Beer and journal writing in Portland, OR

April 17, 2015 3:53 PM

Say you lived in Portland, and you like journal writing and you like beer. Normally you journal write while working in one of the city's wonderful coffee shops, but you were thinking - "it's the afternoon and I live in Portland - I should replace coffee with beer!" Where would you go . . .?
posted by knownfossils to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (15 answers total)

The first one which comes to mind for me: Saraveza Bottle Shop & Pasty Tavern
posted by CrystalDave at 4:00 PM on April 17, 2015

My favorite, off the beat, dive is the Lions Eye on 82nd and woodstock. Old Portland feel for sure, great staff and fantastic (beer) menu. Cheap as shit.

If you're looking for a former dive, that now has a slight Disneyland coating over everything, check out the Basement pub on SE 12th and Taylor-ish. Imperial pints for pretty cheap, but had lost some of it's old, weird, grungy glory.
posted by furnace.heart at 4:00 PM on April 17, 2015

Also, on a day like today, you're probably looking for an outdoor patio, there's a fairly comprehensive list over at barfly, filtered for patios.

This is a pretty broad question though; you should at least narrow your request down to a neighborhood or other geographic parameters. Its like asking "where do I eat lunch in the NYC metro area?" There's just so. many. bars. that fit the requirements.
posted by furnace.heart at 4:17 PM on April 17, 2015

Hm, well closer in is better - inner NE, inner SE, North Portland or inner SW.

Thanks for the suggestions thus far!
posted by knownfossils at 4:38 PM on April 17, 2015

McMenamins Kennedy, inner NE.
posted by mmiddle at 4:54 PM on April 17, 2015

Beermongers in SE is one of my favorites.
posted by frizzle at 5:14 PM on April 17, 2015

Check out Tugboat. It's just off Broadway on SW Ankeny. It feels like a quirky coffeeshop inside -- cozy booths, board games, walls lined with books. Don't misunderstand me: it's a shit hole. It's one of the few places I can think of that feels like "old" Portland (pre-2003-ish, lol). They're not going to win any awards for their beer, but it was one of the first brew pubs. (Though I usually stick with the guest taps.)

For pure outdoor drinking charm, I like Roadside Attraction on SE 12th, or Landmark Saloon around SE 48th-ish and Division. Or the beer garden behind Moon & Sixpence up in the Hollywood District. Any of these would be excellent places to post up with a notebook and a pint.
posted by sportbucket at 5:45 PM on April 17, 2015

Breakside Brewing, at 8th & N Dekum, or if that's too crowded, go across the street to the newly opened Bushwhacker Cider.
posted by pdb at 6:13 PM on April 17, 2015

5th quadrant in N/NE portland
posted by hydra77 at 6:15 PM on April 17, 2015

A Roadside Attraction would fit the bill, and the patio is wonderful. (If you ever see a 40-year-old chick with a mohawk chatting quietly with a couple friends, come say hi.)
posted by Specklet at 8:06 PM on April 17, 2015

The Horse Brass or the Moon and Sixpence, though they are both designed for the sunlight-phobic.
posted by monotreme at 8:21 PM on April 17, 2015

Oh hey I used to live above Saraveza. Good food, although attempting to sleep above a bar is not pleasant.

(I have no constructive answer to this question.)
posted by zrail at 8:23 PM on April 17, 2015

Bailey's Tap Room
posted by sarah_pdx at 8:25 PM on April 17, 2015

I was going to say Tugboat, so instead I'll just second that one. You might also check out the Ranger Station at 42nd and Hawthorne. We were in there the other night and almost every other customer besides us was on a computer or reading a book.
posted by That's Numberwang! at 11:24 AM on April 18, 2015

The Green Dragon, at 9th and SE Yamhill/Belmont!

Awesome (huge and fenced in) patio, bunker full of arcade games, and nice insides too. I've spent many hours writing and reading there. It's lovely.
posted by sazerac at 1:22 PM on April 19, 2015