News The Oregon Liquor Control Commission has inactivated the liquor-license application for Diamonds Gentlemen's Club because the Laurelhurst strip club's operators won't provide information about who owns it.WW revealed last month that one of those owners was arrested last July on suspicion of promoting prostitution and money laundering at two spas he owns in Spokane.The Oregonian reported Thursday that ...   More

News The Barrel Room was the first bar ever to let in Maddy Eivers. It was a Saturday night, it was summer, and she wasn’t yet 21. The memory is sharp for Eivers, not only because of the bouncer’s    More

News Good news for late-night al fresco tipplers, bad news for sleepless neighbors: The Oregon Liquor Control Commission won't be restricting bar-patio hours this summer.For weeks, Portland officials all the way up to Mayor Charlie Hales have complained that the OLCC's proposed rule change—which would have closed patios at 11 pm on weeknights and 1 am Fridays and Saturdays—didn't go far enough. The ...   More

News In a state where the sales of hard liquor is strictly controlled (including the times and days state-franchised stores are open) running out of booze on a holiday is a real risk.Here's some helpful news from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission for those who may underestimate their Thanksgiving needs:  The Oregon Liquor Control Commission reminds customers that liquor stores in Oregon have ...   More

Food & Drink It's that time of the year again: When newspapers take a break from reporting actual news and pad column inches with "the year that was" facts and retrospectives. In compiling ours (look out for it on Wednesday!) we queried the OLCC with the top selling liquor in Oregon this year. Being able to track this kind of data is one of the few advantages to this nanny control state of ours. So what was Oregon ...   More

Food & Drink According to a press release from the new Portland Trader Vic's, Mayor Sam Adams will declare August "Portland Tiki Month" at the bar's grand opening Aug. 1. So break out the leis, y'all.  It's retro-future drinking this week!The news from this week's OLCC applications:Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings has applied for a brewing license for its new location on Northeast Fremont Street. Harvester ...   More

Food & Drink Lots of applications in this week's OLCC blast: First and most exciting, Prost! owner Dan Hart is teaming up with Tasty n Sons/Toro Bravo chef John Gorham and prolific restaurant investment firm Chefstable (whose portfolio includes Ping, St. Jack, Grüner and others) to open a new bar, Interurban, in the former Lovely Hula Hands building at 4047 N Mississippi Ave. The name likely draws on Portland's ...   More

Food & Drink After last week's torrent, a smaller but still interesting batch of new license applications:A pair of women from Sherwood are opening Vine Gogh, an "artists bar and studio" in (of course) Sellwood, in the space recently vacated by Spielwerk Toys. (The all-wooden toy store is still open in its North Williams Avenue location.) Vine Gogh will offer painting lessons and studio space along with beer and ...   More

Food & Drink A short list this week:Lyrik Cafe on Southeast 39th Avenue has new owners, who are seeking to turn the coffee shop into a bar.Lisa Lavochkin, according to her LinkedIn profile a former pastry cook at Manhattan's tony Core Club, has applied to open Barrel, a bottle shop, at 7401 N Burlington Ave. in downtown St. Johns.Mynt Gentleman's Club, the cause of much consternation to its Laurelhurst neighbors, ...   More

Food & Drink First, the big news: Kalé, everyone's favorite Japanese curry joint, which abandoned its Goose Hollow home in March, has applied for a liquor license at 900 SW Morrison St.—the former Bush Garden restaurant, shuttered since 2009.Also, as reported elsewhere, Lorenzo's Italian restaurant on North Mississippi Avenue closed for good Sept. 11. It will become Samurai Blue, a Japanese restaurant.And that's ...   More