Open for about a month now, Saraveza Bottle Shop & Pasty Tavern has become "the" place to gather in North Portland. My wife and I visited for the first time last evening to say hello to owner and friend Sarah Pederson and were delighted to see the crowd - we got the last table. While we were eating, other folks were arriving and willingly waiting for a table or place at the bar - of course, they enjoyed one of more than a hundred different beers while they waited.

If you've never had a pasty, as I hadn't, be prepared for a wonderful treat! It looks much like a calzone, except inside you'll find potato, carrot, meat, and other delights or, in the one we ordered, all the fixings of a great reubin sandwich.

Even though the location is a bit out of the way for us at 1004 N. Killingsworth, we'll definitely be regulars at Saraveza.