40 N State St., Lake Oswego, 344-4449, stickmenbeer.com. 11:30 am-9 pm Monday-Wednesday, 11:30 am-10 pm Thursday, 11:30 am-11 pm Friday, 10 am-11 pm Saturday, 10 am-9 pm Sunday.
You cannot presently touch, swim or boat in the exclusive waters of Oswego Lake, the 415-acre centerpiece of Portland's ritziest suburb. Until an appellate court rules, you can gaze enviously on other people's good fortune from Stickmen's back patio, driving a well-poured pint instead of a vintage Chris Craft. For beer lovers, the patio may be enough. In rainy months, the barroom is pleasantly intimate and the beers, which lean toward high-test, will make you forget you live in a lousy apartment somewhere far from the lake. In a town short on soul and rarely accused of keepin' it real, Stickmen is a welcome respite, an oasis of hops and lassitude in the fast lane.
Drink This: The F-Bomb IPA because it sounds cool and is indeed the bomb.
Willamette Week