Eight Three One Opens In Old Nobleoni Space

After each working for about two years under the guidance of Noble Rot's Leather Storrs at his Nobleoni cafe space at the Oregon College of Art and Craft, Ray Kim and Robert Huntsman have taken the cafe's reigns transforming into  Eight Three One, the latest incarnation of the OCAC's campus cafe.

Kim says that his and Huntsman's approach at the cafe will be to continue providing longtime guests with the kinds of locally sourced lunches and Sunday brunches they've come to expect.

However, because their kitchen is so small (Kim says they have hardly any room to store anything, let alone freeze something), it limits what exactly they can serve, which Kim says isn't a bad thing.

"Everything we make is fresh and made from scratch," he says. After hitting up the Beaverton Farmers Market on Saturday morning, Kim and Huntsman convene at the space and "grind out" the following week's menu.

Something on the menu will change every couple of days, Kim says, meaning that if you show up one week, the entire menu will have changed when you return the following week.

Still, he says that there are a few anchor items on the menu (like salads or bibimbap or brunch hashes), but points out that they'll always be prepared differently depending on what's in season and available.

"Our goal is to provide longtime regulars with something different every day of the week, often from different countries or continents," says Kim.

He did add, however, that the one true thing that will never change is Eight Three One's brunch buttermilk pancakes. "People love their pancakes," he says, "so you've gotta have ‘em."

Eight Three One, 8245 SW Barnes Rd., (503) 297.1480; Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Sundays