Swine Moonshine & Whiskey Bar

Went here for happy hour drinks the other day. The prices were reasonable, $ 6 a cocktail… but the cocktails themselves are extraordinarily inconsistent. I had the Taylor Street, which was pretty good (though the ginger beer was surprisingly muted), but my companion had the Wilcox. The Wilcox has the distinction of being the blandest cocktail I’ve ever tasted. The tequila is so faint that you only get a tiny whiff of at the very end, and you could mistake it for pepper. It’s extraordinarily… flavorless.
One of the ingredients is «cucumber syrup»: is that just cucumber water with sugar? These kinds of ingredients can’t help but feed the feeling that the menu is being padded.

My husband and I stopped in to Swine bar before a concert. We came for happy hour on a Tuesday, and the bar was pretty busy. The menu reflects a wide array of seemingly good eats, quality craft cocktails, beer, and wine, all for under $ 8. So naturally, we were excited to go. We ordered the swine burger, which was served on a pretzel bun with truffle aioli. The burger was a delicious treat. Sadly, the calamari we ordered was not so delish, although the potential to be good was certainly there. The problem, in my opinion, was that the bar seems highly understaffed. Maybe this is why my calamari came cold, soggy, and seeming like it was soaked in a watered down chili sauce. It had obviously sat in the kitchen window for way too long.
The service here was pretty terrible. On average, it took about 15 minutes to try to get the waitress’ attention after the finish of every drink. This made it almost impossible to enjoy our experience. We eventually had to pull the waitress from a neighboring table to make a drink request. What’s worse is that it seemed our own waitress just wasn’t willing to look in our direction to see if we needed anything. I felt intentionally neglected. We were not the only table either, the one behind us had the same complaints.
To end on a positive note, the cocktails were delicious! And the bar’s other waitress was kind and hard working. She checked back in a few times after.

This was a great find by my wife and it is now our new go-​to place for happy hour downtown. They have what I consider to be really generous hours for happy hour, running until 630pm everyday and then starting back up at 930am sunday to Thursday.
Great drink selection and food choices on the happy hour menu. Strongly recommend the fried pork skins ($ 1.50), the pulled pork dip and the swine burger. The Taylor Street cocktail is my favorite drink on the happy hour menu.
Surprised at some of the low rated reviews. Have been very happy with the level of service, even on a Friday night. Also haven’t had a problem with undercooked food or miniscule amounts of meat on any dishes.
I am thrilled there is a great bar right in the heart of downtown.

Our server was awesome but the food is terrible — the server was only reason we didnt give it one star. The food is all frozen stuff and prepared really poorly — the calamari was drowned in thai sweet chilli sauce, the caesar was drowned in dressing. The best thing we ordered was the ribs. The whisky selection is great but runs more expensive than most other bars in pdx.

As a whisky bar, it’s very good! The service was fine but the food was disappointing. For a restaurant in Portland I expected something more representative of the quality found in surrounding restaurants.

A huge disappointment I will not be coming back. Happy hour brisket sliders came with two tiny pieces of meat and big slice of fat for $ 7– I ate the meat because I was so hungry. The swine dip was a queso dip with little pulled pork, it came out lukewarm $ 9. Not worth it. I’ve dined and Swank next door and was extremely excited to dine at swine, I was extremely let down. I had to cancel my drink so I could go somewhere else and actually have a meal. My silverware was wrapped in a napkin and it was dirty, pretty gross.
–Good service
–Bad food
–Dirty utensils

This is a great spot for a tasty but casual bite as well as a quality cocktail. Their happy hour is one of the stronger options in Portland, with particular favorites being the «redneck fondue dip» or the house burger (have had this several times and it is always cooked perfect to order). Service is efficient and friendly here no matter the time of evening, and prices are very reasonable. Look for outdoor seating in the summer and complimentary pork rinds to start your meal.

