Portland has a very full-blooded live music and club scene: On any given night some 300 clubs offer live music, and with typical Portland impishness, what you’ll find in these venues is often a bit different than you might expect.

In addition to live music and dancing you’ll also find lots of theme nights, often accompanied by a combination of cabaret, performance art, magic, and burlesque—think Cabaret’s Kit Kat Klub. These unscripted evenings can often provide very diverting entertainment.

Much of the nightlife is concentrated in a few easily reached neighborhoods, most with safe and dependable public transport to and fro. Be sure to pick up a copy or check the websites of Willamette Week or the Portland Mercury, two free weeklies that follow the music and nightlife scene closely.

Most music events in bars are restricted to ages 21 and older. Cover charges, which range $3–10 in most nightclubs, are frequently levied, though there’s often no cover charge for live music early in the week or even early in the evening.

Also note that smoking is not longer permitted in Oregon bars.

• Brewpubs
• Bars
• Queer
• Live Music