Find Me A Birthday Venue and Theme In Portland, OR

November 23, 2012 10:49 AM

K. So my big 3-0 birthday is on Saturday, December 8th, and I'm looking for a good place in Portland (like a semi-private event room in a resturant/bar) to host folks for several hours. Let's say 7-10pm. More specifications inside...

• Booze is optimal, but I'd like to avoid the dark bar atmosphere until later in the evening.
• Good food is a definite plus.
• All-ages would be amazing (but not required). My peeps with wee ones would be more likely to make an appearance.
• Southeast Portland would be good; I'm hoping to get a big turnout, so a central location will help the carless folks make it out; Hawthorne/Belmont/Division would be great areas, Powell and Broadway would be on the outskirts of the area I'm hoping for.
• It's a Saturday night, so the West side seems like it might be a little too crazy, but hey, if you've got a good idea, let me have it!
• Probably not a lot of people at any given time. Let's say 20, at the most. I'm assuming people would come and go in little waves.
• Oh! And any theme ideas would be appreciated, too. I was thinking of asking folks to bring a mix cd or tape for me, but then I thought that might be too much of a commitment and might scare folks off. Maybe I'll just make that an optional bonus.

posted by redsparkler to food & drink (6 answers total)

I don't know Portland, but I can give you some advice about how to set this up.

Think about full-service restaurants with a "party room" off to the side.

A chain that comes to mind is Maggianos. (It's okay, but not 30th b'day celebration worthy)

We had our wedding at a place that used to be Chi-Chi's but was bought by a local family. We had the whole bar with a buffet and it was fantastic.

Any place that's offering a Christmas Party thing, will be a good idea for you. Now, that being said, you may run into all kinds of problems as we Christmas/Channukah babies always have this issue.

Start calling and reserving NOW!

Also, you might want to set up some light, appetizers, etc. It will make the venue happy and the invitees happy.

As for the theme, let the venue be your guide.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 11:00 AM on November 23, 2012

It's in the NW and so probably not appropriate, but the Voicebox Karaoke Lounge fits all your requirements, I think! They have one room that can accommodate 20+ people, and minors are allowed until 9 (though no alcohol is served if minors are present). They have a limited but delicious menu, and the theme obviously comes with the territory. I've spent many happy hours here, including a friend's fabulous 30th a few days ago.
posted by thesmallmachine at 11:25 AM on November 23, 2012 [2 favorites]

I've been to Voicebox, and it is a super fun space, good call. For my Saturday night/three hour timeframe, though, it looks like it would be $375 for the Premier space (20+), and $210 for one of the small rooms. :(
posted by redsparkler at 11:33 AM on November 23, 2012

I had a great birthday party at Roadside Attraction on SE 12th. We started early, like 6p, and got the whole Chinese room in the back. The outside fire pit action was pretty sweet too.
posted by ottereroticist at 12:40 PM on November 23, 2012

McMenamins Back Stage Bar -- it is behind the Baghdad Theatre. The room upstairs would be great for a party of your size. I believe they have a minimum instead of a fee. However, that weekend is prime for holiday parties so everything could be booked up.
posted by coolsara at 2:41 PM on November 23, 2012

Thanks for the assistance, folks! I wound up doing some grassroots networking on this one, and a friend/bartender was able to sneak my sweet tunes into her bar's iPod, so she kept the party hopping for me while she tended bar.
posted by redsparkler at 2:37 PM on January 2