This is the worst experience I have ever had! First of all, I was 86’d for doing absolutely nothing. The food was terrible, and I asked for a different dish, and got 86’d for asking for something else. Next time I tried coming, I was told I was 86’d when I never did anything. All I wanted was a Corona. I haven’t done anything wrong. Worst experience when I am a paying customer who is harmless and loyal to good companies, and being treated like scum. They treat their employees horribly and it is truly upsetting in every way when they have amazing and hard working employees. Please tip them well because they are working hard for hardly anything, and it is truly sad how they are taken advantage of. Boooooo

Stumbled in after our Clippers lost to the Blazers on a rainy night. The place is fantastic. Hubby had the bartender’s choice, which was a delicious take on an old fashion. I had the endless summer and it was divine. We also shared the bacon cheesecake and you cannot miss it! Delicious.

Good points:
Awesome whiskey selection
Friendly servers
Seated quickly
Decent prices
Rectified our raw burger, made us a new one right away.
Not so good:
Our drinks were light on alcohol and flavor
(They were shaken to death)
Inattentive service
Swine burger was raw in the middle
Bacon Mac and Cheese arrived luke warm and not looking very appetizing.
Overall I felt it was just an off night for the kitchen and the wait staff seemed short staffed.
But, there is no excuse for a medium well burger to arrive cold/​raw in the middle.

This is the place to be for a happy hour that has delicious food and drinks at a reasonable price– it is by no means cheap though. While you can find $ 3-​$ 4 well drinks, wine etc down the road, wells and wine are $ 6 here. However delicious cocktails are also $ 6– the Endless Summer was very tasty. We tried the deviled eggs (you get three egg halves for $ 3) and calamari ($ 6) and both were very good. Service was friendly though on the slow side. There’s a limited number of couches and low tables– lots more high top chairs, so get there early if you want a comfier seat and more time to enjoy the tasty happy hour.

My first time in Portland and this bar didn’t disappoint. Came in here an hour before closing on a Monday night. Very warm and lounge-​y ambiance. Nice lighting, comfortable bar and dining areas.
The food selections from their happy hour were plenty. I tried about 4 items and all of them were delicious– just the right balance of flavors to complement their selection of cocktails. The cocktails were also carefully crafted and they were balanced– strong but flavorful drinks.
The server (shout out to Jaimie) was attentive, friendly, and knowledgeable about the menu and drinks– she had great food and drink recommendations that surely made this dining experience pleasant.
The mixologist/​bartender (forgot his name), was also commendable. And the kitchen staff for delivering great food.

From the outside it looks like a pricey specialty bar attached to a fine hotel. Looks are deceiving! It has a nice wooden cabin décor that fits it’s whiskey bar theme just perfectly. With hundreds of whiskeys to fit everyone’s price range and palette, you could not ask for more. They carry a few local /​regional beers on tap, the best being the infamous Whisky Back by local brewer ramsaydram (.com).
Staff is very friendly. If I didn’t know I was in Portland, OR, I’d swear I was back in my hometown of Milwaukee WI.
Most of the food is burgers or appetizers, but OMG! It is prepared /​presented as if it were out of a 5 star kitchen. Price? Very reasonable! Catch happy hours from 3pm-6:30pm and then again between 9:30pm-close. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!

Awesome happy hour menu!
The calamari had a really nice crunch on the outside, and the sweet and tangy sauce all over it was divine.
The bacon cheesecake was a genius concept. Okay, first of all, no, it’s not a dessert item. It is a cheesecake in that it has the appearance and the consistency of a cheesecake, but really, it’s more like a cheese spread. It’s served with baguette slices and a freaky-​looking, roasted half a garlic bulb. There’s nothing sweet about it. It’s all savory. I honestly thought they could’ve put more bacon in the cheesecake itself so that it had more bacon flavor, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I really appreciated the half a garlic bulb, actually, even if I obsessed about how creepy it looked at the same time.
Their pork rinds are special! They were seasoned well, jazzier than any I’ve had. I’d say a lot saltier as well, but not excessively. They were nice and tasted fresh.
Bourbon was never appealing to me until my visit to Swine. I had to do it here. I had a Lion’s Tail, and it was delicious! It was the perfect blend of bourbon and citrus. I could taste everything. I think I’m going to be a bourbon cocktail drinker because of this experience.
We were a bigger group because it was a work function, and our server did an amazing job of keeping track of everyone.
I loved the friendly, unpretentious, non-​hipsteresque vibe here as well. The modern-​meets-​rustic interior was cool, too.

