Associated Shoots for October 10 Opening In Old P.R.E.A.M. Pizza Space

A whole lot of Portlanders were disappointed when the hip-hop pizzeria P.R.E.A.M. shuttered earlier this year.

Well, come October 10—or thereabouts—that pizzeria will be reinvented as Associated.

Associated will now be under the ownership of P.R.E.A.M. chef Nick Ford and Lightning Bar Collective’s John Janulis and Liam Duffy, the men behind Century Bar, Sweet Hereafter, Bye and Bye and Victoria.

Janulis says Ford will still be preparing pies for his wood-fired oven—think meaty and vegan classics like margheritas and meat lover variations, all of which are named after pop songs—but he’s adding something extra to the mix, namely tacos.

“It seemed like the perfect mix for us,” Janulis says of the pizza-taco mashup. “I mean sitting down for two slices of pizza and a taco with a beer, it sounds pretty good, right?”

Like the pizzas, the tacos will also come meaty or vegan. The meaty versions will come in all the usual flavors (chorizo, al pastor, carnitas, carne asada), while the vegan tacos will tentatively make use of tempura cauliflower (with black bean purée, fried peanuts, and pico de gallo) and wood-fired pineapple (with soyrizo, pickled red onions, and cilantro).

Other possible dishes include chili cheese fries, black garlic knots served with roasted mushrooms and scallion queso fundido, arancini served with a cilantro and lime pesto, Caesar salads, and stromboli.

Associated will also offer eight draft craft beers and specialty cocktails like mezcal mules, bourbon and Aperol IPA shandies, and, with a wink and a nod to the late Sid Barrett, a drink called Saucerful of Secrets (bourbon, rum, cherry heering and bitters).

Stay tuned for photos of the space, which we’ll be dropping within the week.

Associated: 2133 SE 11th Ave.; Projected Hours: 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., daily

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