Reader Survey 2015: Best Beer Bar in Portland

Just in time for the 2015 Craft Brewers Conference, the survey results for the Best Beer Bar in Portland are in! This year we see the usual suspects; just the order has changed. I’m glad to see Horse Brass on top, and am happy to see relative newcomer Stammtisch make the list.

1190 votes cast:

1. Horse Brass Pub – 8.4% of the vote

• Beer: Esquire listed Horse Brass as “One of the Best Bars in America”, All About Beer Magazine “#7 of the 125 places to have a drink in the world before you die”, and it was featured on The Food Network’s “Secret Life of…Pub Grub”, so it is no surprise that Horse Brass Pub is considered by many to be the best beer bar in Portland. Horse Brass is a traditional English-style pub, serving 20 oz. Imperial pints. You’ll find a large list of seasonal and specialty beers, and over 20 draught varieties.
• Food: British specialties. “Everything on the menu is made the old-fashioned way, using the freshest ingredients. Our meat pies are made with freshly roasted meat, fresh vegetables and rolled hand-made pastry.” Salads, fish & chips, burgers, steak sandwiches, chicken breast sandwich, steak and kidney pie, vegetable pastie, ploughman’s lunch, Scotch eggs etc.
• Address: 4534 Southeast Belmont Street Portland, OR 97215  Map  (503) 232-2202

2. Bailey’s Taproom – 8.19%

• Beer: “24 constantly rotating taps encompassing the entire range of beer styles with an emphasis on Oregon breweries”. Their Digital Pour draft list shows reviews, when a keg was tapped and more. 100 beers are available by the bottle.
• Food: You can order food from the Mexican restaurant next door.
• Address: 213 SW Broadway Portland, OR 97205 Map  (503) 295-1004

3. Saraveza Bottle Shop & Pasty Tavern 7.14%

• Beer: Draft Magazine voted “One of America’s Best Beer Bars”: 2011 – 2014. Saraveza’s emphasis is on American Craft as well as hard-to-find beers, the newest seasonal brews and the classics.  “We age our favorites. Peruse our vintage bottles – they make great gifts! All beer is available “to-go” at discounted prices.” Menu lists Digital Pour information.
• Food: Second Mondays is Free Bacon Night. I’m there. They call themselves a “Midwest inspired scratch kitchen. Dough and desserts are baked in house. Four pasties, and various plates such as sausages, brat, BLT’s, trout board, soups and salads.
• Address: 1004 North Killingsworth Street Portland, OR 97217  Map  (503) 206-4252

4. Breakside Brewery – 5.67%

• Beer: Over 31 Breakside beers available, along with sample trays. 24 rotating taps.  In 2014 Breakside was awarded with the Gold Medal for American-style IPA at the Great American Beer Festival for their flagship IPA that was also named to Men’s Journals “100 Best Beers In The World” and Sip Northwest’s “Best IPA in the Northwest”. Breakside is also known for their experimental, barrel-aged and sour beers like Bourbon Barrel-Aged Aztec a strong amber ale with chocolate and chilies that won Bronze at both Chicago’s Festival of Barrel-Aged Beers and Best of Craft Beer Awards and Passionfruit Sour a berliner-weisse style beer that earned a Bronze at the 2013 GABF.
• Food features local products, with a large menu of appetizers and salads, entrees such as Mac and Cheese, and Carne Asada, and a variety of sandwiches, burgers and wraps.
• Address: Restaurant & Pub Brewery – 820 Northeast Dekum St., Portland, OR 97211  Map  (503) 719-6475
• Address: Taproom & Brewery – 5821 SE International Way, Milwaukie, OR 97222  Map  (503) 342-6309

5. Hopworks Urban Brewery – 5.04% (tie with Apex Bar)

• Beer: With a focus on sustainable brewing, Hopworks locations are Portland’s first “Eco-Brewpubs, handcrafted organic beers and fresh, local ingredients, all served in sustainably-built and operated buildings”. The menu features six Belgian ales, 3 Imperial, 5 seasonals and 6 year-round beers along with lots of specials.
• Food: their commitment to sustainably made beer seems to carry over into their food menu. The menu is large with lots of salads, soups, burgers, sandwiches, calzones and pizza. Lunch specials. Many items are marked with “Vegan prep available”.
• Address: Urban Brewery: 2944 SE Powell Blvd., Portland, OR 97202  Map  (503) 232-4677
• Address: Bike Bar: 3947 N. Williams Ave., Portland OR 97227  Map  (503) 287-6258

5b. Apex Bar  – 5.04%

• Beer: 50 rotating beers on tap – you can view the current list on their live online menu. This place is incredibly popular. Cash only, but ATM on premises ($3 fee). Tons of seating at benches in the parking lot on nice days.
• Food: No food is served, but you are encouraged to bring your own. There is a Los Gorditos next door.
• Address: 1216 SE Division St. Portland 97202  Map  (503) 273-9227

6. Belmont Station – 4.83%

• Beer: “The bottleshop features 1,200+ bottles that have been thoughtfully selected, meticulously rotated, and properly stored under UV-filtered light to maintain the freshest selection of beer in the region. The adjacent Biercafé features 20+ rotating taps and a cask “beer engine” pouring world-class brew on the cleanest draft system in Portland.” Note that the bottle shop and the biercafe have different, limited hours, and both close somewhat early – check the website for the latest hours.
• Food: “‘South Philly-style’ Italian-inspired food is provided by the The Italian Market food cart in our backyard. The Italian Market is open from 12pm-9pm, seven days a week.”
•  Address: 4500 Southeast Stark St., Portland OR. 97215  Map  (503) 232-8538

7.  Prost! – 4.62%

• Beer: A destination if you are a fan of German beers: “Each bier, imported from Germany, is poured properly into its appropriate glass, fulfilling German tradition and guaranteeing great taste.” They usually have 10 on tap, 15 by bottle. All tables are communal.
• Food: simple German fare – a series of snacks, and for bigger appetites, bratwurst sandwich, pretzel sandwich, curry wurst, bratwurst teller, and more.
• Address: 4237 North Mississippi Avenue Portland, OR 97217 Map  (503) 954-2674

9. Stammtisch – 3.78%

• Beer: Stammtisch is the newest German pub from Chris Navarra and Dan Hart. We feature the best German biers available in Portland, with select rotating handles. Currently about 20 on draft. 
• Food: “Our menu, created by Graham Chaney, uses the finest local and imported ingredients to bring you perfectly executed German fare.” It’s more advanced than the other pubs on this list, with selections like Manilla clams with bier, Bavarian meats & cheese, Pasta filled with leek fondue, Sauerbraten, Riesling braised trout, and Jägerschnitzel. In my opinion it is the best pub food out of this list (but I am biased towards German cuisine and beer).
• Address: 401 Northeast 28th Ave., Portland, OR 97232  Map  (503) 206-7983

Previous surveys:

• 2013: Apex Bar, Horse Brass Pub, Saraveza Bottle Shop, Bailey’s Taproom, Prost!
• 2012: Saravesa Bottle Shop, Horse Brass, Apex Bar, Prost!, Bailey’s Taproom, Hopworks, Green Dragon, The Victory Bar, Grain & Gristle, Belmont Station.
• 2011: Horse Brass, Saraveza, Bailey’s Tap Room

Entertaining comments:

• McMennamins Edgefield in Troutdale – Like Disneyland for adults !!
• Higgins – It’s civilized, has excellent bar food, and has class. Portland needs more class and less class-less.
• Basecamp – Drinking out by the fires feels like camping

You can see more Best of 2015 results here!