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The Foggy Notion Is Closing

The gay-friendly North Portland bar and rock club shuts its doors on Dec. 19.

By Matthew Singer

Add one more venue to the list of places we lost in 2015: The Foggy Notion is closing this week.

The North Portland bar announced somewhat quietly on Facebook that it'll be shutting down Dec. 19. Although primarily known for Skee-Ball and pierogis, the Foggy Notion was a dedicated rock'n'roll bar, with cassette-tape votive holders, countertops decorated with record covers and a music calendar that showcased bands from the Portland underground. While it replaced gay nightspot the Blue Parrot in 2010, the club remained LGBTQ-friendly, hosting regular queer dance nights.

The Foggy Notion appeared on the Cooking Channel program Belly Up!—a kind of kitchen-centric spin on Bar Rescue—in 2014. Coincidentally, that episode will re-air on Dec. 17, a day before its closing-night dance party.

Here is the full message from the bar's Facebook page:

Willamette Week

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Matthew Singer

Matthew Singer

A native Southern Californian, former Arts & Culture Editor Matthew Singer ruined Portland by coming here in 2008. He is an advocate for the canonization of the Fishbone and Oingo Boingo discographies, believes pro-wrestling is a serious art form and roots for the Lakers. Fortunately, he left Portland for Tucson, Arizona, in 2021.