Space Room Lounge I immediately loved the quirky space age décor in Space Room Lounge. Black walls with apparently hand-painted murals, sexy curved black booths, spaceship shaped light fixtures. Just delightful. Must be the influence of all of the cheesy space movies and tv shows I watched in my youth. ...
Anchor Bar Well, it is a dive bar, I’ll say that much. Not exceptional, but Anchor Bar is more than serviceable. Should you find yourself nearing the wilds of Vancouver and in need of a good stiff drink or a quick bite to eat, you can comfortably do so at ...
Gil’s Speakeasy Tavern Gotta admit, I’m a sucker for below street level bars. Something about descending into the depths of a dingy dive bar, it feels like you’re getting away with something naughty. Gil’s Speakeasy Tavern is a fantastic spot. Small, but not claustrophobic. 2 rooms, pool table, shuffleboard, video ...
Starday Tavern Name another bar where the house dog greets you at the door. Well, this is Portland, so maybe there are others, but none that I have encountered. Genghis is a ball of friendly canine delight that sets the tone in this classic dive bar. Starday Tavern has great ...
Holman’s Bar & Grill The question was hanging over us and we needed to settle it – is Holman’s Bar & Grill (AKA “Holman’s Restaurant”) a dive or just a divey restaurant? Well… let’s just say it swings both ways. Two thirds of it is a regular diner-y restaurant and ...
Slim’s Restaurant & Lounge Slim’s Restaurant & Lounge is very much a Portland style dive bar – Slim’s has excellent food and tap list in a pleasingly divey setting. Dark and smelly with a sticky floor, don’t-stay-too-long barstools and an awesome menu with solid beer and whiskey selections. Fun old ...
Dots Cafe Dots Cafe has a delightfully divey vibe. Pleasingly dark space with fun light fixtures, retro flocked wallpaper and numerous dusty old cheesy velvet paintings on the walls. We sat in the best seat in the house – a booth beneath velvet Elvis, of course. Dots is for sure ...
The Twilight Room, AKA The T Room A close associate and U.P. grad highly recommended The Twilight Room and we were not disappointed. HUGE place, looks like it has been expanded multiple times over the years to accommodate its loyal clientele that appears to be a mix of U.P. students, ...
The Two Point Inn AKA The Two Point Inn Tavern We were headed to the Twilight Room and couldn’t resist ducking into this cute lil’ dive bar! Two Point Inn (AKA The Two Point Inn Tavern) is tiny with just one long line of 10-12 barstools, but they still managed ...
Railside Pub Is it open? Hard to tell since the only vehicle parked in the lot at Railside Pub was a hearse, but we ventured in anyway. What a hidden gem! Perfect size, cozy but not claustrophobic. Clean without the acrid smell of industrial strength disinfectant. Lighter than most dives, ...
The Spare Room We almost drove right past the Spare Room Restaurant & Lounge, not because it is tiny, but more because it is a weirdly nondescript monstrosity. But inside, it hits all of the right notes! Dark and dingy with the lingering aroma of bleach in the air. It’s ...
About Portland Dive Bars Portland Dive Bars is a passion project that celebrates and highlights the great dive bars we have here in Portland, Oregon. The contributors are local writer “KC is me” AKA Diana Prince, and Portland Author Steven Shomler. Eventually this project will be a book, until then look ...
