The Best Portland Sports Bars for Watching Trail Blazers Games - Eater Portland

Root for the Thorns, Blazers, Ducks, or hometown heroes over a craft beer or habanero bloody mary

Don’t let Portland’s national reputation for artiness fool you: Portlanders love their sports. The city is home to throngs of diehards rooting for the hometown Thorns, Timbers, and Trail Blazers, not to mention nationally competitive college teams from the University of Oregon and Oregon State. And in a city full of transplants — presently without its own pro baseball or football franchises — fans of teams from all over the country (and world) can find communities here. To that end, nearly every neighborhood is home to at least one fun, busy bar where fans mingle and cheer — or commiserate — over buckets of wings and pitchers of beer.

While plenty of bars and restaurants have the occasional television or projector screen that might play a game on any given night, this list focuses on the bars that are seriously focused on sports, with dedicated screens and entertainment to kill time during commercial breaks. For more bar ideas, this map may help.

Some self-proclaimed sports bars are effectively neighborhood pubs with a few TVs and a pool table. Not so at Penalties, which has sports in its DNA. A block off Main Street in downtown Vancouver, the spacious Penalties boasts two large 177-inch projector screens and eight other large screens, along with a pool table and a Buck Hunter machine for those nights when the game turns into a blowout. The pizza is better than average for a sports bar, and the friendly bartenders juggle drink orders on busy evenings as efficiently as they do game requests for the different screens.

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George’s Corner Tavern is a classic dive bar with a direct line to a screen from any seat in the house. Open every day of the week, this bar is a safe bet for friends to gather to split pitchers of beer while digging into cheeseburgers and fried chicken. Just be aware that though games can get spirited here, there is a no-cussing policy in the bar.

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Sporting the historic sign from Gresham’s iconic Satellite Restaurant, Satellite Tavern is one of Overlook’s favorite bars to grab a mid-game drink. The industrial dining room features a number of TVs over its hardwood walls and concrete floors, and even the back patio has a few TVs so visitors won’t miss a touchdown or run. The menu leans into the sports theme, with stadium staples like wings, nachos, burgers, and mini corn dogs.

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Hillsboro sports fans are lucky to have Front Row Bar & Grill in their neighborhood. Game days here are electric with 25 TVs arranged throughout the space. The menu here offers the usual sports bar grub with mozzarella sticks and wings, plus heartier choices including a chicken Caesar salad and a French dip sandwich.

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A groundbreaking women’s sports bar, the Sports Bra is a bar that celebrates women’s athletics, where fans watch the Thorns, WNBA, tennis, college basketball, and dozens of other college and pro sports played by women. The drinks prominently feature women-owned distilleries and breweries, and the food menu is an exponential leap above a typical sports watering hole — think: Vietnamese clay pot ribs, fish sauce wings, and tempeh Reubens.

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With nearly 50 TVs, including 11 massive ones and a single screen in every bar booth, someone would have to go out of their way to miss a gaming moment at this decades-old pool house and dive. Despite being something of an Irish bar, the food and drink here are more of the standard sports bar staples, like wings, tacos, burgers; however, Tuesdays offer an all-you-can-eat taco and nacho bar, Sundays involve all-you-can-eat chicken strips, and weekend mornings feature an endless breakfast buffet.

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A more upscale take on a classic sports bar, the Fields does away with the neon bar signs and team posters for large, window-lined walls and industrial chic vibes. The menu follows suit, offering elevated takes on sports bar staples, both in quality and price, like wagyu beef sliders and mahi mahi tacos. It also offers an appreciable cocktail list, something not every sports bar in town can claim. Though the bar screens all the major and local games, it is Beaver territory, so Ducks beware.

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Sports bars in the region tend to come in two varieties: big and modern, or tiny and old-school. Katie O’Brien’s defies that dichotomy with abundant vintage Portland character and tons of space to carve out a niche with fellow fans. The full bar is lined with decadent boardroom-style leather rolling chairs, complete with armrests. Add a deep tap list, an open pool table, all-day breakfast, and frequent live music, and it’s no secret why Katie O’Brien’s remains a neighborhood favorite.

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Whether it’s Blazers vs. Lakers, Thorns vs. Wave, or Ducks vs. Huskies, Spirit of 77 — named for the first (and so far, only) year the Trail Blazers won an NBA championship — is one of the liveliest spots in town. With an expansive beer-hall setup filled with tongue-in-cheek retro touches, it comes with large, flat-screen TVs, a projection screen, and pop-a-shot basketball. The food menu touts responsibly sourced chicken for its wings and beef for its burgers.

