Tabor Tavern – An Eastside Treasure

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Thebeerchaser

(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser. If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened. External photo attribution is at the end of the post. #1)

Well Beerchasers, I’ve hit the jackpot with my recent visits to bars The Basement Public House (eastside) and the Jolly Roger at John’s Landing (westside) – both independent neighborhood establishments owned and operated by Portlanders. And now I’ll tell you about another outstanding neighborhood tavern.

I first visited the Tabor Tavern in 2022 with my colleague on the Abbey Foundation of Oregon Board, John Limb and returned this February with a former Schwabe Williamson law firm colleague, John Mansfield, who is now working as a Deputy County Counsel in Washington County.

And as will be the case with the other two establishments, I’ll return again notwithstanding the internal pressure which is my constant companion — knowing how many watering holes I haven’t visited and still await Thebeerchaser with anticipation.

In researching the Tabor and it’s opening in 2012 by Ken “Zig” Naffziger, I was not surprised by its longevity and success. And the welcoming ambiance radiates when one walks in the door.

The problem with some of the newer hospitality venues which were short-lived – especially with the impact of the pandemic – the owners and management often didn’t “learn the ropes” before they ventured out on their own. The COVID related issues challenged even the most experienced manager.

Two good examples of how long-time successful bar owners worked their way up and were fully aware of the commitment and grit required are the Jackson family – owners of the Sports Page in Beaverton and the Jolly Roger bars – the most recent reviews on this blog.

The other is Zig Naffziger – owner of the Tabor Tavern.

“In 2012, after 25 years in the industry — including stints with Portland pub icons McMenamins, Lompoc Brewing and the Horse Brass Pub — Ken “Zig” Naffziger decided to set out on his own.

Inspired by Zig’s travels and love of pub culture, his goal was to create the kind of place fellow tavern fans could congregate to enjoy high-quality food and drink in a warm, welcoming and unpretentious environment.” (Tabor Tavern website) (#2)

Zig learned the industry before he opened the Tabor Tavern

Let’s look at what has made the Tabor Tavern a favorite eatery and bar on the northwest edge of the Tabor Neighborhood.

And based on the reception it got from the time it opened until the present, his first establishment allowed Zig and his wife, Kristen Siefkin, to open a second neighborhood tavern and restaurant – Swift and Union in 2015 – less than ten miles away.

It had been his life-long dream of Naffziger to open a neighborhood pub. He was smart about how he went about it – getting advice from experts including his wife:

“‘I am an avid fan of pub culture and hope to create the kind of place fellow fans would like to congregate.’ Naffziger brought in restaurant consultant, Sean Herron of Big Idea Group as advisor on this project (and) food and beverage PR executive, Kristen Siefkin.” (https://brewpublic.com/oregon-beer/tabor-tavern-to-open-this-spring/)

Photo Feb 15 2023, 12 09 53 PM (2)

Now the outside of Tabor Tavern does not portend what awaits you inside. It’s a plain wooden one-story building with a red roof in a semi-commercial residential area on a busy street.

There are a number of small picnic tables that share the sidewalk for Portland’s months when outside seating is an option.

Not to be forgotten – also not available at many watering holes these days is plenty of off-street parking with more available in the Tavern’s lot. (#3)

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But one walks into a quaint one-room interior which is a wonderful throwback to the diners of the 60’s or 70’s. In fact, along with historic Portland photos and an attractive chalkboard display showing beers on taps, there’s a large wood poster entitled “Back in 1972.”

It has 1972 statistics such as the cost of a house ($27,550), the average annual income ($9,697), cost of a gallon of gas (36 cents) and cultural items like popular songs (American Pie), movies (The Godfather) and TV shows (All in the Family).

Also – famous people born that year including Gwyneth Paltrow – who didn’t know then that in the future she should stay away from both ski slopes and courtrooms…….

The welcoming, rich interior has wood tables of various sizes located throughout with dark-colored wooden booths with padded seats by the windows along the front.

And one of the most iconic features is a long-reclaimed wood bar with twelve old drugstore counter-type stools. All give an impression of high quality and care. The floor is refinished cement and there are antique rugs providing a nice contrast.

