I got an email yesterday pointing me to this article in Men’s Fitness naming “America’s five best bars for beer lovers.” Holy Fuck. Kennedy School? Jeebuz people, did the writer just get off the plane, ask some middleaged soccer mom from Gresham where to get beer and went to the first place she suggested? While I give McMenamins kudos for their properties and do love what they do with them, their beer is something else. Further, they only sell their beer at their pubs, leading to a very limited selection. Also, have you eaten there lately?
If the writer came to Portland, I would personally show them at least 3 different locales that “turn beer drinking into a true art form.” Green Dragon in SE – you know the place. Usually they have 15 different beers on tap, good food and a great atmosphere. Bailey’s Taproom in SW downtown – again, a locale with at least 15 micros on tap (usually hard to find items.) Bailey’s is also just a hop, skip and a jump from 3 highly rated taphouses – Deschuttes, Rogue and Bridgeport. Lastly, to get a neighborhood feel, I would take them to the Horse Brass. Portland’s premiere beer joint. The early pioneers of Portland’s microbrew credit the Horsebrass for giving them taps to showcase their first beers.
I wish when national publications want to do lists like this, they would do some research or just drop me an email. Too bad the article doesn’t have a byline or I would give the writer an earful. They even point out at the end of the article that Deschuttes and Rogue are some of the best microbrews in the country, and yet they pick Kennedy School as the beer drinkers mecca. Sheesh
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Well that’s just silly. I agree, I love what McMennamins has done with their venues… its easy to forget once you have been around Portland for a while how unique and cool these places are to drink/dine. but their beer has been supbar (compared to the bounty we enjoy as portlanders) for a long time now and the food… oy the food. i was going to say if they just amped up the effort a little bit on the food and re-tooled their beer standards they could really be killing it in town.. but i’m pretty sure they aren’t lacking for customers or profits in spite of their shortcomings.
but hell, with 100 beers on tap henry’s would have been a better choice. henry’s doesn’t get a lot of love on ye olde innerwebs… i’m guessing that’s part because they belong to a restaurant conglomerate and part due many folk’s aversion to the pearlite clientele.
I agree that the Green Dragon has better food and beer than your average McMenamins but its atmosphere is far from great. Picnic tables, cement floors and poor lighting? It has all the charm of an old warehouse.
Hey Hey , let’s not forget the brilliant
beer-masters at LUCKY LAB
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