1. Birdie Time Pub
925 SE Main St., 503-966-1212, birdietimepub.com.
Open in a stretch of bar-barren blocks in industrial Buckman, Birdie Time is basically a boutique take on family fun centers like Dave and Buster's or Big Al's—only with much better beer, and the focus is on golf. The nine-hole putt-putt course is the centerpiece, but there are also 15 TV screens tuned to everything from pro football to college soccer, making it an ideal, if unusually colorful, makeshift sports bar.
2. Lift Off Lounge
5216 NE Sandy Blvd.
Remember when the future was something to look forward to? The décor at this new bar from the owner of downtown's dearly departed Matador tickles the nostalgia receptors with a '50s vision of the Space Age. It's applied with a subtle touch, but much of the kitsch is concentrated on the cocktail menu, which includes old-timey dessert drinks and playfully retrograde items like the Thyme Gibson.
Read the full review: Lift Off Lounge Sets Course for a 1950s Version of the 21st Century.
3. R&R
716 NW 21st Ave., randrpdx.com.
Overhauled from a Belgian bar into a faux-beachside resort, R&R borrows elements from your Hawaiian vacation Pinterest board—palm fronds, piña coladas, poke—and brings them to life. And if that's not enough to curb your seasonal affective disorder, an LED sunset repeats every few minutes. It's summer somewhere, right?
Read the full review: Do You like Pina Coladas? Then R&R Might Be Your New Favorite Bar.
4. Tulip Shop Tavern
825 N Killingsworth St., 503-206-8483, tulipshoptavern.com.
Some said it couldn't be done, but Tulip Shop Tavern proves that with the right amount of buzzy craft brews, $3 Rainiers and sincere homage to fallen haunts, it's still possible to make Old Portlanders feel at home in a new neighborhood bar.
Read the full review: Try as Old Portland Might, There's Little to Complain About at Tulip Shop Tavern.
5. Wilder
5501 NE 30th Ave., 971-350-8702, wilderpdx.com.
Simple yet artistic cocktails can be found at this charming corner spot, from the Tamarind Fuego Serrano to the rum-based Immortal Hour, with lime, cinnamon and bitters.
Read the full review: Wilder.
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