Best Place to Toss One* Back

[July 23rd, 2008]

*or two or ten

Moon & Sixpence

[The Arboretum] 2014 NE 42nd Ave., 288-7802.No fern bar, this Hollywood institution oozes the wet charms of the only place darker and rainier than Portland in December—the British Isles. Seemingly every patron in this pub is smoking while they choose from the wide, wide selection of tasty beers.

Runner-up: Holman’s

Crowbar

[Baristaville] 3954 N Mississippi Ave., 280-7099.

Something about this North Mississippi Avenue joint’s brick and smoke and cozy, beer-slicked decor calls to mind a Park Slope railroad apartment, if that apartment happened to host constant parties. You gotta love it.

Runner-up: Vendetta

Dante’s

[Central City] 1 SW 3rd Ave., 226-6630.For years now, an alt-friendly crowd has been coming to Dante’s to revel in its strip-club-that’s-not-really-a-strip-club vibe. There’s pizza, too, but hey, who needs that when you can watch gals light their boobs on fire?

Runner-up: Kells Irish Pub

(TIE) The Matador

[El Dorado] 1967 W Burnside St., 222-5822.Everyone says this Burnside institution is great because it’s so unpretentious. I’m going to go out on a limb and say its unpretentiousness is so extreme the bar has crossed into a parallel reality of come-as-you-are exclusivity. This might be one place where the universal “no shirt, no shoes, no service” rule doesn’t apply—at least around closing time. Olé!

(TIE) Muu-Muu’s

[El Dorado] 612 NW 21st Ave., 223-8169.Mysterious remains the origin of the name “Muu-Muu’s.” The Northwest 21st Avenue stalwart’s menu isn’t overtly Hawaiian, and while the vaguely nautical decor is somewhat evocative of a midmarket cruise ship (and its muumuu-wearing patrons), the clientele isn’t exactly the type you’d encounter sipping mai tais by the pool en route to Puerto Vallarta.

Rontoms

[The Inseam] 600 E Burnside St., 236-4536.

It takes a while to get past the pretension of a bar marked only with a silhouette of, presumably, owner Ron Toms wearing a propeller-clad backpack instead of a proper name, but once you embrace the cavernous space’s late-’60s cocktail-party motif, you’ll feel right at home.

Runner-up: B-Side Tavern/Brooklyn Park Pub (tie)

Dublin Pub

[Neglected Southwest] 6821 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway, 297-2889.

When you walk into the Dublin Pub for a beer, don’t ask, “What do you have on draft?” The answer could take all night. With 59 beers on tap, 30 beers by the bottle and 50 different liquors, this traditional Irish pub is a drinker’s paradise...much like, say, Dublin, Ireland.

Runner-up: Renner’s

Concordia Alehouse

[The New Frontier] 3276 NE Killingsworth St., 287-3929.

Beer lovers certainly have their priorities straight. “Oh, you have Avec les Bons Voeux, the lesser-known saison [a Belgian pale, $7 per pint] from the famous Brasserie Dupont? Don’t mind if I do!” “Is that the Norwegian Nøgne Ø porter I saw in the Scandinavian issue of Beer Advocate for $7 a bottle? Indeed it is!”

Runner-up: Binks

Slingshot Lounge

[The Outer Limits] 5532 SE Center St., 445-6649.

Though it was once an honest-to-God dive in the best sense of the word, the Slingshot is now twice its former size—which means it hasn’t lost any of its sleazy punk-club charm, and you can now play pinball and foosball in the neighboring game room off the bar.

Runner-up: McMenamins Edgefield

Mock Crest Tavern

[The Peninsula] 3435 N Lombard St., 283-5014.

P-town’s friendliest neighborhood blues joint, this closet-sized club packs the patrons with a rowdy blend of music, Tater Tots, corn dogs, burgers, salads and daily specials ranging from veggie lasagna to Norwegian goulash.

Runner-up: The Alibi

The Horse Brass Pub

[The People’s Republic] 4534 SE Belmont St., 232-2202.

What will become of Don Younger’s sprawling pub in 2009? After the encyclopedic beer list and heart-stopping English breakfasts, this slice of Britain on Belmont is best known for air so thick with smoke you could bottle it. But, hey, Dublin’s pubs survived that city’s smoking ban.

Runner-up: The Triple Nickel

Limelight Restaurant & Lounge

[Sellwoodstockland] 6708 SE Milwaukie Ave., 235-5797.

Although it looks slightly cavelike, the personalities are sunny and everyone seems to know you at this sorta divey neighborhood bar next to the Moreland Theater.

Runner-up: Kay’s Bar/The Yukon (tie)

The Red Room

[Siberia] 2530 NE 82nd Ave., 256-3399.

This Northeast 82nd Avenue romper room has more than free Guitar Hero to offer members of the true dive-bar religion: cheap draft suds ($2-$3.50), pool, pinball and a righteously stocked jukebox.

Runner-up: Alameda Brew House