Central Eastside News

[downtownpdx]

Welcome to Wonderlove, the Central Eastside’s Funky New Food Cart Pod

Beloved carts like Bake on the Run and Honeycuspe have found a new home among a shipping container bar and murals by local artists

by Janey Wong Jul 17, 2024, 2:00pm PDT

Screen Shot 2024-07-21 at 7.09.50 PM by Ryan Miller, on Flickr

Screen Shot 2024-07-21 at 7.09.59 PM by Ryan Miller, on Flickr

Wonderlove, a new food cart pod and venue, wants to be the Central Eastside’s destination for a block party. Co-owners Michael Morrow and Joel Beaudoin were connected by a mutual friend after they learned the two shared the ambition of opening a food cart pod and venue. In late June, Morrow and Beaudoin realized that ambition and opened the pod, pulling in established food carts like Bake on the Run and Honeycuspe. On its physical footprint, which spans half of a city block, Wonderlove’s multifaceted complex pairs Portland’s food cart culture with live entertainment and art.

“Wonderlove is heart and expression through music, food, and beverage,” Morrow says. “There’s artists in the carts, artists behind the bar, and artists on the wall,” Beaudoin adds.

The entertainment hub lands in the Central Eastside at a time where the mostly industrial neighborhood is on the cusp of undergoing massive transformation into a thriving city district — controversial plans to erect a Live Nation concert venue are in the works, and the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) has a longterm vision of bringing in affordable housing, a Center for Tribal Nations, and a waterfront park where visitors can interact with the Willamette River through an educational lens. “Being down the street from OMSI, we appreciate that kind of wonderment,” Beaudoin says. “We wanted to make [something] that sparks conversations and laughter. We’re trying to create a space for new childhood memories for adults.”

continues:https://pdx.eater.com/2024/7/17/2420...-food-cart-pod