Skip to main content
The Oregon Chinese Coalition’s annual Oregon Chinese Festival returns to Pioneer Courthouse Square this weekend. Founded in 2019 and skipping 2020 for obvious reasons, the OCF returns for its fifth year on Saturday, Aug. 3, as a direct contribution to ongoing efforts by city and cultural leaders to revitalize downtown Portland and its COVID-era image.
“We are committed to downtown Portland for our biggest cultural event in the Chinese American community,” festival organizers said in a statement on their website. “Just as we will not give up on Chinatown with its rich heritage, we will be here when Portland needs us the most to help restore the vibrant life we were once proud of.”
More than 500 performers are scheduled on OCF’s stage, the earliest beginning at 11 am with an introduction by emcees Meilan Xu and Lucas Zhang. The program’s four sections cover traditional and modern Chinese performance art, with group appearances by troupes such as White Lotus Dragon & Lion Dance, 温哥华苿莉花舞队 Vancouver Jasmine Dance Troupe, Salem Golden Willow Chinese Dance Team, Pacific Violin Academy, children’s group Winnie Chinese Dance, and Dragonfly Chinese Yoyo Team, to name only a few. Soloists include violinist Erin Qiu, folk singer Tingting Hou and street dancer Wynn Young.
A half-dozen kitchens will join forces to feed the crowds. Portland restaurants Mandarin House 京华楼, Home Tastes 家乡味, Little Beijing 北京小馆 and Red Robe Tea House & Cafe 大红袍 team up with Tigard’s LoLo S San Xiang 十三乡 and Happy Valley’s Wheat Bay Chinese Restaurant will serve up steamed buns and dumplings, spring rolls, spam musubi, chicken wings and boba teas, along with Sichuan noodles, chili potatoes, jian bing crepes and bingfen, the Southwest Chinese dessert also known as ice jelly.
Should the kids get hopped up on amazing food and live entertainment, they can run their batteries down with fun and educational hands-on activities like taiji, diabolo yoyos, wood-locking burr puzzles, as well as more high-focus crafts like calligraphy, fan painting and paper folding. Other attractions for adults include hanfu makeup and dress model demonstrations, community health outreach from OHSU and Multnomah County Health Department, and giveaways for Chinese books, traditional evening gowns, and nicotine gum to help ween off tobacco.
SEE IT: Oregon Chinese Festival, Pioneer Square, 701 SW 6th Ave., pdxchinese.org/chinesefestival. 11 am Saturday, Aug. 3. Free. All ages.