Trying to add a payment method? You can do this on the 
Quick Take
A beloved bar in Eugene’s queer community closes, Lion & Owl prepares to move to the Paddock, and a Japanese pastry shop in Eugene expands beyond mochi.
Shugabeibi, Eugene’s up-and-coming Japanese pastry shop, started by accident.
Located inside Subo Sushi Burritos in Eugene’s Whiteaker neighborhood, Shugabeibi was born from a need to fill Subo’s dessert case after its former macaron vendor moved on.
It is now one of the few businesses — and possibly the only brick-and-mortar shop — in Oregon selling homemade mochi, a stretchy marshmallow-like Japanese sweet.
Chefs/owners Toby Helms and Colton Sample wanted to create a treat on par with the quality of Subo’s menu: fresh, housemade and healthy (as far as desserts go). Mochi checked those boxes while complementing Subo’s savory Japanese menu items.
The two chefs are often coated in cornstarch Wednesday to Saturday, when they make the mochi. Once they pound the glutinous rice into a dough, they divide and mold the mochi into patties and pipe them with sweet cream, red bean paste, fresh fruit and whatever else inspires them that day.
Helms and Sample planned to only sell mochi at Shugabeibi, but they ended up calling it a “Japanese pastry shop” in their logo, which they used in an advertisement at Pride Fest last year.
“We got like,a huge stir in the community about shokupan, the Japanese milk bread,” Sample said. “So we were kind of forced into expanding.”
Sample and Helms love experimenting, and the pressure from the community provided another excuse for them to get creative in their shoebox bakery. Shugabeibi has since added other Japanese desserts, offering taiyaki (fish-shaped waffle-thin cakes stuffed with red bean paste, among other sweet or savory fillings) and Japanese cheesecake (New York’s airy, jiggly cousin).
This fall, Helms and Sample plan to launch shokupan at Subo’s south Eugene location. They already bought an oven for it and will be experimenting once more, perfecting the cloud-like texture of Japan’s most popular bread.
If you go: Shugabeibi is open 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., Wednesday to Saturday, at 541 Blair Ave., Eugene.
Last call at Lion & Owl as owners take over historic Paddock
After a nearly nine-year run, Lion & Owl and its accompanying lounge, Lemon & Olive, are closing after this weekend. It marks the end of a culinary era for owners Kirsten Hansen and Crystal Platt, who are off to a new venture at The Paddock.
Lion & Owl was a downtown Eugene favorite, known for the Airstream parked in its dining room (the original home of the restaurant), as well as its caviar offerings, brunches, seasonal creations and curated wine pairings. The couple told Lookout last August that their new venture at the former pub was an opportunity for a “reimagining.”
The couple plans to open their new restaurant this year as a “neighborhood clubhouse” in south Eugene, maintaining the same commitment to local, high-quality ingredients and community connection. On a fundraising page for The Paddock’s renovation, they wrote, “By transforming the historic Paddock into a warm, welcoming clubhouse with craft cocktails and honest food, we’re … creating the kind of neighborhood spot people have been waiting for—this is a once-in-a-generation chance to bring new life to a beloved landmark.”
Whiteaker’s second wine bar closes this month
Wine bar and up-and-coming queer space 255 Madison shuttered with little warning Feb. 17. The bar’s staff called the closure a “complete shock” in an Instagram post, adding, “This decision was made by the building owners. We extend our deepest thanks to the community, the food trucks who have kept us fed, the owners of the bar, and our staff. It was an absolute privilege to serve you and we wish we could do it for many more years.”
For some of the folks who performed, worked at and frequented the bar, 255 Madison’s closure was a major loss for Eugene’s queer community. The bar, which operated out of Eugene Wine Cellar’s building, is the second wine bar to close in the Whiteaker neighborhood this month, after Nero served its last crowd over Valentine’s Day.
A soul food truck is coming to west Eugene
Gwen’s Homestyle Kitchen promises to serve its food up like grandma would: perfectly and with love. Expect a rotating menu, with staples like baked mac and cheese and smoked turkey collard greens. Everything is made in-house, down to the jerk chicken rub. Located at 760 Chambers St., Gwen’s is open sporadically for now but will have a grand opening, and possibly a block party, soon. Interested patrons can stay updated by following Gwen’s Instagram page.