The Food, the Beverages and the Service

Tabor Tavern gets an A grade on these three categories. Each time I visited or followed up with a call, the staff was friendly and helpful – including offering to take pictures of us for the blog and even posing in one of them.

Besides eight varied Northwest beers and one cider on tap, one can also get cans and bottles including a non-alcoholic beer. Of course, I was pleased to see the old standby – $3.50 Rainer Tallboys.

Wine is also available, and they get good reviews on their seven cocktails which go for $12. I was intrigued by the Drunken Botanist – “Wild Roots raspberry vodka, muddled arugula, honey, lime juice, served up” – but didn’t have the courage to ask what “muddled arugula” is. (#4)

450px-Eruca_sativa

But it’s the excellent upscale pub food which beckons me to make a return visit. I was surprised that the annual Willamette Week Best Bar Guides, I’ve collected for the last ten years didn’t have Tabor Tavern in any of its editions.

Take a look at these two reviews from the weekly newspaper, however, and you’ll get a flavor for the quality of the cuisine:

“This casual, bustling neighborhood joint always miraculously has at least one table available whenever we roll up. Its adult menu is exceptional pub grub: a perfect beet salad (with quinoa and pepitas) and a fried chicken sando that my partner orders every time and will not shut up about.

It also has a small kids’ menu, which includes the coveted grilled cheese and fries for $7. Hell yes! Tabor Tavern is perfect for cool families, although a passerby would hardly even know it, which is the ideal aesthetic.” Willamette Week 8/18/21

And I can personally attest to the accuracy of the effusive review of the fried chicken sandwich ($16) – I had it and my friend, John Mansfield relished the Spinach and Warm Bacon Salad. ($14)

Photo Feb 15 2023, 11 52 37 AM

Perhaps that’s why we looked so happy in this photo – taken after we finished lunch – although some people assert that I’m always happy when I have a meal with a lawyer……..!

However, when I return, given the description in the review below and seeing it first-hand when my Beerchasing companion, John Limb tried it in 2022, I will, without hesitation, order the Tabor Burger as described in the 2017 article “The 16 Best Bar Burgers in Portland.”

“The Tabor Burger ($16.50 with fries, soup or salad) is precisely what would happen if a hamburger got attacked by an episode of Frasier: arugula, brioche bun, blue cheese and bacon jam.

But it comes together better than expected—a balance of fat against salt and bitterness, rather than acidity. But is it weird I sometimes feel I’m eating a Cobb salad?”

Our friendly server agreed to have his picture taken with John.

I told John’s story in a prior post about Chuckanut Brewing. Before retiring in 2017, he was the publisher of the Oregon Catholic Press.

The OCP is a non-profit national leader in Catholic and faith-based music publishing and worship resources. During his tenure, OCP became the nation’s leading publisher of Catholic worship material. He continues to serve as Publisher Emeritus.

And it was a remarkable coincidence that as we ate our lunches and drank our beers on a nice April afternoon at the outside tables in front of the bar, that John looked at two guys inside – sitting adjacent to us – with just a window separating us. John and both of the guys started smiling and waving simultaneously as they recognized each other.

In the photo below, the guy on the left is Rudy Lopez who works at OCP and is a very talented musician and composer as is Bro. Rufino Zaragoza – a Franciscan friar (monk) from California.

He collaborates with OCP including efforts to serve the Vietnamese community both here in the U.S. and in Vietnam. (Click on the above links on these individuals and you will be impressed with their work and dedication.)

John had not seen Bro. Rufino since 2001 when both traveled to Viet Nam and facilitated the development and publication of a Vietnamese National Hymnal which is now available internationally.

Photo Aug 04, 12 00 52 PM (2)

And Because it Bears Mentioning

After looking at the photos again, I commented to John in a recent phone call, “John, you have an amazing resemblance to comedian Stephen Colbert.” His reply was:

“Yes, I’ve been told many times that I look like him — more so in the past, when he still wore wire-rimmed glasses like my own. There have been times when people were actually convinced that I was him, and I was just trying to avoid them by saying that I wasn’t. My fifteen minutes of fame, so to speak.”

