Lemon and Olive Moving to Former Honey Pie Building in Early 2024

Tara and Robert Link, owners of the local Mediterranean food truck Lemon and Olive, received the keys to their new restaurant earlier this month. Formerly Honey Pie Pizza, the building carries the familiar scents of garlic, oregano, and tomatoes. The previous owners’ and employees’ names are still signed on a beam in the middle of the space. The former company’s logo still adorns the large mural space on the back patio.

While the ghosts of Honey Pie Pizza remain, the Links feel nothing but excitement and appreciation as they prepare to open a brick-and-mortar space in early 2024.

“When we announced we were moving into that space, we got nothing but love,” Tara said. “If you look at people’s responses, it made me so happy — we didn’t know how it would be received, but this is a great start.”

Lemon and Olive currently operates at the Bite of Newberg on 910 E First Street in Newberg, has the keys in hand to occupy the former Honey Pie Pizza Newberg location at 112 ½ S College Street in Newberg, in the alleyway behind Valley Wine Merchants. The food truck will cease operations at the end of November 2023, and plans to open the brick-and-mortar location in “early 2024.”

“Owning a restaurant has always been a dream of mine,” Tara said. “I put myself through college with restaurants and have worked in smaller mom-and-pop bistros, and I loved it — I know the hard work that goes into it. It’s something I’ve always wanted.”

Lemon and Olive: Food Truck to Restaurant

Tara last worked as a manager at Jory, the Allison Inn and Spa‘s restaurant, before opening the food truck with her family — husband Robert and mother Annette Tefft — in February 2021, with the menu consisting of homemade, classic Mediterranean dishes like gyros, spanakopita, and hummus. They’ve operated out of the Bite location since then, while offering catering services.

“I’ve had people come out and say, ‘I was going to go with this caterer that has been around a bit longer, but I went with you because I can taste the love in your food,'” Tara said. “They actually said that! That made me feel great.”

Mediterranean was a natural fit for the Links, they said. The flavor palette was right up their alley — Tara took to cooking the dishes fairly easily. Robert, who learned the art of cooking meat while serving as a Marine around the south and southeast, felt very comfortable cooking Mediterranean-style lamb and chicken. And mostly, there was a perceived need.

“We were deciding between a few different cuisines, maybe Spanish, maybe Irish, maybe some other European food styles,” Robert said. “We were looking for something we didn’t have access to and were comfortable cooking. Once the idea of Mediterranean food came around, everything sort of clicked.”

Business was humming along as much as it does for any restaurant when they heard that Honey Pie would be leaving their Newberg location. The stars seemed to align for them to make the leap.

“The space really fits us — it fits our aesthetic,” Tara said. “The exposed brick, exposed beams; it’s really a cool building, and we see a lot of potential in making it into what we think it should be.”

So far, that includes reconfiguring the indoor space to accommodate some indoor seating, a change from the previous owners. When the indoor seating isn’t enough during the colder months, they’re working on the exterior to trap more heat and provide a more comfortable outdoor dining experience as well. They’re also excited to offer beer and wine, pending a license from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, as the pairing of wine with the more Greek-focused food they’re making is something that goes back centuries.

Aesthetically, Tara is a home gardener and hopes to bring some her green thumb to the outdoor space with perennial plants, herbs, and spices if the light allows. They’re also painting over the Honey Pie logo and hope to work with George Fox University students to paint a large, Willamette Valley-themed mural. And hopefully in the future, once things are settled, there will be events and live music.

“Initially, we’re going to keep operations small and understand the problems that arise from opening a restaurant,” Robert said. “Whenever you start a new process, you’re going to have things that don’t work out and things that do. We love the idea of having spaces where people can come to get good food, have a few drinks, and really unwind and relax.”

Local Ingredients for the Locals

The menu is likely going to expand, and more seasonality can be introduced with more space. Nearly everything is handmade, Tara said, and with the bounty of the Willamette Valley, they’re able to source many local ingredients.

“It’s incredibly important to us,” she said. “We get a lot of tourists out here, of course, who are generally just looking for a delicious place to eat and drink. But for the locals? When you’re supporting local, you’re supporting your neighbors. It’s just so important.”

Robert cited an example when they had run out of figs from their supplier. A person who lived close to the food truck offered figs from her fig tree, which were growing in abundance at the time. The Lemon and Olive team went and picked figs that morning, cleaned and prepared them, and used them later in their fig baklava.

“It’s so nice to be able to interact with the community like that,” he said. “I think we’re coming back around to appreciating those kinds of things, especially in our food.”

The Links will continue operating the food truck through the end of the month. After that, the truck will be used for catering and events while they focus on building out the brick-and-mortar location with hopes of opening in early 2024.

Learn more about Lemon and Olive at their website, and make sure to subscribe to Newsberg for updates as they prepare to open.