Where to Drink in Portland This Week

It’s easy to mistake Jackie’s for its predecessor Century Bar—all dolled up with a new paint job and potted plants—but for its chic veneer, Jackie’s is a sports bar at heart.

Jackie's (Christine Dong)

1. Bellwether

6031 SE Stark St., 503-432-8121, instagram.com/bellwetherbarco. 4-11 pm daily.

The climb up Southeast Stark Street to 60th Avenue is steep. But that just makes the little pub at the top of the hill tastier for the effort. From the hazy, romantic back patio to the roaring front room, Bellwether feels like a pub that fell into the world fully formed. The cocktails are named in an egalitarian manner, numbered from 1 to 8. The 1 is perfect for summer: rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, cranberry grenadine and salt, served with a curled lemon rind. Not overly sweet, the tangy little number is like a loud, talkative friend whose energy you can’t help but find cheerful. Where Bellwether’s cocktails eschew clever titles, its wines pick up the slack. The selection includes an Orange Wine for Beginners and an Orange Wine for the Brave.

2. Hop Capital Brewing

6500 S Virginia Ave., 503-206-4042, hopcapitalbrewing.com. 5-9 pm Wednesday-Thursday, 5-10 pm Friday-Saturday, 11 am-7 pm Sunday.

The satellite bar of Hop Capital’s Yakima, Wash., brewery, this John’s Landing taproom, open since January, introduced local drinkers to a lineup of beers that land somewhere in the middle of the city’s world-class and well-established scene. Head brewer Ambrose Kucharski is clearly having fun amid the hop flowers up north. His Donut Peach Raspberry Sour sounds as giddy as a Katy Perry costume and drinks just as tart and punchy. And the SupercalifragilisticHopsialidocious—a milkshake IPA that may set a record for the longest beer name to fit on a tap board—smells like a cotton candy stand. Lactic acid provided the batch with the thick, smooth mouthfeel of a dessert beverage, but the sugary sweetness is cut short just in time by a bitter, back-end fade.

3. Advice Booth

5426 N Gay Ave. adviceboothpdx.com. 3-11 pm Monday-Thursday, 3 pm-midnight Friday, 1 pm-midnight Saturday, 1 pm-11 pm Sunday.

Settling nicely into the shell of the old Lost & Found space, this lovely little dive is barely visible from its cross streets of North Killingsworth and Gay. But for being such a little bar, it’s at least half patio—with awnings and warming lamps. With a perfectly serviceable cheese-based menu and a delightful, unflappable staff, Advice Booth is holding down that lovely feeling of a secret neighborhood bar done just right.

4. Shanghai Tunnel

211 SW Ankeny St., shanghaitunnelbar.com. 5 pm-2 am Thursday-Saturday.

If downtown feels like…a lot…right now, try on Portland’s gruff but lovable dive named for the city’s tunnels of urban legend. Reopening over the summer, Shanghai Tunnel shifted focus from its basement to the small street-level bar and patio—located next to the breezeway of the front door. It’s possible that Shanghai is the last chill bar in Old Town where you can hole up—waiting out the weekend warriors—to play a little pool, pinball or Big Buck Hunter Pro.

5. Jackie’s

Jackie’s, 930 SE Sandy Blvd., jackiespdx.com. 4 pm-midnight Monday-Friday, 11 am-1 am Saturday, 11 am-midnight Sunday.

It’s easy to mistake Jackie’s for its predecessor Century Bar—all dolled up with a new paint job and potted plants—but for its chic veneer, Jackie’s is a sports bar at heart. There are wide-screen TVs just about anywhere you look, playing the game at a volume level where your friends can talk trash but not scream in each other’s faces. The cocktail pitchers are technically the better deal per glass, but the signature house drinks are easier to switch between and worth the range. The gorgeous watermelon-hibiscus-lime agua fresca margarita was our favorite. We awarded the silver medal to the confectionary halva mule—the fruity, slightly bitter (and therefore gay icon) Ms. Pittman made due with the bronze.

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