nuts, candy, cookies, cotton candy and Hana’s Snowballs.
- Montavilla: If cakes and pastries are more your thing, try DB Desserts which creates handmade delights for events of all sizes and even offers delivery.
- Old Town: Deadstock Coffee is a sneaker-themed coffee shop that provides a welcoming space with a barbershop feel. Plus, they roast their own beans!
- Soul District: Stick to your New Year’s resolution and eat healthier with Drink Mamey, which creates delicious juices from plant-based superfoods.
- St. Johns: Club Sky High is a local, family-owned cannabis dispensary that specializes in strains are grown locally and lab tested in Oregon. Jamaica House sources fresh ingredients from local farmers’ markets to make their popular Jamaican cuisine. Keep your pet healthy at Tre Bone, a pet store that carries pet food free of corn, wheat, soy, by-products and poor quality ingredients.
- Williams District: The Historic Black Williams Project created and placed markers along North Williams Avenue highlighting the rich history of this area including landmarks like Billy Webb Elks Lodge, a local community event center that is hosting a Black History Month Market every weekend. Local non-profit Self Enhancement Inc. is also hosting BHM events throughout the month spotlighting African American artists.
This list is non-exhaustive so there are plenty of other ways to celebrate Black History Month. If you need more ideas, the Mercatus Business Directory has plentiful options for supporting black-owned businesses. How do you plan to support your local black-owned business? Show us on Instagram and Facebook.