One of Portland’s Best Pastry Chefs Has Left the City

This week was just jam-packed with tiny news bites, from Voodoo Donuts accepting credit cards to the return of Big’s Chicken. Still, there’s a huge number of other stories that didn’t make the cut this week, so below find a list of quick news updates — bonus points for someone who rewrites it in the style of “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”

IMPORTED BRUNCH — Xport, the bar at the top of The Porter hotel in downtown Portland, has just started serving brunch. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays, the restaurant offers a large raw bar selection, as well as seemingly out-of-left-field brunch items like “chef’s choice Chinese takeout” and dan dan spaetzle. Take a deeper look at the brunch menu here. [EaterWire]

A LOST GEM — Castagna pastry chef Geovanna Salas has left the fine dining restaurant, a massive loss to Portland’s overall dining scene. Easily one of the city’s best pastry chefs, Salas is now headed to Smyth in Chicago, the city where she started her career. [EaterWire]

CAT CO-OP — As Ryan and Elena Roadhouse continue to open their new restaurants, Peter Cat and Tonari, the couple has decided to offer a membership program for the cafe and izakaya. For $100 each year, guests get quarterly discounts at Tonari and Peter Cat, as well as access to exclusive events and classes. People can join the restaurant co-op until March 19. [EaterWire]

COFFEE MORNING — Another development in Portland’s non-alcoholic cocktail movement: Famed bartender Jeffrey Morgenthaler has partnered with Stumptown to design a seasonal menu of coffee drinks, starting with a citrus cold brew shrub and a honey peppercorn latte. Both drinks will be available in Stumptown cafes nationally. [EaterWire]