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Those of you who follow this blog know that I write about both bars and breweries. Having posted reviews of 400+ since I started this retirement hobby fourteen years ago, my favorite genre is dive bars.

That said, while my wonderful wife loves breweries, dive bars are not on her dance card. (I might add, her definition of a dive bar and mine are quite different.)  One notable exception was on a 2016 road trip in California to Yosemite National Park where we spent one night in Sacramento and I persuaded her to raise a mug in the world’s most literal dive bar. 

While at the bar, I asked bartender, Jason, how the title of the bar was derived. He immediately responded, “Take a glance upward. You see that 7,800 gallon aquarium? (To put in perspective, that would be about 503 kegs of beers.) A few nights each week, we also have “mermaids” swimming in that tank.  Now do you understand how we got our name.?” 

A Recently Discovered Portland Dive , But First….

Before I tell you about the Top of the Hill Tavern, my newest dive on Portland’s east side, it may be worth reminiscing (at least for me) about some of my Oregon favorites. Our travel has taken us to bars and breweries throughout the US and even a few in Europe, but it seems the best are close to Portland. (By the way, it’s a wonderful place to live….)

https://thebeerchaser.com/2024/02/02/dont-jump-when-you-can-dive/

In Portland dives, the PBR, Hamms and Budweiser flow like a mountain stream cascading down the slopes of Mount Hood in early spring. (#1)

The photos shown below are my five favorites – The Ship (2012), the Mock Crest Tavern (2012), Gil’s Speakeasy (2017), The Standard (2018) and Yur’s Bar and Grill (2020). 

Yet, I can’t forget the Oregon Coast where at these five watering holes, the frothy head in your mug is like a wave at its foamy crest just before crashing onto the pristine white sand before receding for another cycle. (#2)

Thats when on a 2014 Road trip with two friends (Dave Booher and Steve Larson), we hit twelve bars on the coast in 2.5 days with these four making the all-star list in addition to the Desdemona Club (The Dirty D) in Astoria in 2012. 

The Sportsman Pub and Grub (Pacific City), the Old Oregon Tavern (Lincoln City), Mad Dog Country Tavern (Newport) and the Tide Pool Inn (Depoe Bay) garnered the other four top spots. (#3)

I had driven by the Top of the Hill numerous times – an inconspicuous building with a large parking lot, but no other businesses or homes around. My intent last March was to visit it with my long-term Beerchasing friend, Hillary Barbour.

But I messed that one up and told her to meet me at the Hi-Top Tavern which is only 3.6 miles away or a nine-minute drive from Top of the Hill. We enjoyed the Hi-Top, but it was a classy neighborhood bar and definitely not a dive.  So, we resolved, the next time we Beerchased to dive at the Top of the Hill.  (And it was worth it.)

I’m a fast learner, so I cautioned Hillary that we were going to the Top of the Hill in NE Portland – not the bar with the same name in Kaimuki, Hawaii or Babe’s Boys Tavern at the Top of the Hill in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. 

Similarly, we were not going to raise a mug at Top of the Hill Bar in Cork, Ireland or at North Carolina’s first microbrewery, the Top of the Hill Brewery and Restaurant in Chapel Hill (which even has its own Wikipedia page.)

And just to rub it in, Hillary admonished me not to show up at Top O’Th’ Hill – a family-owned American bar in Bridgewater, New Jersey, even though they have an outstanding butternut squash soup.

But as you can see below, we did meet on a Saturday afternoon at the right watering hole and joined a few regulars in relishing the “ambiance.”

I’ve known Hillary since shortly after her graduation from Reed College in Portland, when she was a Research Intern for the City Club of Portland and I was on the Research Board. She has had an impressive career including almost twenty years working on the staff of  recently retired US Representative, Earl Blumenauer. (#4)

Subsequent jobs have been in marketing and strategic planning for both private and non-profit corporations. Friends call her “Hill,” so perhaps the venue that day was appropriate.

Our server, Amber, who is a long-time employee of the bar said the owner is a nice guy and they have a good group of regulars – a community. Amber was personable and welcoming.

