How a Portland Custard Shop Fought the Trump Administration — And Won | Eater Portland
"A 2024 Portland Eater Award–winner for Best Dessert, the shop opened in June 2024 after operating as a farmers market pop-up. The brainchild of Mika Paredes and her then-business partner, Naomi Pomeroy (who died tragically last summer), it is known for luxuriant frozen desserts in flavors like Blood Orange Dreamsicle and snickerdoodle; Paredes will also lead the kitchen at Pomeroy’s final French bistro project. Paredes says the summer following the opening was “turbulent.” It started with a refurbished two-door retail freezer plucked from a shuttered Walgreens and, after a busy summer, “we just needed more space,” so she applied for a USDA grant and got accepted. As Paredes recounts: "I was looking for outside funding. I was having a hard time getting small business loans because we haven’t been open for a full year, or two years. I connected with the Oregon Dairy Council. They were like, 'Hey, Mika, for businesses that are considered dairy processors or farmers and dairy, there are a lot of grants that you can reach out to for [that are] equipment-specific.' We needed a three-door freezer, a free-standing freezer. They guided me to this specific grant, which is called the Pacific Coast Dairy Business Innovation Initiative. It provides funding and resources to dairy farmers and businesses across six western states, which includes Oregon. It’s taxpayers’ money, so there’s definitely a lot of hoops and bureaucracy and red tape. We applied in October 2024. We were awarded the grant in December. We have to use the funds within 60 days once it is awarded to us, which was January. I purchased the freezer through a local distributor. It was about an eight-week turnaround on delivery. Part of the protocol with this specific grant is it runs as a reimbursement program, so you have to upfront the cost yourself, and then you have to then apply for reimbursement. Then [the government] makes sure the equipment is on-site and operational to avoid fraud. The freezer arrives damaged, so we are waiting for the new arrival." Two weeks later she says she got a call informing her that all funding for federal grants through the USDA had been frozen indefinitely, sending her into "pure panic mode" and prompting her to mobilize followers, farmers and local politicians. "It caught fire. Within 24 hours media outlets had contacted me. With the encouragement of the community, Istarted a GoFundMe. Within 24 hours ofthat, we were about 70 percent to goal. And then about 12 hours after that, the freeze was lifted. I feel like amplifying the situation and using all of our outlets, I think we had a little bit of an influence in reversing the freeze." Her bottom-line advice for small-business owners facing similar federal actions: "Yeah, that’s totally it. I think this is something that affects everyone. We need to be reminded that we have significant power in how government operates. And it’s just a reminder to us to use your voice. That’s it. Go to the street and do it." - Paolo Bicchieri
