George's Corner Sports Bar
5501 N Interstate Ave Portland, OR 97217Phone: (503) 289.0307
Located in: North Portland
BarFly's Review of George's Corner Sports Bar
Rumor has it that in Los Angeles, certain bars live double lives: watering hole of the dispossessed by day, supermodel slum by night. Well, the old dude, no-luck-and-fucked-up neighborhood dive George’s certainly isn’t that, but because the owners are so friendly and the drinks so cheap and stiff it’s become something of a late last-call watering stop for rode-hard-going-home-wet hipsters in the neighborhood’s northerly reaches.
So, somewhere after midnight the youth arrives to a bar full of blue collars and parole violators to get a last-minute severe drunk on—and they get it, often right up against 2:30.
One tip: avoid the toxic jukebox by heading to its tucked-away rear patio.
Another one: if you’re prone to dropping F-bombs, sit well clear of the bartenders, because—no fucking shit—the habit will get you axed from the grounds.
You never know, you might be challenging Trivia Maven Shanrock on the NTN video trivia.
I checked this place out the other day. Beer was nice and cold, the prices were reasonable and the food wasn't bad either. The service was good and all the people I met there were pretty darned good folks. I plan to return.
Good old school bartenders that make a mean Bloody Mary and all drinks so strong you will need a Bloody mary the following morning. Typical video crack dominance but what is new for dive places...that is what keeps them aflost. Not a bad place at all though. Nothing trendy, nothing hip..Just sports, old school tenders, who know their shit and a lot of intertaining regulars. I left when they started sports nut activities though. The noise level was becoming deafening.
I'm a regular. I find the staff friendly, the food good and reasonably priced. Andy, the weekend bartender, does a damn fine job of keeping my glass filled. I and my friends who visit are treated like warmly. I used to live in the area but moved further away and I still go there because of how I'm treated. If you are looking for a home watering hole. I highly recommend George's
Okay, I'm not going to go off on a rant here...but...
1) Sample dialogue with regular:
Prima: I live a few blocks away.
Secunda: I do too, actually, on Montana and Simpson
Prima: I'm on Maryland and Jessup
Secunda: (rolls eyes as if the cool boundary fell five feet short of Jessup) Whatever.
2) I spent goddamn $5 to hear some Cheap Trick, Failure, and Rob Zombie on their internet jukebox. I got all three songs skipped by the bartender with the moustache (I forgot her name), and some regulars shouted anonymous insults at the guy who played those songs. Sadly, these same assholes drink at the Paragon as well.
I'd be worried about negative blowback concerning this post, but as opposable thumbs are a rarity amongst the regulars of George's and I'm sure they can't type the URL to this site, I'm confident I'm safe should I return--which will only happen if someone shoves a shotgun up my ass and/or I need a cheeseburger.
You'd better be a smoker if you go in this bar. Oh, and I wouldn't let my sister go in here alone (lots of scary looking old dudes). $1.50 PBR's, or something like that.
Negatives first to get them out of the way: use of unclean language is an 86'able offense. Playing anything other than classic rock or mainstream pop on the internet jukebox will get your song killed despite the exorbitant price you just paid for it. The video poker tweekers that frequent this place are exceptionally menacing--and more offensive than foul language, assuredly.
Positives: the drink prices are good, the bartenders are friendly (provided you don't ask them for food), and despite suffering from the usual NoPo insularity, the regulars are pretty damn nice. NTN Trivia is a great way to bond with them if you make the mistake of coming in alone. I recommend coming in with friends and sitting away from the bar, where you won't be upbraided for letting the evil swearwords slip out after a few drinks.
