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You know you’ve found your people when the bearded fellow at your table at the weekly Trivia Night at Rose City Book Pub (1329 NE Fremont St., 503-287-4801, rosecitybookpub.com) gets all giddy hearing that the next 10 questions will be on etymology. Or they might be on giraffes or hail or the Dionne quintuplets or the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. One Wednesday, the topic was old TVs, as in which knob did what. Sorry, very few questions are about action movies or sports because this is not your typical bar trivia night, nor is this your typical bar.
Owner Elise Schumock, a former high school Greek and Latin teacher, opened the spot in 2018, transforming it from an Irish pub into a charmingly overstuffed homey joint that’s like some insane book lover’s vision of a fantasy attic, with food and drinks and cozy nooks made for escaping into the printed word.
Every week, Schumock cooks up all the questions in five different categories. And as any good educator would, she sprinkles in fitting facts so you learn something, kiddies.
“We had a karaoke fundraiser for Sabin Elementary, so my first category was karaoke and the others were Japanese themes: English words that come from Japanese, Haruki Murakami, Japan the country, and sushi,” she says. “I like to say that I can write 10 questions about anything.”
You’ll want to get there early to grab a pew (the place was formerly a church) and whatever beverage makes you smartest.
See the rest of Willamette Week’s Best of Portland 2025 here!
