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The Cocktail Heatmap: Where to Drink Right Now in Portland

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The Eater PDX Booze Map: Where to Drink in Sept. '13

by Erin DeJesus
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by Erin DeJesus
1 comment / new

Photo of Expatriate courtesy Avila/EPDX

Eater's handy Heat Map usually highlights the hottest new spots to grab a bite to eat — but because Portland is famously alcohol-inclined (and because no night out is complete with a pairing or two), we'd like to offer the accompanying, periodically updated Eater Booze Map, which shines the spotlight on the bars where dedicated tipplers are killing their livers right now.

Since the last update three months ago (which focused on summer-friendly neighborhood bars), the map shifts its focus (mostly) to hard liquor. Among the six new spots featured: a much-anticipated NE partnership, an updated cocktail list at an old favorite, and because Portland is awesome, a place to drink cocktails with your kids in tow.

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Expatriate

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Kyle Webster teams up with Beast's Naomi Pomeroy for a take on an internationally inclined cocktail lounge where both food and drink show off a Southeast Asian influence. Pomeroy's drinking snacks reveal big flavors, like in a standout Burmese tea leaf salad and a constantly changing noodle dish. Webster's cocktail list shows similar culture-bridging, with whiskeys and bourbons co-mingling with palm sugar, lime juice, and Mandarin orange liqueurs.

5424 NE 30th Ave, Portland, OR 97211
(503) 805-3750
(503) 805-3750

Also featured in:

ATAULA

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As should be the case at any tapas restaurant, Ataula's house sangria packs a punch: brandy, fruit, and spices are simmered together in a sous vide, resulting in cinnamon and vanilla notes that hint at holiday drinking. Other drinks show a lighter touch, like a signature gin-and-tonic; and those looking for just a lil' tipple can order up a canita, a miniature beer or wine pour.

1818 NW 23rd Pl, Portland, OR 97210
(503) 894-8904
(503) 894-8904

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Restaurant St Jack

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With longtime barman Kyle Webster's departure (see the Expatriate entry), St. Jack flies in a ringer in the form of Saxon + Parole alum John Salas, who's completely revamped the cocktail menu into "Aperitif," "Comforting," and "Spirited" categories. House-made shrubs (pineapple, cherry), infusions (bacon into Laird's), and vermouths feature heavily.

2039 SE Clinton St, Portland, OR 97202
(503) 360-1281
(503) 360-1281

Also featured in:

Remedy

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CorksCru's Dan Beekley gives Old Town a place to conduct business meetings over booze, with a lengthy list of mostly European wines (by the bottle and glass) and a smaller lineup of "lowtails" — no-liquor cocktails made with bitters and wine (to best ensure that things stay professional). If the meeting gets too serious, order up a bowl of chef Ingrid Chen's "Cheezy Bits," a playful take on the familiar Cheez-It.

733 NW Everett, Portland, OR 97209

Also featured in:

Fifty Licks

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Need a place to drink with your kids in tow? Fifty Licks's new brick-and-mortar location introduces the novelty of "sorbet cocktails," which pair sweet scoops with aperitifs, sparkling wines, or mead.

2021 Southeast Clinton Street, Portland, OR 97202

Sand Bar at Fish Grotto

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One of Portland's best people-watching corners gets a very boozy new haunt in the form of Sand Bar (the sister drunk to Fish Grotto restaurant). The cocktail menu matches the retro decor — it's nearly all rum, with several rum flights and pours available for sipping. Order one neat to best watch the crowds go by. [Photo: Facebook]

Portland, OR

Old Salt Marketplace

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Like its sister spot Grain & Gristle, Old Salt's supperhouse and bar welcomes drinkers into a warm, wood-glowing room that's instantly comfortable and unpretentious. The beer and wine list is carefully curated by Upright Brewing's Alex Ganum, and an eight-item cocktail menu offers slight twists on the classics (a "nutty" pisco sour with hazelnut pisco, a Brown Derby with grapefruit bitters instead of juice).

5027 NE 42nd Ave, Portland, OR 97218
(971) 255-0167
(971) 255-0167

Also featured in:

Double Dragon

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The casual banh mi joint Double Dragon recently expanded its menu beyond sandwiches, but much of the buzz is accumulating around its brand-new bar program, featuring playful but even-handed cocktails by Yakuza alum Nick Ramsdell. Asian flavors come out to play in some (like the "Burnt Reynolds," with bourbon and lapsang souchong honey), others look to other cultures for inspiration (like the "Border Patrol," with smoky mezcal and Fernet Vallet). [Photo]

1235 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202
(503) 230-8340
(503) 230-8340

Also featured in:

The Fireside

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NW 23rd Avenue gets a much-needed new watering hole in the form of the Fireside, a beautiful room that's made itself home in the former Music Millennium space. Its theme makes more sense during Portland's gloomier winter days, but during the summer, embrace the campfire theme with drinks like the "Backyard Grillin," with tequila, rhubarb, and mezcal.

801 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR 97210
(503) 477-9505
(503) 477-9505

Also featured in:

Ración

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At the cerebral-minded Racion, bartender Chauncey Roach's cocktail menu infuses a sense of fun into the drinks' "molecular" touches: a gin and tonic is punctuated with strawberry "pearls" akin to a boba tea; a chorizo-infused tequila arrives topped in a salt foam in lieu of a salt rim.

