Northwest Portland Bar and Bottle Shop the Abbey Is Closing, and Will Be Replaced by a New Resort-Themed Watering Hole

Expect beach-vibe cocktails like Mai Tais and margaritas, along with tacos to sop up the booze.

The Abbey Bar. IMAGE: Anna Jaye Goellner.

Belgian beer fans will soon lose one of their favorite sources of Cantillon and Delirium Tremens.

The Abbey Bar & Bottle Shop on Northwest 21st Avenue is serving its final rounds Saturday, Aug. 10.

The closure comes nearly one year after the business's sister location on Northwest 23rd Avenue quietly shuttered. At the time, the lease on that property was up and the move was made to consolidate. But owner Bristol Kelley says she has a new opportunity, which is why she's leaving her store behind.

Until it closes at midnight on Saturday, bottles, draft pours, swag and even those branded signs you've likely been wanting to hang near your beer cellar for years will be available for 20 percent off.

"It's bittersweet, it really is," Kelly says of moving on. "My customers have really been generous. They're super supportive. They're sad. I'm sad. Where are we going to go to drink Belgian beer now?"

You won't have to wait long before the taps are flowing inside the space once again, however.

Mike Reed, co-owner of Twenty First Avenue Kitchen & Bar just across the street, plans to open a vacation-themed watering hole in the building called R&R with business partner Scott McCulloch. Though the menu is still being nailed down, expect beach-vibe cocktails like Mai Tais and margaritas, along with tacos to sop up the booze. The inside should be as close to your Pinterest-perfect resort as you can imagine in Northwest Portland—porch swings as booths, wood tones and gauzy, flowing white linens.

"We want you to feel like you're on a huge front porch with a full bar," Reed says.

Reed, who also ran Old Town nightclub Boiler Room for 12 years, helped take over 21st Avenue Bar & Grill in February 2017 when it was on its last legs. He tweaked the name, remodeled and tossed out the video poker machines in favor of karaoke.

The way Reed sees it, opening R&R—which should begin service in early September—will keep the neighborhood from falling stagnant.

"We're trying to put more ambiance in the neighborhood," he says.

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.