Dean and Mindy walk into a bar: We walk into an Oregon bar

Southland Whiskey Kitchen, Portland, Oregon
We really didn't intend to write about this place.

During October, for our church blog, Mindy and I visited the extreme east, west, north, and south communities of Washington state, and we wrote about the bars we came across during those trips. Before going to the southernmost church, we spent Saturday night at a hotel in Portland, Oregon. We got there around dinnertime, and it was an easy walk (even in the rain) to a place with “Southland” in its name, which sounded so very thematic. Mindy had found it online and was interested in the smoked meats, and it looked like they had good happy hour deals.

As we came in, we were reminded of places we’d been to in the South. The dark wood and iron decor were part of the feel. So was the well stocked whiskey bar. There were lots of graphics with chickens and pigs on the walls. But the ready hospitality was a part of it too. The host at his stand greeted us quickly and cheerily and offered us a table.

We told him we preferred the bar, where the TVs were making for a nicely varied sports night. Game four of the World Series was playing, as were the Portland Trailblazers, and the Washington State Cougars (we heard a lot about them on our trip east at the beginning of the month. “Go Cougs!”)

The bartender gave us the full menu, but all we needed was the happy hour insert, which had everything priced at $5. We ordered the bacon and blue cheese chips, house smoked wings, and the pulled pork sandwich. I ordered a Kentucky Mule, while Mindy decided she wanted to continue the theme of the trip with a Southern Punch.

After trying the food and drinks, we agreed that we really should write about this place, but we hadn’t brought our notebooks or pens; our usual reporting tools. I asked Rickie behind the bar if we could have a pen and a sheet of paper. He tore a page from a notebook, and I started writing away, including notes on bits of overheard conversations (“You’d have to be a sadist to not like mac & cheese,” and “I would always get so drunk at baseball games.”)

But we really needed the paper and pen to write down answers to our two questions, “What makes for a good bar?” and “Whether you go or not, what makes for a good church?”

We first talked to Rickie (who supplied our reporting tools and is one of the managers at Southland) He said a good bar needs “good drinks and someone who gets them to you.” He was especially proud of the liquor selection at Southland. “We have a whole lot of good whiskey.”

As for a what makes for a good church, “Comfortable seating, because you’re going to be there an hour. It’s been a while since I’ve gone.”

I also had a chance to talk to Jim, the bartender who served us. He said, “I prefer a dive bar; I’ve been a dive bartender. Someplace cozy, where you know the people, a Cheers thing.” He wanted a church that was “not pushy; you have to enjoy the time. Religion, like a lot of things, you can’t find it until you’re ready to find it.”