The Vern

What a great local bar. Awesome neighborhood, great staff, nice regulars. I love hanging in the back and meeting new people. I honestly find this to be one of the more social bars in Portland without feeling like a college bar or sports bar. It's a great spot and you can easily make a friend if you'd like. I think people like to use their video poker a lot as well (they have maybe 7 machines), but I don't really know about that.

Pretty good bar. Had been in town for bout 10 minutes, was catching up with friends outside when a bar brawl broke out over the bar not serving vegan cheese. Dude got beat up pretty good. Couple chicks got punched, aggressive vegan just kinda walked away… anyways. It’s a nice enough dive bar and I left with a story to tell so what more can you really ask for.

Fun bar, nice outdoor seating area, excellent bartender. The problem I had with it was that the tables outside are wobbly and unbalanced. At one point my girlfriend friend and I both sat on the same side and the table immediately tipped backwards onto us, sending ice and drinks flying. In talking to some of the other oatrins who come here often, they say it happens all the time and the owner never does anything about it despite repeated complaints. I feel like it's just a basic expectation when going to a bar. That you'll be able to sit down without ending up on your back with a drink spilled all over you. And it's so dumb. For like $10 per table they could buy some hardware and bolt them to the ground for safety, but don't bother. I guess they're waiting for someone to get really hurt before they do anything about it So enjoy yourself there, have a great night, but be careful how you sit down

6 tap beer choices, including one 4% bitter (but not tart) Irish stout and 4 non-dark, tart beers or ciders. Interior is black with minimal furniture and several operating pinball machines. Adjacent fenced patio is clean, well heated, rain sheltered, decorated with live plants, and dog friendly. Many mixed drink and alcoholic slushy choices.

When you think of the Vern, you might be apt to dismiss it as "just another Portland dive bar", and you would be sorely mistaken. With a fantastic menu (tots!), Staff that doesn't hesitate to make you a vodka lemonade from scratch (even when it's raining), to the spacious outdoor patio... you'd be missing out to walk by without stopping in for at least a shot. Whatever the season, the covered patio allows you to huddle close to friends and share memories from the night before...