Take a break from holiday cooking, quick bites available at Country Squire Kitchen food truck

By Chelsea Yarnell, Headlight Herald Guest Contributor

It started as a love story. And turned into a food cart. Standing inside the Country Squire Kitchen, parked in the Under the G pod, Amanda and Patrick King recall how their dream came to be. The two were both working as chefs at Hotel Fifty’s H50 Bistro & Bar in Portland.

“It was the two of us on a six-person line and we became really good friends,” Patrick said.

Patrick recalls knowing he loved Amanda pretty soon after meeting her. He smiles in her direction remembering that realization. His grin is returned with one from Amanda. They’re now in their seventh year of marriage.

After rent kept going up in the Portland area, the couple decided to look elsewhere to plant roots. “We could live anywhere and it would be easy for us [as chefs] to find work,” Patrick said. “We started thinking about where we would want to live. We settled on the North Coast as where we wanted to be.” The two bought a house and starting adding coastal restaurants to their resumes. Collectively, they’ve spent time working at the Pelican Brewery, Meridian Restaurant, and Garibaldi Portside Bistro. But, the idea of having their own place was never far from their minds. “We’ve wanted to do this for a few years, there just wasn’t funds there,” Patrick said.

In 2022, the two put more serious thought to the idea. For them, a food truck made the most sense for success. With immense culinary background, they custom designed a food trailer for optimal flow in the small kitchen. “Everything is very thoughtfully laid out,” Patrick said.

Equipped with a functional food cart, the couple readied themselves for opening day of the Country Squire Kitchen in February 2022. Amanda laughs as she thinks back. It was that morning that Garibaldi received 13 inches of snow. “It was stressful, but it makes for a good story,” she said. “We had good community backing at the start and it took a couple weeks to work out some kinks before the busy season.”

Country Squire Kitchen boasts a very simple menu with three items, three different ways. Pick: sandwich, wrap or rice bowl; with chicken, pork, or veggies. “Things we make here are not things we could find in Tillamook County,” Patrick said. Patrick describes their chicken as Middle Eastern style and their braised pork shoulder as Cuban.

In the food trailer, Patrick goes over to the flattop and preps a chicken wrap. Wrapped in a thick pita, in goes seasoned chicken, pickled red cabbage, house-made garlic yogurt sauce, and cilantro chimichurri. Boxed and out their walk-up window in less than five minutes.

“It’s fresh, flavorful, and filling,” Patrick said. “We’re doing something that people can grab quickly.”

As basic as the menu is, it keeps the execution of each order flawless every time and frees up creative space for their specials. “We run one-five specials at a time,” Amanda said. “That way we don’t get bored.” Recent specials included corned beef melts and curried winter squash soup. “We talk all the time about food or specials,” Patrick said. “It starts with a flavor or feeling or value.” County Squire Kitchen stayed consistently busy through their first summer. “We’re very grateful for the summer we had,” Amanda said.

Patrick retells the time a customer ordered one of their burgers off the special’s menu. Shortly after receiving his food, the customer returned to the cart’s window to inform them he had intended to take his food to work, but after one bite couldn’t stop eating. It was the best burger he’d ever had. “I’ve lost track of the number of times people say, ‘That’s the best___’” Patrick said. “We have been in awe of all the regulars and how often we see repeat customers. It’s very humbling to see positive things about our business.”

Patrick and Amanda recently pitched an expansion of their business during the Tillamook Economic Development Council’s “LevelUp” mini pitch competition. Country Squire Kitchen won one of the first levels of competition and was awarded $250. The competition was open to Tillamook County small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs with future endeavors. Competitors pitched their business plans and were evaluated by a panel of judges.

Patrick and Amanda will move on to the finale of the competition where they will present their idea for “Country Squire Acres” on January 13 at TBCC’s PRI Building. Contestants will compete for the top three cash prizes of $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500. Their pitch in the finale will describe their goal of farm ownership. “We’re planning to start a farm that produces not only for this food cart, but a farm that sells to Food Roots Marketplace and farmers markets,” Patrick said. In the meantime, Country Squire Kitchen food cart is keeping the duo busy. As a skilled pastry chef, Amanda often stocks the food cart with her specialty baked goods. With the upcoming holidays, the food cart will offer small batches of winter-themed items such as pumpkin bread. Their kitchen can’t accommodate large Thanksgiving dinner preorders, so instead Country Squire Kitchen will have jalapeno bacon dips available for pickup to take to holiday get-togethers. Country Squire Kitchen will also be running limited specials of seasonal dishes such assoups and turkey burgers. Perfect for a break from holiday cooking at home.

