I’m proud to say that I was the very first customer of the brand-spankin-new vegan food cart in Portland, Native Bowl, run by friend Julie Hasson and her husband Jay.

Milo and I showed up at a little after 11:30 this morning and chatted to Julie and Jay while they prepared our bowl, the Mississippi Bowl: BBQ soy curls, slaw, peppercorn ranch dressing, scallions, and rice. It’s really hard to tell from this picture what’s underneath the slaw, but trust me, it’s a creamy & tangy delight.

I can’t wait to go back. One of my favorite things about the cart is that, because Julie and Jay are parents, they thought to buy an easel and provide chalk to give the kids something to do while they wait. Totally genius. Milo happily drew bees on the chalkboard for Julie and me while buzzing. (Bees are his current favorite.)

Native Bowl is one of a half dozen or so carts in the new Mississippi Marketplace, and we will for sure be visiting them a lot. I can’t wait to see how the menu evolves over time.

Congratulations to Julie and Jay!