Cool looking wood paneled bar with great service, friendly staff and a robust selection of fine spirits. Everything about this place was a hit with me! After having exceptionally poor service the night before at other (non related) businesses, it was so refreshing to come to a place that actually understands customer service.
Jamie was our server, she was charming, efficient and very knowledgable with her liquor recommendations. She asked about the types of bourbons I preferred (spicy, smooth, etc) and then made appropriate recommendations based on my preferences. She had a great smile and was a nice conversationalist. She was friendly but not familiar and tailored her interaction based on the style her customers desired. Excellent place to have fine cocktails. Check it.

Have now been here a couple of times for happy hour and just drinks. Full bar so they’ll make whatever you fancy, but they also have specialty cocktails that rotate thru the menu depending on the month/​season. Not too many beers on tap but I’m sure you’ll find something decent. I did. ;)
Happy hour food has been. OK. Can’t really complain when it’s so cheap (btwn the hours of 3pm and 630pm). The dips come out pretty generously, other things not so much. Still, because of the aforementioned HH deals, you can get a lot of different things and fill up just fine.
This is a great place to kill time whether youre checking in to the hotel or meeting up with friends before a show at the Schnitz. Not a good place to catch the game, however; the TVs are up sooo high! You will strain your neck for sure if you watch too long.

Came here for happy hour on a Sunday and had a wonderful experience. I loved the atmosphere, all the food was delicious (savory bacon cheesecake, COME ON), the drinks were fresh and creative, and our server was excellent. Highly recommend this spot for date night or girls night, especially when the weather is nice and you can enjoy the sidewalk seating.
The only thing keeping me from giving it five stars was that the calamari dish came out cold, and if it hadn’t been happy hour I would find it to be pretty expensive, as most restaurants attached to hotels are.

Great décor and ambiance. Nice place to chill. Used to be a sushi bar which I think will do a lot better how it is now.
Good drink selection. Not too steep on prices. It is a hotel bar so what can you really expect.

Came here on a chill Monday night having made reservations well in advanced. Because of this, I felt like service should have been a little more prompt. But, I guess those kind of courtesies are reserved for the affluent middle-​aged patron with a little more money in their pocket. It also didn’t help that our server was a little preoccupied with customers and another worker at the bar.
All things aside, we were eventually served and our food was brought to us in good time. At least the kitchen was on top of their game. I ordered the Beef Tartare as a starter (termed their ‘small plate’) and the Halibut as my main plate. I also sampled my friend’s Seared Foie. The Beef Tartare was very tasty but obviously a little slimy. I thought it was strange how it was served with potato chips… they weren’t extraordinary either. My friend’s Seared Foie was everything I thought it would be — extremely fatty and juicy; such a burst of flavor. I wasn’t at all keen on finishing such fatty goodness though without feeling poorly afterward. My Halibut was absolutely yummy! So tender and tasty, you can never go wrong with seafood.
In the end, I was a little turned off by how difficult it was to get the server’s attention, but the food is top-​notch and does not disappoint. We did order random cocktails from the menu (they were delicious!), so our bill was fairly pricey. The small plates were reasonably priced, but the main dishes are a little up there. Also, Unilocal lists this business as casual, but I didn’t see many people walking in there with casual attire. A little pretentious to me, so a little turned off by that as well, but I did enjoy my meal here immensely so I’ll leave them with 4 stars.

I really liked this place a lot. It is located within the Paramount Hotel. Although the main menu is devoted to whiskeys, bourbon, and the like, there is also a cocktail and beer menu. I got the Elysian stout and it was excellent. The flavor was deep, rich, and smoky. Very smooth.
The wife tried the «Huntsman» cocktail first, which she liked a lot. The second was «can’t wait for summer» which was very refreshing. Sorry, neither one of us can remember the ingredients. The first had vodka base and the second, who knows. Something good.
We also tried the redneck fondue which is chorizo and smoked cheddar with chips. The flavor was good but I was expecting something thicker, more like a queso. This one was very thin. And chips were too small.
Service was helpful and friendly. I would return again and consider this place a real find in the heart of downtown. Prices are very reasonable for happy hour.