Portland's queer-run, worker-owned vegan Pan-Asian restaurant Jade Rabbit closed its SE Belmont location on Sunday, Aug. 23, and will reopen Thursday, Aug. 27, in a 3,000-square-foot space at 3632 SE Hawthorne Blvd.

The space nearly triples their footprint.

The new spot, across from Tov Coffee in the former Afterlife bar space, gives the restaurant room to expand its dim sum program and teahouse identity.

The restaurant started in 2017 as Ichiza Kitchen, a vegan bistro in Goose Hollow. Ichiza rebranded it as Jade Rabbit in 2021 and ran a pop-up at Aimsir Distilling Company before that distillery closed suddenly, prompting the team to incorporate as their own LLC and form the co-op.

At Hawthorne, the restaurant will seat 70 to start. Booths along one side will accommodate dim sum carts for weekend service. One round table with a Lazy Susan is planned, and a staff member who is a tattoo artist will paint a mural on the back wall. The interior, painted black during Afterlife's tenure, is getting a refresh with pastels and bamboo.

The Portland Tribune reported the expanded menu will include Pan-Asian street snacks, a broader gluten-free selection and retail jars of Jade Rabbit's signature chili oil and green vinegar. Signature dishes staying on the menu include chili oil wontons with vegan beef, siu mai topped with tapioca roe, and a wind noodle soup made with a 13-herb medicinal broth. The restaurant sources its mock meats from Layonna's Vegetarian, a Taiwanese producer that ferments non-GMO heirloom soy for a minimum of three years.

Ichiza plans to lean into the teahouse identity at the new location, launching a happy hour built around gongfu cha tea tastings with premium teas sourced from farms in China and Taiwan. The liquor license is still in process, so the opening will focus on tea and mocktails, with cocktails to follow.

Hours at the Hawthorne location will be noon to 9 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekends. Jade Rabbit also previewed its plant-based dim sum at the Hawthorne Street Fair on Sunday, Aug. 23, the same day it closed the Belmont shop.