Most of the Top of the Hill reviews are positive and it seems that people really like this laid-back place. People appreciate the low-key atmosphere, the pool tables and old-fashioned beer signs, the friendly staff and karaoke on Friday and Saturday. And they have a good juke box. Two reviews sum it up nicely:

“I love this neighborhood bar! It has a cozy, comfy feel. All of the bartenders have made me feel welcome. Some of them have told me the owner is great to work for and that matters to me. It’s not fancy or extravagant by any means. Just a great place to hang out and get to know your neighbors. (Yelp 2023)

and

“Just a small trashy bar, but it’s my small trashy bar. The food is mediocre at best, and the pool tables are the worst I’ve ever played on, but the experience is like living in an episode of trailer park boys. Nobody is here to impress anyone, so everyone kinda lets their guard down more than usual, it’s a great place to meet people in a very casual setting.” (Restuarant Guru.com) (#5)

And you are not going to find less expensive pub food at many other places with a cheeseburger and side for $6.50 and large basket of fries or onion rings for $5.50.  A turkey sandwich with chips rings up for only $7.00 or a skad of wings for $5. Draft beers (a reasonable selection) are $5 to $6 with a buck off during Happy Hour.

Sundays are good with a rib dinner – four ribs with two good sides and bread for $18.  Want chicken instead of red meat, well the barbecued chicken dinner, sides and bread is the same deal. (#6)

I mentioned that Hillary graduated from Reed College – a liberal institution with outstanding academic credentials.  And the school made Portland headlines recently:

“Reed College students and alumni are grappling with the recent revelation that a campus security official provided federal investigators with personal information about a former student, ultimately resulting in his arrest. The disclosure has sparked significant backlash, particularly given the college’s reputation for inclusivity and its progressive values.

According to court records unsealed last week, FBI agents arrested Robert Jacob Hoopes, a 24-year-old Reed alumnus, on July 25. The records detail how Gary Granger, the college’s director of community safety, accessed an internal database containing personal information about students and alumni to hand over Hoopes’ name, address, and phone number. This cooperation allegedly occurred without a warrant or subpoena.”  (Reed College Campus Safety Newsletter)  (#7)

Granger was subsequently fired but given the misguided and unnecessary federal intervention to deploy the National Guard, Reed alums are wary that they may have been “identified.” 

There have been Blackhawk helicopters flying low over Portland neighborhoods and knowing Hillary might have been in that database, we searched the sky while walking to our cars. (After all she worked many years for a Democrat….) 

I have almost avoided political issues on this blog, but these times warrant a comment.

A Trump-appointed federal judge yesterday, temporarily blocked the National Guard deployment to Portland although there is no shortage of masked ICE troops at what have been largely peaceful demonstrations in the last year – basically some individual arrests by the Portland Police.

To put today’s protests into perspective, here’s what the data show:

“Arrests in 2020: 1,071. In 2025: Around 60 over the past four months.

Location in 2020: Across the city. Location in 2025: One to two blocks in South Portland.”   (Oregon Live October 5)

Portland faces significant issues – most notably homelessness. The violent and lengthy protests in 2020 were deplorable and our city still bears the scars, but that is clearly not the current situation.

Leave us alone to drink our good coffee and great craft beer and we will continue to work on resolving our problems civilly and locally. (#8 – #9)

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1.  WordPress generated AI image.

#2. Picsart.com AI (https://picsart.com/create/editor?category=miniapps&prompt=a+black+hawk+helicopter+with+an+x+over+it&projectId=68e1febafa021d2faa2b576d&app=t2i&version=1.86.2).

#3. Desdemona Club Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=275454077925770&set=pb.100063835381277.-2207520000&type=3).

#4. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (Earl Blumenauer, official portrait, 116th Congress 2 – Earl Blumenauer – Wikipedia) This United States Congress image is in the public domain. Author: House Creative Services, Kristie Baxter – 16 October 2019.

#5.  Yelp photos (https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/top-of-the-hill-tavern-portland).

#6. Wanderlog.com (https://wanderlog.com/place/details/3441887/top-of-the-hill-tavern).

#7. Wikimedia Commons (File:EliotHallReedCollege.jpg – Wikimedia Commons). Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.  Author: User.cacophony – 25 February 2007.

#8. Wikimedia Commons (File:Portland from Pittock Mansion October 2019 panorama 2.jpg – Wikimedia Commons). Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Author: King of Hearts – 28 October 2019.

#9. Picsart.com AI  (https://picsart.com/create/editor?category=miniapps&prompt=a+black+hawk+helicopter+with+an+x+over+it&projectId=68e1febafa021d2faa2b576d&app=t2i&version=1.86.2).