Well, you judge for yourself! (#5 – #6)

Well, that’s John Limb on the _______??!!

I laughed and reflected that John should feel pretty good about the comparison. The only famous person friends have said that I resemble is former Senate Majority Leader – Republican Trent Lott from Mississippi. (2001) And no, I’m not going to show you the picture! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trent_Lott

In Closing

You should make a point to try Zig’s ” dream that became a reality,” and he created a place that is “warm, welcoming and an unpretentious environment.” I plan to visit Swift and Union as well. But I’ll leave you with this brief 4/15/23 Yelp Review. It sums up most of comments very well:

“I’d never been to Tabor Tavern before. Wow! The food is excellent!! Everything delicious. I split the beet salad and burger with blue cheese, bacon jam & arugula . SOOOO delicious!

A table mate had the fish and chips and another had the Tabor burger. All outstanding – as are the fries. Highly recommend this eatery!!”

And if you want to see the breadth of the food and cocktails Zig Naffziger offers and the outstanding presentation, just check out the photos on the Tabor Tavern Facebook Page. (#7)

10991536_774050192690658_167030841859064804_o

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1. Tabor Tavern Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/TaborTavern/photos/pb.100063643386983.-2207520000./3778581502237497/?type=3).

#2. Linked-in (http://Ken (21) Kenneth “Zig” Naffziger | LinkedIn)

#3. Tabor Tavern Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/TaborTavern/photos/pb.100063643386983-)

#4. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eruca_sativa.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Author: Whut – 6 October 2010.

#5. Abbey Foundation of Oregon 2020 Annual Report (https://abbeyfoundationoforegon-annualreport.org/annual-report-2020/)

#6. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Colbert_(character))

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stephen_Colbert_on_set_cropped.jpg This file is a work of a U.S. Army soldier or employee, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work_of_the_United_States_Government – Author Staff Sgt. Teddy Wade

#7. Tabor Tavern Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/TaborTavern/photos/pb.100063643386983.-2207520000./774050192690658/?type=3)

Beer and Technology Conflate at Binary Brewing

Posted on February 14, 2023 by Thebeerchaser

The last brewery I visited in 2022 was suggested by my friend and colleague on the Abbey Foundation of Oregon Board (AFO). John Meek is the Immediate Past President of that Board and there were a couple of reasons I thought this was a good option.

First, the current President of the AFO, John Limb – who just retired after serving as the long-time publisher of the Oregon Catholic Press – and I had a great experience at the Chuckanut Brewery late in the fourth quarter. It provided momentum….

And since I’ve focused on breweries and bars on Portland’s east side and Binary is in the heart of Beaverton on Portland’s west side, this would be an opportunity to take what is purported to be newspaper editor and publisher, Horace Greeley’s advice – albeit on a micro level and as an old guy – “Go West….” (#2)

“Go West, Young Man” – but make it farther than Beaverton!!

Third, and I will tell you more about him below, but John Meek is an extremely bright guy – elected to Phi Beta Kappa and a magna cum laud grad in Computer Science from Washington State University. He’s had an outstanding career in the technology sector and, more importantly, likes good beer.

When I go Beerchasing, I try to focus on people smarter than I am. John is a good example…..!

I didn’t know if John was attracted to Binary because of his career – or the beer – or possibly both. Binary is defined as “relating to, composed of, or involving two things.”

The co-owners of Binary Brewing, Josh Johnson and Roger Wood changed the name and rebranded Uptown Brewing – a beer bar, bottle-shop, and homebrew supply shop – and started brewing in 2018.

Their motto is “Good beer is like software – in the end it’s Binary.”

“The Portland area has a long history of beer and technology. Our team brings together experience in both so we chose a name that reflects those two roots. Our goal is to bring start-up excitement back to the craft beer market – developing new beers and revitalizing classic styles for modern tastes.”

Binary had been operating and brewing with a seven-barrel system out of a very small facility located outside the Beaverton city limits.

