Joe's Cellar
1332 NW 21st Portland, OR 97209Phone: (503) 223.8825
Located in: Northwest Portland
BarFly's Review of Joe's Cellar
On the edge of northwest's still-extant industrial zones, the damnably-loyal blue-collar and blue-haired (some choosing retirement locale upon Joe's proximity) regulars drink chockablock 'round the horseshoe bar with gentler new locals and journalist manques wandering down from the new WW HQ.
It's not actually a cellar, and nobody, of course, seems to remember a Joe - if anything, the unadorned bar and perennially unoccupied diner portion seem an oversized, enclosed porch welcoming friendly onlookers with strong-as-fuck specials and all-day gravy-infused breakfasts.
The juke's slowly changing, perhaps, and the morning happy-hours serve a different sort of graveyard employee these days, but they couldn't be handling the transition with more grace. One trembles at the next generation's animatronic longshoremen.
The people that belong to the pool league are extremely rude. DO NOT come here on league night. or ever.
I first went to Joe Cellar back in 1983 when I moved to Portland, and was a steady for 5 years. The folks that run the place make you feel like family, right from the git-gat. And I only lived a block from the joint. I miss Joe's as I live in New Jersey for the past 15 years. But every time I go back to Portland, the first pit stop is Joes! Good Food.....Stiff Drinks.....Great Prices.... Nice customer base. A Portland Diamond in the Rough!
C'MON!!!!!! Portlands' GOT to have these places!!
I'm from Louisville, Kentucky. founded somewhere around 1790 or so. Hell I forgot. Anyhoo, there are very old buildings and the like everywhere. Many quaint places such as Joe's Cellar. Louisvillians frequent these places and it's nice to see some of this old stuff here in a much newer city.
..now....HAUNTED? Could someone elaborate on this? Because it's ~~allllllways the old places that people love to target as haunted. sigh.....so let's not fabricate anything here.
Post some good stuff on some true stories if this place is, in fact, uhhh, haunted.
Good food. real people.
Thanks
I couldn't possibly hate this place if I tried. Creepy old men, nice bartenders, a drunk girl singing to me, bar fights, a place where everyone knows your name. A couple of my friends are regulars there, so I had no choice but to love it. But I really did love it! Everyone was horribly friendly :)It's quaint and the drinks were STRONG. (maybe because I was with the regulars?)
Joe's Cellar is a great place to play pool, watch sports, eat and drink!
-Pool tables are in excellent condition costing only $.50/game.
-The digital jukebox has a never ending selection of music at a great price.
-Daily happy hour special includes $2.00 hamburgers- these are not the normal slinggers you would find for most happy hour specials, full hamburgers!
-Tuesday special: Free tacos with purchase of a drink.
-Curbside covered seating.
Overall this is an excellent place for those on a budget. It would be a great place for groups. The location is on 21st ave not more than a block from expensive restaurants, bars etc. THIS PLACE IS GREAT TO GET THE NIGHT STARTED.
Joe's is a great place to relax and spend some time. There are a lot of friendly people drinking in here and the bar staff makes you feel like you're right at home. The drinks are strong and the have 3 pool tables, maybe 4. There is a nearby Chinese restaurant that you can order food in form late night, which makes this place even more special. They have TVs and keno and all the usual goods.
after the Red Sox game we stopped for a few drinks here. I loved it, the regulars & BTs seemed cool, played a few good games of pool and just felt at home. mentioned this place to another regular at the Yam later and he scoffed and said it was filled with meth junkies etc ... i just laughed (i.e. pot meet kettle)
Joes made me feel like a regular after just the first shot! It was amazing and now, I really am a regular! haha See you soon!
and I feel right at home. I like places where the clientle is older than dirt. Drinks are stiff, food is good and finally they've got a decent jukebox.
