racially charged question about Portland

Discussion in 'Northwest' started by OffTrail, Nov 17, 2016.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. OffTrail

    OffTrail Crusader (421) Aug 12, 2012 Washington

    My African-American BIL will be town over Thanksgiving. Can anyone recommend a good beer bar with a racially mixed clientele? Most of the places I've been to seem pretty white.
     
    #1 OffTrail, Nov 17, 2016
  2. dphi

    dphi Zealot (534) Apr 14, 2013 Oregon

    Portland is pretty white so it's somewhat unavoidable, maybe just go to places with good beer and don't worry about the clientele?
     
    #2 dphi, Nov 17, 2016
    unhyped, Robomunky and distantmantra like this.
  3. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,849) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I find the NE part of town to be a bit more racially diverse than other parts of town, but even so, places like Saraveza, Breakside, Concordia alehouse, Great Notion, etc., all seem to get a pretty white clientele. Frankly, it's not something I'm tuned in to, so it's really not something I tend to notice.

    My wife (who's Filipino) is a bit more observant than I am, and she noted that there were a fair number of Chicano guys at Concordia the other night when we visited, and that she's noticed some occasional black customers there, but she agreed that usually, the crowd there (and elsewhere) is pretty white.

    Shrug. Hard not to go with the sentiment expressed by dphi.
     
    #3 John_M, Nov 17, 2016
    Last edited: Nov 17, 2016
    distantmantra likes this.
  4. squaremile

    squaremile Initiate (0) Aug 25, 2007 Oregon

    It's super white at all the beer bars and breweries I've been too. Lots of other bars in town that have a more diverse clientele will have craft beer on as well, but the actual on the radar dedicated craft spots are not diverse. It's a reflection if the city (and industry) as a whole which is predominantly white.
     
    #4 squaremile, Nov 17, 2016
    distantmantra and BBThunderbolt like this.
  5. NeroFiddled

    NeroFiddled Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,276) Jul 8, 2002 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I have never seen any inappropriate interaction or comment given based on race in Portland, but maybe that's just me.

    Additionally, and this might teeter on inappropriate, I find it awesome that non-whites are getting into craft brew. I stopped in at a brewpub in Philadelphia not long ago and was quite pleased, and a bit surprised, that there were more non-whites than whites present.

    Maybe beer can bring us together? I'd hope it at least doesn't drive us apart. I'd say go wherever you want and have a great time.
     
    #5 NeroFiddled, Nov 17, 2016
    Brown120, woemad, Number1Framer and 2 others like this.
  6. OffTrail

    OffTrail Crusader (421) Aug 12, 2012 Washington

    Thanks for all the responses everyone. I haven't personally observed racial disharmony in Portland either, though I haven't been here long. People just tend to feel more comfortable in a spot where there are others who look like them.

    John_M, thanks for the recommendation of Concordia! BIL means brother-in-law.
     
    #6 OffTrail, Nov 17, 2016
  7. derftron

    derftron Pooh-Bah (1,663) Feb 8, 2012 Oregon
    Pooh-Bah

    Yeah I live in NE and most beer spots are fairly white. That said, its not a bunch of middle aged white men in suits and the record will scratch as soon as your BIL walks in the door. Craft beer scene in Portland is pretty chill and on any given night the clientele could be all over the map.

    Concordia, BottlesNW, and NEPO 42 are both solid spots though
     
    #7 derftron, Nov 17, 2016
    vurt and distantmantra like this.
  8. zestd

    zestd Savant (1,071) Jan 18, 2013 Idaho

    As a card-carrying tribal member...PDX craft spots are ridiculously lighter than pale. But that matches most places in the PNW. I'm often the only non-white when I hit up breweries.

    And #nodapl
     
    #8 zestd, Nov 25, 2016
    woemad, Number1Framer, NWer and 5 others like this.
  9. TheBungyo

    TheBungyo Pooh-Bah (2,037) Dec 1, 2004 Washington
    Pooh-Bah

    As a native myself (Assiniboine/Gros Ventre) I have to ask: have you ever been made to feel uncomfortable in the pubs or tasting rooms of PDX or Seattle? I absolutely haven't, at least not in any way that related much to my racial background. Granted, my threshold for offense may be different because I grew up on the east coast, despite being born in Montana.
     
    #9 TheBungyo, Nov 25, 2016
    zestd, sharpski and distantmantra like this.
  10. unhyped

    unhyped Initiate (0) Feb 13, 2015 Oregon

    I don't get why you'd care about anything but the quality of the beer at a place I'm Hispanic and never really paid much attention about how many other Latinos there are in the bar. As long as the beer is good that's where I'm going. never felt weird going to this places but maybe it's because I've lived in Portland for a long time that I'm just used to it not being so diverse.
     
    #10 unhyped, Nov 25, 2016
  11. zestd

    zestd Savant (1,071) Jan 18, 2013 Idaho

    Nothing to note in either place. I actually live on the WA/ID border, about 5 miles of the Nimipu'u reservation. Here skews more openly hostile to natives. I don't even go to bars...too many hillbillies feeling strong. I stick to breweries and restaurants hosting takeovers.
     
    #11 zestd, Nov 26, 2016
    woemad, sharpski, kemoarps and 1 other person like this.
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.