In July, 2022, after totally refurbishing what used to be the Beaverton Bakery – located in a 135-year old building – on Broadway in the heart of town, they upgraded to a ten-barrel system and enough fermentation vessels to more than quadruple former production. (Oregon Beer News) #3

The result was a compact, but well designed and attractive taproom and brewery in the back with an impressively large picture window showing the brewing hardware:

“The one element that remains as a tribute to the old bakery is a portion of the 1930s era floor near the main entrance—blue-and-gray hand-painted cement that resembles a charming patchwork quilt.” https://www.wweek.com/bars/beer/2022/07/19/binary-brewing-opens-its-pub-and-production-facility-in-beaverton-this-week/

Binary’s plan was ambitious and their new digs allowed them to can and distribute. And the taproom is upscale and mod – unusual for the genre:

“A plant lined skylight adds warmth to the white, black and cold metal blue tones of the taproom with the punch of bright plants to liven up the computer circuitry themed space….

The open windows to the brewing operations are framed with the coolest customized aspect of the taproom, the draft towers that emulate the circuit board art of the Binary logo.” https://newschoolbeer.com/home/2022/7/binary-brewing-opens-in-beaverton

There’s also a separate room with a large community table, a few additional small tables and two old-fashioned pinball machines – a nice touch. A hall leads out to a patio, which is very nice although the picture on their website doesn’t adequately convey it.

The Beer

According to Andre Meunier in his 12/11/19 article in Oregon Live: “(Head Brewer Roger Wood, makes) mostly English and German styles, including pales ales, stouts, a Kolsch and a helles, plus IPAs of course, including hazies”

“One of my favorite parts about Roger’s brewing is … balance is one of our specialties,” (Co-owner) Johnson says. ‘We call it the bitter loop, and it’s that we always want that beer to finish a little bit dry and a little bit bitter — dries out the mouth, and what it does is it makes you want to drink more. Another sip, another pint.'”

Photo Nov 15 2022, 3 36 03 PM (2)

Surprisingly, Binary’s website is not that informative. There is nothing about its history (I got what I could from multiple news and internet articles) which is unfortunate because they have a good story to tell.

And unlike most breweries, there is no description of their beer along with the picture of label. Fortunately, our server, Angela, was very helpful and knowledgeable about the nuances of the beer.

While they have a food menu with prices for their Megabits operation (described below), they don’t have prices for their beer in the taproom – perhaps as noted in a few reviews, that’s because they are a bit pricey – pints are $7 and a flight of five four-ounce pours is $12.

There were twelve beers on tap and at John’s suggestion – which was a good one – we went for two flights to get a better idea of the variety and what we liked. So we got to taste ten of the twelve beers on tap.

IMG_7603 (2)

The favorites were Mech 47 – a hazy IPA @ 6.2ABV, Virtual Redality @5.7 and which compared favorably to the red ales which I usually order on brewery visits and the Arrakis – a spiced ale @6.3. The Pinball Pils @5.2 also was a hit. (Since they didn’t have descriptions on the Binary website, I’ve provided the links to Untapd for its reviews.)

To my recollection, we thought that all of the beers rated favorably for our personal tastes.

One reason, I’m disappointed at the lack of description of their beers is that they do a wonderful and creative job with their labels. I’ve shown three of the four mentioned above which were on the website although Arrakis wasn’t shown.

You can see that they also put a lot of creativity into the names of their brews, most of which have clever names related to technology. For example, I loved the “Wheatadore 64” as it brought back old memories!

So why not just give a brief description of each one to help the consumer?! (#4-6)

The Companionship

One of the most valued aspects of my idiosyncratic hobby, is the company I keep when I go Beerchasing. There are some “regulars” who’ve gone on multiple trips such as retired lawyer, Jim Westwood, members of the Faust Clan (Jack, Amy and Charlie) and former colleagues from the Schwabe firm.

The photos below are from Beerchasing at the former Burnside Brewing, Mad Sons’ Pub, Crackerjack’s Pub and The Independent Sports Bar – the first three are gone but not forgotten….a comment on the pandemic’s effect on small hospitality businesses.