1205 SW Washington St, Portland, OR 97205
(971) 276-8008
(971) 276-8008

Also featured in:

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Expatriate

5424 NE 30th Ave, Portland, OR 97211

Kyle Webster teams up with Beast's Naomi Pomeroy for a take on an internationally inclined cocktail lounge where both food and drink show off a Southeast Asian influence. Pomeroy's drinking snacks reveal big flavors, like in a standout Burmese tea leaf salad and a constantly changing noodle dish. Webster's cocktail list shows similar culture-bridging, with whiskeys and bourbons co-mingling with palm sugar, lime juice, and Mandarin orange liqueurs.

5424 NE 30th Ave, Portland, OR 97211
(503) 805-3750
(503) 805-3750

ATAULA

1818 NW 23rd Pl, Portland, OR 97210

As should be the case at any tapas restaurant, Ataula's house sangria packs a punch: brandy, fruit, and spices are simmered together in a sous vide, resulting in cinnamon and vanilla notes that hint at holiday drinking. Other drinks show a lighter touch, like a signature gin-and-tonic; and those looking for just a lil' tipple can order up a canita, a miniature beer or wine pour.

1818 NW 23rd Pl, Portland, OR 97210
(503) 894-8904
(503) 894-8904

Restaurant St Jack

2039 SE Clinton St, Portland, OR 97202

With longtime barman Kyle Webster's departure (see the Expatriate entry), St. Jack flies in a ringer in the form of Saxon + Parole alum John Salas, who's completely revamped the cocktail menu into "Aperitif," "Comforting," and "Spirited" categories. House-made shrubs (pineapple, cherry), infusions (bacon into Laird's), and vermouths feature heavily.

2039 SE Clinton St, Portland, OR 97202
(503) 360-1281
(503) 360-1281

Remedy

733 NW Everett, Portland, OR 97209

CorksCru's Dan Beekley gives Old Town a place to conduct business meetings over booze, with a lengthy list of mostly European wines (by the bottle and glass) and a smaller lineup of "lowtails" — no-liquor cocktails made with bitters and wine (to best ensure that things stay professional). If the meeting gets too serious, order up a bowl of chef Ingrid Chen's "Cheezy Bits," a playful take on the familiar Cheez-It.

733 NW Everett, Portland, OR 97209

Fifty Licks

2021 Southeast Clinton Street, Portland, OR 97202

Need a place to drink with your kids in tow? Fifty Licks's new brick-and-mortar location introduces the novelty of "sorbet cocktails," which pair sweet scoops with aperitifs, sparkling wines, or mead.

2021 Southeast Clinton Street, Portland, OR 97202

Sand Bar at Fish Grotto

Portland, OR

One of Portland's best people-watching corners gets a very boozy new haunt in the form of Sand Bar (the sister drunk to Fish Grotto restaurant). The cocktail menu matches the retro decor — it's nearly all rum, with several rum flights and pours available for sipping. Order one neat to best watch the crowds go by. [Photo: Facebook]

Portland, OR

Old Salt Marketplace

5027 NE 42nd Ave, Portland, OR 97218

Like its sister spot Grain & Gristle, Old Salt's supperhouse and bar welcomes drinkers into a warm, wood-glowing room that's instantly comfortable and unpretentious. The beer and wine list is carefully curated by Upright Brewing's Alex Ganum, and an eight-item cocktail menu offers slight twists on the classics (a "nutty" pisco sour with hazelnut pisco, a Brown Derby with grapefruit bitters instead of juice).

5027 NE 42nd Ave, Portland, OR 97218
(971) 255-0167
(971) 255-0167

Double Dragon

1235 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202

The casual banh mi joint Double Dragon recently expanded its menu beyond sandwiches, but much of the buzz is accumulating around its brand-new bar program, featuring playful but even-handed cocktails by Yakuza alum Nick Ramsdell. Asian flavors come out to play in some (like the "Burnt Reynolds," with bourbon and lapsang souchong honey), others look to other cultures for inspiration (like the "Border Patrol," with smoky mezcal and Fernet Vallet). [Photo]

1235 SE Division St, Portland, OR 97202
(503) 230-8340
(503) 230-8340

The Fireside

801 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR 97210

NW 23rd Avenue gets a much-needed new watering hole in the form of the Fireside, a beautiful room that's made itself home in the former Music Millennium space. Its theme makes more sense during Portland's gloomier winter days, but during the summer, embrace the campfire theme with drinks like the "Backyard Grillin," with tequila, rhubarb, and mezcal.

801 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR 97210
(503) 477-9505
(503) 477-9505

Ración

1205 SW Washington St, Portland, OR 97205

At the cerebral-minded Racion, bartender Chauncey Roach's cocktail menu infuses a sense of fun into the drinks' "molecular" touches: a gin and tonic is punctuated with strawberry "pearls" akin to a boba tea; a chorizo-infused tequila arrives topped in a salt foam in lieu of a salt rim.

1205 SW Washington St, Portland, OR 97205
(971) 276-8008
(971) 276-8008

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