Javelina Indigenous Dining
Restaurant · Cully ·
Fry bread tacos, bison chili, salmon, elk, bison, wild rice, teas
Fry bread tacos, bison chili, salmon, elk, bison, wild rice, teas
"Tucked away in Northeast Portland, the city’s first (but hopefully not its last) Indigenous restaurant offers a come-as-you-are atmosphere and a kitchen led by chef Alexa Numkena-Anderson, who explores the intersection of pre-colonial ingredients and post-colonial Native foodways by reclaiming dishes such as fry bread and pairing them with ingredients native to Turtle Island. Debuting in early 2025 and now firmly situated along 42nd Avenue next to the Native American Youth and Family Center after a minor relocation, it’s a spot where fry bread anchors the menu: I’d go for the elk fry bread ($25), piled with slightly sweet, tender braised meat, arugula, pickled red onion, and puffed amaranth under a burgundy swirl of huckleberry barbecue sauce—big enough to share—while the wheat berry salad ($8) balances richer plates with pumpkin seeds, toothsome whole wheat kernels, dried cranberries, crisp shaved fennel, and a honey-sumac vinaigrette that coats each bite in tart sweetness. For a deeper dive, the reservation-only Inɨ́sha tasting menu ($145) is fully composed of decolonized ingredients (think Olympia oysters with chokecherry mignonette, coal-roasted bison skewers, and blue corn cake), with optional wine ($75) or Indigenous tea ($30) pairings. The beverage program is as exciting as the food; look past the usual suspects for coffee and no-proof cocktails featuring native tea blends and North American ingredients—the Sun Dancer blends cold brew, oat milk, corn milk, cinnamon, corn pinole, cacao, and maple syrup over crushed ice with a dusting of blue flowers. This very community-oriented restaurant welcomes kids, and there’s even a high chair on site." - Brenna Houck
"In Portland, Oregon I found that Javelina serves wóžapi, a thick Lakota sauce made from wild chokecherries and other seasonal berries (blueberries, blackberries, huckleberries) that tops everything from fry bread to ice cream to braised bison, bringing a syrupy, ceremonial fruitiness to both everyday meals and special occasions." - Kate Nelson
"Walking in, the wall of books and art is the first thing I see, a display that spans contemporary Native American culture (Poet Warrior by former national poet laureate Joy Harjo) to fine dining (cookbooks by Enrique Olvera), and a stuffed pepper from the kitchen pulls those ideas together. The R&R relleno’s blue corn batter is light, the white tepary beans are firm, and the verde sauce on top is vibrant and fragrant; inside, rabbit and rattlesnake come together in a well-made, lighter sausage. Chef Alexa Numkena-Anderson’s restaurant manages true neighborhood comfort and something more profound, merging high-end chef skills with a cuisine too often unfamiliar to European fine-dining kitchens, and this rabbit and rattlesnake relleno feels like a triumphant topnote crowning all that complexity." - Eater Staff
"At long last Portland is home to an Indigenous restaurant. The menu reflects chef Alexa Numkena-Anderson’s background on the Yakama Reservation in Washington as an enrolled Hopi tribe member and a descendant of the Cree, Skokomish, and Yakama nations. She opened the pop-up’s first permanent restaurant in late January with husband Nick Numkena-Anderson, and then announced at relocation in mid-March to Northeast 42nd Avenue. All-star dishes include fry bread tacos with bison chili and tribal-caught salmon steamed in a corn husk with sunflower seed pesto." - Zoe Baillargeon
"Native dishes rarely make the leap from home to professional kitchen, which is why locals have been excited for Javelina, Portland’s first indigenous restaurant. The three sisters, a.k.a. squash, beans, and corn, play an outsized role on a menu that includes popular powwow dishes like fry bread tacos that pile bison chili, grated Tillamook cheese, and shredded lettuce atop a greaseless round of puffy dough, as well as tribal-caught salmon steamed in a cornhusk, garnished with sunflower seed pesto and served with hominy, zucchini, and black beans. The former pop-up now has a permanent home in Cully that’s polished, casual, and sprawling enough to accommodate eager crowds. Stay tuned for Inisha, a higher-end experience that incorporates North American ingredients into a six-course tasting menu." - Krista Garcia
