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Bar Guide 2015: Laurelthirst Public House

2958 NE Glisan St., 232-1504, laurelthirst.com. 4 pm-midnight Monday, 10:30 am-midnight Tuesday-Wednesday and Sunday, 10:30 am-1 am Thursday, 10:30 am-2 am Friday-Saturday.

If it were possible for the quasi-retired loafer lifestyle to physically manifest itself as a neighborhood watering hole, Laurelthirst Public House would be it. Where else on Portland's eastside would you be sandwiched between an enterprising yoga mom and a vintage Porsche enthusiast with a decade-old ponytail haphazardly spilling out of a "Cal Law" ballcap? What makes Portland's sylvan streetcar suburb just so is a question that defies verbiage, especially since its namesake bar also contains one of the most vibrant old-time, folk and bluegrass scenes in the city. Just invite the uninitiated to meet you on a Monday night for a pint, which spans 18 handles and skews both obscure (13 Virtues) and comfortable (Everybody's Brewing, New Belgium). Cut a rug to Kung Pao Chickens' comfortably groovy backbeat with both empty-nesters and the young who are nostalgic for a time they never knew.

Happy hour: Open-6 pm daily. $2 PBR, $1 off micros.

Entertainment: Assorted KBOO-friendly roots rockers take the stage on a regular basis, with gypsy-jazz quartet Kung Pao Chickens being a popular Monday night mainstay among the neighborhood's empty-nesters and Oscar Bluth look-alikes.


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WWeek 2015

Pete Cottell

Pete has written about lots of stuff.