In Philly, Hatch explains, if your boss asks you why your coworker is running late to their shift, they’d say, “Where the heck is that jawn?” The Jawn just happens to be a play on Hatch’s first name, but it's also a Philly slang term for, well, literally any noun. The Jawn is Papi Sal’s signature dish, an Italian Puerto Rican fusion consisting of pulled lechon-slow-roasted pork in oregano jus and PR BBQ sauce-along with sharp provolone, sofrito mayo, and long peppers roasted in oil and Puerto Rican spices on an Italian baguette. Instead, he worked with Chef Anitza, a Puerto Rico–born chef who runs the Criolla Kitchen pop-up in Portland, to help him dig even further into Puerto Rican cuisine. Hatch also had plans to visit the homeland in Puerto Rico last year for some R&D, but scratched that idea when COVID upended travel. After COVID-19 eliminated indoor dining, he pivoted the model to a food cart and enlisted the help of Aaron Galloway (formerly of Cibo on Division) as his executive chef.

After spending time in Philly, Vermont, California, and Southern Oregon, Hatch landed in Portland in February 2020 with the goal of opening a fine dining concept using Puerto Rican flavors. Like his cart, Hatch is a Portland newcomer. Hatch plans to celebrate its grand opening starting Thursday, February 18, running through Wednesday, February 24. The cart, one of just a handful of businesses in the metro area offering Puerto Rican cuisine, softly opened at the brand-new Core PDX Food Hall in Southeast in early February. Now, Hatch is serving a mash-up of his Puerto Rican and Philadelphia Italian American cultures at his new cart, Papi Sal’s Lechon Shack. That ignited a to learn about my culture and the food that it brings.” “She’s not Puerto Rican but grew up in a Puerto Rican neighborhood in Philly, and she taught me some Puerto Rican dishes. “Six years ago, I met my biological mom,” explains Hatch.

Puerto papi papi