While John and I had been to Cooper Mountain Ale Works in Tigard over a year ago, we mostly talked about Mount Angel Abbey issues and I didn’t get to hear much of John’s background. So as we were going through our flights I asked him (and since he is a humble guy) supplemented that with info from Linked-in.

John, since his graduation from college in 1978, has been involved in executive management of tech companies. And his impressive list of positions started the year he graduated with his first job at Timberline Systems.

Most business and professional service people know it’s a good NW firm that develops, markets, and supports accounting and management software for construction, estimating, property management, and architect/engineering industries. (See the link for the interesting history.) (#7)

John-Meek-AR20

In 1986 the company changed its name to Timberline Software Corporation and named John the Vice-president of Research and Development. He worked at Timberline for twenty years and the next ten in senior executive positions at WellMed and WebMD.

Since 2010, he has been self-employed as the Managing Member of

And John, like many people who already have demanding schedules also is a guy with poor refusal skills – he donates a lot of time for active roles in charitable organizations.

These have included the Assistance League of Portland Advisory Council, Special Olympics-Oregon (Chair of the Board since 2014) and the Abbey Foundation of Oregon where he just completed two years as President of the Board and still serves on the Executive Committee.

He and his wife, Sharon, are world-wide travelers and sports people. The left picture is high on the Eiger in Switzerland, while below right shows John scuba diving in Cuba. (#8 – #9)

From May 7th to the 20th John and Sharon Meek and others from the Northwest will join Fr. Odo Recker, O.S.B., and Fr. Timothy Kalange, O.S.B., – two Benedictine monks from the Mount Angel Abbey on a 12-day pilgrimage to Israel and Palestine!

Since my technology skills were never significantly honed and have diminished further since retirement, I tried to impress John (having checked my 9th grade math primer before our visit).

When our tab came to $29, I casually mentioned that it was the equivalent of $11101 in the binary system. I then showed him conceptually, my work for the conversion:

Divide the number by 2.
Get the integer quotient for the next iteration.
Get the remainder for the binary digit.
Repeat the steps until the quotient is equal to 0. (#10)

If only I had Cue Math when I was in 9th grade!

He told me that I should stick to conversations comparing lagers to ales and the nuances thereof…..

Final Observations

We didn’t eat on this trip but Megabits – the in-house restaurant which has an eclectic menu. It includes a number of slider options, three “big” salads and plenty of small bites such as mac & cheese, deviled eggs and cheese curds. Prices appear to be reasonable and the ratings on individual social media and news commentary are good.

Initially, Binary was the only brew pub in downtown Beaverton, but since their opening others have proliferated. They now include Beaverton taprooms for nearby Loyal Legion, Von Ebert, Ex Novo, Great Notion and the (ever-expanding) Steeple Jack Breweries.

Binary is therefore trying to build a “community” through its Mug Club and a number of events which appear to be interesting and creative. (#11-13)

John and I will have to return to check out the patio and see how proficient we are on the Godzilla and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pinball machines and whether we can use artificial intelligence to help! We both thought Binary Brewing was a good experience with very drinkable beers and good ambiance. (#14)

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1 Binary Brewery Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=445502577557729&set=a.402923055149015).

#2 Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (Horace Greeley restored – Horace Greeley – Wikipedia) This file was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the National Archives and Records Administration as part of a cooperation project. The National Archives and Records Administration provides images depicting American and global history which are public domain or licensed under a free license.

#3 Binary Brewery Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/binarybrewingco/photos/pb.).

#4 – #6 (https://www.binarybrewing.co/beers)

#7 Mount Angel Abbey Annual Report (https://abbeyfoundationoforegon-annualreport.org/)

#8 – #9 Courtesy of John Meek

#10 Cue Math Website (https://www.cuemath.com/numbers/29-in-binary/)

#11 – #13 Binary Brewing Website (https://www.binarybrewing.co/s/stories).

#14 Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons ((Wikimedia Commons (File:BinaryData.jpg – Wikimedia Commons) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Author: Sérgio Valle Duarte 1999.)