Where to Drink Outside in Portland This Week

Your weekly Buzz List.

1. McMenamins Crystal Hotel Zeus Cafe

303 SW 12th Ave., 503-384-2500, mcmenamins.com. 7 am-10 pm daily.

Business is back at McMenamins, though it doesn't look quite like it used to, at least not at the Crystal Hotel's streetside patio. The space was simple at first, with tables in the street along with a smattering of potted plants. Then Edgefield lent some of its collection of black, wrought-iron tables and chairs, along with barrels that evolved into miniature gardens: During a recent visit, an apron-clad employee wound his way through the cooperage harvesting green tomatoes, which later became the menu's newest addition: tomato mozzarella Benedict.

Read more: McMenamins' Dining Patio Outside the Crystal Hotel Ain't Edgefield, but Close Enough.

2. Old Town Brewing

5201 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 503-200-5988, otbrewing.com. 4-9 pm Sunday-Thursday, 3-9 pm Friday, noon-9 pm Saturday.

While many makeshift pandemic patios are nothing much to look at, Old Town's is different: It immerses you in nature. The temporary woodland is laden with trees on loan from the city of Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services. Some are squat and bushy, others taller than the red umbrellas shading the patch with blooming flowers in a complementary shade of crimson.

Read more: A Garden Center's Worth of Trees and Bushes Has Transformed the Street Outside Old Town Brewing Into a Green Escape.

(ronitphoto.com)

3. Teardrop Lounge

1015 NW Everett St., 503-445-8109, teardroplounge.com. 4-10 pm Wednesday-Saturday. Reservations required.

One thing to note about Teardrop Lounge: Unlike the other establishments on this list, the pioneering craft cocktail bar does not have outdoor seating. Instead, the bar has reopened with the intent of creating the safest possible environment for indoor imbibing. That includes a new, heavy-duty HVAC system and plexiglass around its center bar, among other measures overseen by expert COVID safety consultants. Will it all make customers comfortable enough to drink inside again? Hard to say—but the cocktails remain mighty enticing.

4. Baerlic Brewing’s Super Secret Beer Club

1020 SE Grant St., 503-477-9418, baerlicbrewing.com. 2-8 pm daily.

Baerlic Brewing is among that inspired group of entrepreneurs during the pandemic that looked at the cracked, gray parking lot behind its building and somehow saw a socially distanced party. The 6,000-square-foot space has turned into a Bavarian-inspired drinking lawn, complete with a huge faux foliage backdrop affixed with the words "Super Secret Beer Club."

Read more: The First Rule of Baerlic's Hidden Beer Patio Is Please Talk About Baerlic's Hidden Beer Patio.

Stem Wine Bar

5. Stem Wine Bar

3920 N Mississippi Ave., 503-477-7164, stemwinebarpdx.com. 5 pm-close Monday-Friday, noon-close Saturday-Sunday.

Businesses that opened just weeks before the mandated coronavirus closures in mid-March have had a tough go—just ask 45 North. Five weeks after opening, the North Portland wine bar shuttered. It's back open now, but dealing with yet another obstacle: rebranding. Now known as Stem, the bar offers a wide global selection, spanning from the Willamette Valley to South Africa, with private tasting appointments available through its website.

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