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This Southwest Broadway sports bar, with its 20 beers on tap and more than 30 screens, is a popular spot to catch a game downtown. Happy hours involve $10 smash burgers and $12 wings, and on weekend mornings when kickoff starts early, brunches include Texas toast breakfast sandwiches and hearty breakfast burritos. The bar streams all of the NBA games, which folks can view sitting at the bar or camped out in one of the comfy booths.

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Inner Southeast’s Century Bar was a one-of-a-kind place to watch a game, with polished wood raised rows of seats that felt somewhere between a stadium and a small Midwestern liberal arts classroom. Century sadly closed for good in 2021, but the space was only dormant for a few months as the team behind Jackie’s prepared to open a “sports bar for people who don’t love the vibe of traditional sports bars,” so to speak. The food menu includes dishes like quesabirria tacos and plant-based tenders, while the cocktail menu could hold its own against celebrated non-sports bars nearby. Something to note: Sometimes Jackie’s can accrue a line, particularly late on weekend evenings.

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A popular Montavilla pub that is more than just a sports bar, Thatchers boasts seven big-screen TVs for ample coverage on stacked sports days, but is just as renowned for an above-average food menu and wealth of bar game options, including pinball, shuffleboard, and three pool tables. Thatchers is typically thick with regulars, and newcomers ordering complicated drinks on busy nights can expect some saltiness from bartenders. Expect things like NFL games, Blazer games, Seattle Mariners games, college football, and global soccer games.

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Australian-themed sports bar Dingo’s serves meat pies and sausage rolls from down under, paired with plenty of televisions for sports watching. Owner Brendan Jones was inspired to open the bar by his own Aussie roots, and a trip back to Australia. In addition to the usual lineup of beer, wine, and cocktails, Dingo’s also serves coffee and tea for daytime games.

When people think of Southeast Portland’s Birdie Time, they often think of the bar’s mini-golf setup. However, the space is also a fun spot to watch all sorts of sports, including college basketball (like Ducks games), Seattle Krakens hockey games, and Blazers games. The food menu includes burgers, 12-inch pizzas, and wings, and screens are visible from the “green” so mini-golfers can keep an eye on both the ball and the game.

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Soccer is ascendant nationwide, but Portland has long been a bastion for the beautiful game. At Gol PDX, fútbol is a passion, from the Thorns and Timbers to Serie A and La Liga. Longtime footie fans are welcoming to neophytes here at the former 442, now under new owners but with the same dedication to association football. The simple food menu is highlighted by an expansive brunch, with bottomless mimosas for the daring. With time zones always a factor for international soccer fans, Gol opens at 7 a.m. on weekends and often even earlier for the World Cup or other major events. Soccer will always take top priority, but it’s not uncommon to see a Blazers game here on occasion.

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Few pairings are as cosmically perfect as sports and barbecue. When tending the smoker for hours on a hot Sunday doesn’t seem so appealing, Beavertonians head to the Pit Stop for dependable smoked meats and a bar full of TVs and fellow fans. With reasonably priced booze, a spacious patio, and frequent events like poker tournaments and karaoke, the Pit Stop draws regulars even when the sports calendar is sleepy.

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At the far southern edge of Portland city limits, in Brentwood-Darlington, Rocky’s is an intimate, eclectic sports bar whose loyal clientele mostly live within walking distance. The vibe is unabashedly divey, but the food is a cut above, with solid burgers and a Coney dog that goes toe-to-toe with Portland’s best. Those driving will find limited parking onsite, but easy-to-nab residential street parking nearby.

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Easy to miss motoring down Southwest Terwilliger, Tryon Creek Bar and Grill is a food-centric sports bar beloved by neighborhood regulars and students from nearby Lewis & Clark College. With the majority of Lewis & Clark students hailing from outside Oregon, the bar’s many TVs are often tuned to a wide array of games. The menu is as wide-ranging as the teams onscreen, like pulled pork and bacon-topped pizzas, a Cuban sandwich, and a fried egg-topped torta. Drinks include nearly two dozen beers and ciders on tap, six different wines, and a creative cocktail list.

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Sports will be on the TV screens to be sure, but on Thursday and Saturday nights at Home Turf the hottest action is on the tables, with twice-weekly foosball and pool tournaments. Try your skill in the tournaments, or watch at a healthy distance enjoying one of the 16 beers on tap and a menu of solidly prepared bar food classics. On Friday nights, head to Home Turf for karaoke too.

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