Portland’s food carts

The humble sandwich comes with a twist at Portland’s Smaaken Waffles food cart, where waffles stand in for the bread.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Viking Soul Food is an award-winning cart famous for its Norwegian potato lefse, a thin, tortillalike flatbread rolled by hand and cooked on a griddle.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Gray skies and rain are nothing unusual in Portland, but the weather doesn’t keep diners away from Piknik Park, a food cart pod that features lots of tasty options.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

The Grilled Cheese Grill in Northeast Portland gives diners the option of sitting outside at picnic tables or inside a refurbished school bus. You can get a simple grilled cheese if you like, and even one called the “pre-schooler” that comes with the crusts cut off.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Dog Town serves up an entire meal with this hot dog topped with macaroni and cheese, all inside one of the buns that are freshly made in house each day.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

A worker fills orders inside the Dog Town cart.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Jouk Li Jou, one of Portland’s newest food carts, serves Haitian cuisine.  (Terri Colby / For the Chicago Tribune)

A tented area at the back of Pinkik Park gives diners a place to eat, even when it’s raining.  (Terri Colby / For the Chicago Tribune)

Viking Soul Food’s sweet lefse, with lingonberries and cream cheese, is a dessert standout.  (Terri Colby / For the Chicago Tribune)

The school bus at The Grilled Cheese Grill has the seats aligned to form booths.  (Terri Colby / For the Chicago Tribune)

This special of the day posted on a school clipboard at The Grilled Cheese Grill was terrific with a sophisticated mixture of flavors — even when eaten inside a school bus.  (Terri Colby / For the Chicago Tribune)