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Someday Lounge

(503) 248-1030
125 NW 5th Ave.
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Neighborhood: Old Town/Chinatown

From the Abercrombie-clad youth who crowd Barracuda ((read more),Portland,OR">9 NW 2nd Ave., 228-6900) and the hipsters hiding out at Tube (18 NW 3rd Ave., 241-8823) to the punks at thrash-dive Satyricon (125 NW 6th Ave.), Old Town-Chinatown—a onetime center of immigrant culture—is now more a melting pot of twentysomething white-kid cliques. Stumble down Burnside from the classic arcade game-equipped bar Ground Kontrol (511 NW Couch St., 796-9364) to tasty, funky 24-hour Voodoo Doughnut (22 SW 3rd Ave., 241-4704), and you’ll probably cross paths with stylish queer clubbers on their way to gay nightspot CC Slaughters (219 NW Davis St., 248-9135) or Darcelle XV (208 NW 3rd Ave., 222-5338), a drag-queen cabaret in operation since 1967 that actually serves a fairly even hetero-homo mix—which would be surprising if it weren’t in Portland. But nightlife is only part of this eclectic neighborhood. Thanks to a grant from the Portland Development Commission, local nonprofit juggernaut Mercy Corps (3015 SW 1st Ave., 796-6800) is moving into the Skidmore Fountain Building (28 SW 1st Ave.), right next door to Portland Saturday Market (Southwest 1st Avenue and Burnside Street, 222-6072), a weekend meeting place for curious, hungry tourists, local artists, cart foodies and street kids. Chinatown is also home to the run-down and the sketched-out. Operations like Portland Rescue Mission, Blanchet House and Transition Projects have long made the ’hood a haven for Portland’s homeless. But where are the Chinese, you ask? Despite the gaudy, pagoda-style gateway to Northwest 4th Avenue from West Burnside Street, the only remnants of the Chinese Americans who migrated to Portland when they were expelled from Seattle and Tacoma beginning in 1864 are the two dozen or so Chinese restaurants. Try the roast crispy pork at Good Taste Restaurant (18 NW 4th Ave., 223-3838) and visit the Classical Chinese Garden (239 NW Everett St., 228-8131), a welcome but hidden green space in this otherwise paved-over neighborhood. —John Minervini.

Also in Old Town/Chinatown neighborhood:
Featured in Drink 2008

Someday Lounge looks, at first glance, like the westside version of the Doug Fir. But that’s only skin deep. This swank multi-level nightspot has a soft spot for experimental music, noise and performance art, which, coupled with a vegan menu and large selection of bottled and imported beers, gives it some exotic appeal. The upstairs loft area is outfitted with leather couches and an observation deck for watching the night’s performers from a safe distance, while downstairs usually buzzes with a mix of socialites and outsiders. Someday manages to both support a breadth of eclectic music (Thursday nights, for example, are home to some of Portland’s best hip-hop DJs) and maintain a fancy bar—a good call for those who like their downtown adventures to be well-decorated.
Perfect Patron: Art-school dropouts and overworked graphic designers looking for some ear candy. (CJ)
HAPPY HOUR 4-8 PM NIGHTLY.
SMOKE-FREE, LIVE MUSIC, DJS, ARTY STUFF.

Casey Jarman

Events Today


Saturday November 7

WW PickSiren Nation Festival: Tender Forever, Y La Bamba, Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside, The I's


Year after year, the Siren Nation festival has packed its music festival with the best and the brightest musical acts Portland has to offer. And while this year’s bill is scaled back a bit in star-power, it has suffered no loss in talent. Opening night features appearances from clever pop songsmith Grey Anne, funky folkie Emily Wells, ballsy Americana singer-songwriter Star Anna and one of Portland’s most underrated pop outfits, Lovers. Tomorrow’s lineup is just as strong, with dance-pop diva Melanie Valera’s Tender Forever joining forces with folk-pop force of nature Y La Bamba to headline a bill that also includes Portland throwback-pop breakout act Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside and garage rock act The I’s. Phew! There’s not one big dumb rock band or pretty/vapid songwriter on the whole bill, making our job easy and the Siren Nation fest pretty dang inspirational, especially for young female music fans. Someday Lounge 8 pm. $12 advance, $15 day of show. 21+.

Upcoming Events


Sunday November 8

Trans/a/scend, Portland Suspension Society, Lady Germany, CJ and the Dawls


Someday Lounge 9 pm. $10.

Trans/a/scend


Someday Lounge gets freaky this Sunday with an eye-popping performance from the Portland Suspension Society as well as fire dancing from Lady Germany and sexually amorphous beats from the fab CJ and the Dolls. All the moolah from this evening of genderfuck goes toward helping a local transgender person raise funds for surgery. Organizers also woo attendees with massages, tarot cards and the ability to “take a shot from the ice luge and take a flogging from a bear!” That last one, I’m hoping, is a euphemism I’m just not familiar with.  KELLY CLARKE. Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th Ave., 248-1030. 8 pm Sunday, Nov. 8. $10.

WW PickTrans/a/scend Benefit Show


Portland’s art scene gets a little sexier at Someday Lounge. Portland Suspension Society, Miss Germany, CJ and the Dolls, and copious amounts of booze all come together to raise money for a transgender person’s surgery. Lots of dance music, raffle prizes and weird activities await you and you friends. (You’ll want to leave your mom at home for this one.) INDIA NICHOLAS. Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th Ave., 248-1030. 8 pm. $10. 21+.

Wednesday November 11

Greg Moreland, Russ Peak, Dwight Slade


[MAGIC] Neighborhood Natural Energy presents a fundraiser with Moreland, a comic magician, and Peak, a mentalist, hosted by comedian Slade. Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th Ave., 248-1030. 7-10 pm Wednesday, Nov. 11. $25.

Saturday November 14

WW PickDoneUndone


Bruce Orr, director of kid-centric Mudeye Puppet Company, debuts an adult show about insomnia, anxiety and demons, featuring a nightmarish landscape made from reused materials. Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th Ave., 248-1030. 7 pm Saturday, Nov. 14; 7 pm Sunday, Nov. 15 at Cathedral Park Place, 6635 N Baltimore St. $12.



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