A Guide to Creating Your Own Bar Crawl in Portland’s Inner Eastside

It's no secret the inner eastside is Portland's biggest and best drinking destination. From dingy dives to rooftop wine bars and everything in between, there's something for everyone in the district that starts near the Burnside and Morrison bridges and stretches east into Buckman and beyond. Though it's dense, it's also vast, so you'll need a map and a mission for maximum enjoyment.

Below, you'll find such a map, as well as four distinct agendas to help you navigate it effectively based on the preferences of your crew. Mix routes at your discretion—though it's technically legal to hop from Rontoms to Le Pigeon, the best French restaurant in town may not know what to do with six dudes named Chad who got hyped AF when they saw the beef cheek bourguignon on Instagram.

Are you a bro? Start here:

RONTOMS

600 E Burnside St. 

Enjoy a drink on the back patio before the bar fills up and becomes a mesmerizing gyre of the young and hip.

CENTURY

600 E Burnside St.

Catch what's left of the sunset from the roof, then head downstairs for what feels like a crunk dance party where everyone in the bleachers is watching you move.

SASSY'S

927 SE Morrison St.

Did you strike out at your last two stops? Sassy's is the perfect place to regroup with a cheap craft beer while a naked lady wearing nothing but tattoos and a smile spins from the two-story pole.

WHITE OWL SOCIAL CLUB

1305 SE 8th Ave.

Anything can happen late at night on White Owl's massive deck, even if that anything is just a plate of vegan nachos around the fire pit while a DJ spins trap music under the awning.

Are you a beer nerd? Start here:

WAYFINDER

304 SE 2nd Ave.

Founded by a former brewer from Double Mountain and the head chef of barbecue hot spot Podnah's, Wayfinder is a no-brainer for excellent beers, a meat-focused menu (get the nachos) and one of the area's best patios.

BURNSIDE BREWING

701 E Burnside St.

Focus on Burnside's maltier concoctions, like a perennial stout that's highly drinkable even in summer, or its rotating selection of sours, which age wonderfully and pair well with a menu of exemplary brewpub fare that puts many dedicated restaurants to shame.

CASCADE BARREL HOUSE

939 SE Belmont St.

No beer pilgrimage is complete without a pour of Cascade Kriek Ale—a world-famous blend of sour red ales aged in oak barrels that was named best of its kind by The New York Times.

MODERN TIMES

630 SE Belmont St.

Sure, this nouveau-retro brewpub in the former Commons space is flashy and très California, but the massive tap list these San Diegans brought up I-5 is resplendent with hoppy hits well worth the price.

Are you an epicurean? Start here:

NOBLE ROT

1111 E Burnside St.

While the commoners below pregame with Rainier, you'll be enjoying a glass of wine atop Lower Burnside's finest vantage point of downtown.

CANARD

734 E Burnside St.

It's generous of Gabe Rucker to have given us Canard, a cafe of sorts that's both an everyman's Le Pigeon and an entirely new culinary destination unto itself.

BAR CASA VALE

215 SE 9th Ave.

You're free to sit down and dine at our 2017 pick for Bar of the Year, but you're better off standing, noshing on tapas and sipping sherry like a true Spaniard.

RUM CLUB

720 SE Sandy Bvld.

Rum Club is here to prove that with enough absinthe, demerara and bitters, even a daiquiri can be both fancy and manly. There's also a selection of stiff, non-rum drinks on the menu for those who can't shake the bad memories of "that one night in college" that started with the stuff.

Are you a disgruntled Old Portlander? Start here:

THE ELVIS ROOM

203 SE Grand Ave.

Sandy Hut's cool little brother rarely plays Elvis, but the its retro upstairs is swanky enough to make even the scummiest old barfly feel like a king.

MY FATHER'S PLACE

523 SE Grand Ave.

With surly, take-no-shit service and an unbeatable breakfast menu that's always available, this dive diner is definitely the kind of place your dad would go when the oppressive preciousness of Portland gets to be too much.

SLOW BAR

533 SE Grand Ave.

Along with copping an OLCC card and 86'ing a meth head for screaming at your soda machine, feasting on a Slow Burger while Motörhead blares in the background is an essential rite of passage for any and all consummate service-industry professionals.

STAR BAR

639 SE Morrison St.

If you haven't bookended a night out with vegan Jell-O shots and half a pack of American Spirits on Star Bar's "patio," your punk cred is dubious at best.