James Beard Award-winning All the Homies Network showcases Portland BIPOC food creators

When food cart owner Richard Văn Lê first moved to Portland, there wasn’t much representation in terms of Vietnamese food.

He said most restaurants west of 82nd Avenue primarily sold mainstays like phở and bánh mì. But since then, he’s seen the city’s food scene diversify.

“Portland five years ago, when I first got here, was very different than the Portland I live in now,” he said. “My day-to-day interactions are mainly with people of color now.”

At his food cart, Lê serves a variety of Vietnamese American dishes inspired by the meals his mother, grandmother and aunt used to make.

Its name, Matta, is his mother’s saint name, which was included on her tombstone.

“Without the women in my life, I wouldn’t be in this position that I am now,” Lê said. “Those three women in my life were, essentially, the foundation for what Matta is now.”

Lê is also a part of the All the Homies Network, a collective that documents a handful of Portland’s BIPOC food business owners through a variety of video content.