The Chesterfield (CLOSED)
1101 E. Burnside St Portland, OR 97214Phone: (503) 236.6133
Located in: Southeast Portland & near Northeast Portland - Visit Website
BarFly's Review of The Chesterfield (CLOSED)
Sold, closed, re-opened under the new moniker " Report. Review saved for posterity.
A "boutique bar" with a skateboarding aesthetic, set in two stories of the bright, red, so-called "Rocket Building " The man behind some of the best and most creative cocktail menus in town, master mixologist, Russell (late of Crush, Besaws), is lending his talents here.
Biwa, Bossanova, Doug Fir Lounge, Galaxy, Hungry Tiger Too, Kir Wine Bar, Noble Rot, Report Lounge, Sandy Hut, Union Jack's
I thought things were some what expensive compared to my neighborhood bar. But the waiters & bartender were really really nice & attentive.
saturdays are awesome.... good dj, good golden 60's and 70's and 90s rap mixed in, its something portland iss lacking. so fun, as long as you roll with friends so you got your crew... it is a weird mix of people but the tenders are epic and the mural on the far wall is epic too. check it.
I'm planning my first trip to Portland and, after reading the reviews of the Chesterfield, I must definitely try it! I'm no fan of the plastic suburban crowd, but I'm so glad to read that the illiterate troglodites who wrote the negative reviews will not be there and I'm certain that the "plastic" furniture those idiots refer to is really cool acrylic. Thanks guys - I know where to go out in Portland avoid you! Have a good time drinking your ... Coors beer or whatever you drink in your trees!
The Most Pretentious Bar in Portland. It's a good place to take a date, but not a good place to drink steady and heavily over the course of several hours.
I go because it's the only bar in town I know of that does a Pimm's cocktail. And the womb-like leather seating circle upstairs is cozy.
some friends dragged me here last night after they ate at Rocket (which seemed like it might be cool). horrible horrible bar. i guess plastic bar stools & MUZAK require higher beer prices too. probably the only positive thing i can say about this place is the BTs seemed cool.
This has to be the most contrived bar on the East Side. I love my hood, but surely this place is a signifier of things to come...namely tacky modern decor and the new spot for 30-something suburbanites looking to get laid. The only redeeming quality of this bar is the staff who is thoroughly professional and friendly (not just the bar staff either!) but ultimately it's not worth the trip unless you adore feeling like Cosmo Magazine is trying to jam their fallback bar down your throat....or unless you're trying to save the creative, professional and charming staff by offering them a job at a better bar.
I heard that all that clear plastic furniture costed a lot of money - dang why not make it interesting and just hired dominatrix chicks to give ya a broomstick up the butt with your beverage - now that'd be memorable!
This place is made for people from the burbs. Absolutely no real character, confused bartenders, cheap clear plastic furniture. Made for people who call that part of N.E. Burnside "LoBu"! READ: If you love DougFir, this place is for you. If it makes you sad to see manufactured "hip" built in N.E. Portland, don't go!
Fucking write a story guy. It's a place to get drinks look cool and try to fuck- No biggie. And they have a sandwich with duck eggs on it! Serious.
The Chesterfield has all the right elements of a great Portland bar. Classy red and black interior with dark mahogany wood seating, modern clear plastic stools, loud electronic/house music spun to nearly ear splitting decibels, and stiff (not so cheap) drinks all serve to invite the traditional Portland hipster back for more. But as with other bars on lobu (lower burnside... I know, sickening term), there is a strong dividing line between chic and dank, between pearl and da' east side. This is a smoke friendly environment. The wonderfully ubiquitous smokey haze of east side bars is the strong undertow that continually pulls the forgotten into the dives of Portland. Without it, the inviting decorative cues will undoubtedly become yet another Doug Fir; where the young and wealthy trust fund pearlites and beavertonians order mojito after mojito from a near crazed part time art student behind the bar.
Over time, long after the novelty has worn off, middle aged writers from the Merc and the W. Week will write about its independent feel, the artistic mix of clientele, the refreshingly simple alcoholic incantations, and of course the delightful well poised (and ridiculously expensive) tapas. They will say it is Portland's newest and best addition to an already over loaded list of nightclubs.
But for the rest of us, by the time word reaches the west side of the river, we again be on the search for a smoke filled bar that will undoubtedly act as a barrier between us and the eventual gentrification of our neighborhood pubs.
ps. Until that happens, check out the circular booth upstairs. It is the most inviting place for a big bar crowd that I have ever seen. Bring your friends, all 30 of them!