Country Squire Kitchenis open Friday – Monday, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. To view their menu, visit countrysquirekitchen.com.
To stay current with their offerings and specials, follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

Brittney Bakes opens shop just in time for holiday season - Business advances to finale of SBDC’s ‘LevelUp’ competition

By Chelsea Yarnell, Headlight Herald Guest Contributor

Entering Brittney Bakes store, customers are welcomed with a beautiful display of freshly baked offerings. The counter is lined with the day’s options: scones, cookies, brownies, ciabatta bread, and rosemary sandwich bread to name a few.

“Our display presentation is what sets us apart,” owner and baker Brittney Hudson said. “Each serving is packaged and ready to-go.”

Along with the other half of her duo, Chad Martin, Hudson decided to start up a business after relocating to the coast from Texas.

“Growing up, my mom had a restaurant. So, I grew up with homemade and baked items,” Hudson said. “I’ve always been behind-the-scenes.”

Hudson attended pastry school at Auguste Escoffier Culinary School and most recently worked at Nate’s Baked Good in the Austin, Texas area.

Desiring a “breath of fresh air,” Hudson and Martin decided to move to the Oregon Coast and venture into business themselves.

The two first brought “Brittney Bakes” to the North Coast Food Web’s Farm and Food Incubator Program in Astoria. The business quickly grew out of the program and the pair ended up taking their baked goods to several different farmers markets this past summer including: Manzanita, Tillamook, and Pacific City.

But, even with multiple markets a week, the business continued to grow and the two were presented with an opportunity to open a brick-and-mortar storefront in Garibaldi.

Open since Oct. 1, Brittney Bakes is located a block west of the Garibaldi Maritime Museum (206 Garibaldi Ave, Suite A) marked by the “Open” and “Bakery” flags along Hwy 101. The store’s interior is decorated in a homey, grandma-cottage style with many found items from Hudson and Martin’s time antiquing and thrifting (spay their antique cashbox). Customers can stop by and pick up made-that-day pastries and baked goods, drip coffee, and place custom orders or requests. Most items are one for $5 or five for $20. Loaves of bread run $7.

“With Brittney’s experience working at bakeries and restaurants, it has helped with the flavor profile,” Martin said, adding that her sweets are not overly sweet, but instead a perfect balance.

Hudson works to include seasonal produce with as much sourced from local farmers as possible, and features Tillamook cheese and Ghirardelli chocolate in her items. The top sellers are their blueberry scones, brown butter cookies, and ciabatta rolls.

“I like to bake what someone is craving,” Hudson said. “I can also accommodate dietary restrictions upon request, like gluten-free.”

While Hudson is the baker of the business, Martin is often recognized first as he’s known for working the booths at the farmers markets.

“We’re trying to keep it as small as we can so we can be the face of Brittney Bakes,” he said.

While the two split business tasks, when talking to them it’s evident of the respect and complimentary nature they have towards one another.

“She’s got a great skillset,” Martin said. “He jumps in and is there right along with me in the kitchen,” Hudson adds back.

Hudson and Martin recently entered Tillamook Economic Development Council’s “LevelUp” mini pitch competition. The competition was open to Tillamook County small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs with future endeavors. Competitors pitched their business plans and were evaluated by a panel of judges. Hudson and Brittney Bakes won one of the first levels of competition and were awarded $250.

“It makes me thankful that even in our small community there are people and organizations that want to help small businesses grow and get their name out there,” Hudson said. “I’m eager to put together our grand finale pitch and show the community that Brittney Bakes is a business to invest in.”



Brittney Bakes will move on to the finale of the competition where she will present her ideas on January 13 at TBCC’s PRI Building. Contestants will compete for the top three cash prizes of $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500.

Hudson’s pitch in the finale will describe how, if awarded the money, she will purchase a new oven and other baking equipment to help her improve her productivity and consistency.

“I love what I do and I’m grateful to do it,” Hudson said. “Thank you for all your support. We’ve created a community for us that’s personal.”

With the upcoming holidays, Brittney Bakes is accepting pre-orders for cookie boxes, pies, and other baked goods.

Customers can visit Brittney Bakes in Garibaldi, Tuesday – Saturday 8 a.m. – 3 p.m.
For updated hours, follow them on social media channels. For custom orders, reach out via email at: Brittneybakespastries@gmail.com.