PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A drive-thru aiming to serve customers a higher-quality, plant-based iteration of burgers like the Big Mac is inching toward its opening — and the fact that it’s taking over a former McDonald’s location is merely a coincidence.
As first reported by local food blog Bridgetown Bites, North Portland will soon welcome Face Plant on 3110 N Going St. The restaurant will offer vegan takes on fast food classics like milkshakes, cheeseburgers, chicken nuggets and fries.
Matt Plitch, a former product innovation employee at Nike and founder of the nation’s first carbon-neutral food brand, began developing the concept in 2021. He brought on cookbook author and former Bon Appétit editor Molly Baz as the drive-thru’s head of culinary.
Although Plitch started his plant-based diet about four years ago, he described Baz as an “avid omnivore.” Her role entails curating vegan and vegetarian recipes that will entice meat-eaters like herself.
“We believe that if we can make something that's as delicious as a McDonald's burger or an In-N-Out Burger — that just so happens to be plant-based — then we can change people's behaviors in a real, everlasting way,” Baz said.
The culinary head told KOIN 6 that Impossible products will serve as the base for meat-inspired dishes, but she and her team have spent years finding the signature ingredients that will define the flavor of a Face Plant burger.
The founder added that he wants the restaurant to develop a reputation as the best fast food brand, rather than the best vegan fast food brand. Unintentionally, the location he found after an 18-month search once held a business that is synonymous with fast food: McDonald’s.
According to Plitch, the multinational chain built that particular location in 1992.
“We fell in love with that site because it gave us this incredible opportunity to serve the amazing people working on Swan Island, and then really be there as hopefully a favorite food destination for the few 100,000 folks around in North Portland, northeast and southeast,” Plitch said.
Face Plant is expected to open in mid-January.
