Holman's Bar & Grill

​Portland, OR
​
Nothing delights me more than a retro neon sign. Especially when the neon sign includes the word cocktails.

Bonus points for decorated windows! These were painted with holiday greetings and clinking martini glasses!  
​
Last Summer

This past summer, Don and I spotted this wonderful place. Our daughter and son-in-law had literally just moved to SW Portland, into an apartment around the corner. ​

The sight of this neighborhood bar might scare some parents. But Don and I didn't worry. Instead, we joined the "newlyweds" and celebrated with drinks. 

The Bar
​
​The front door opened to the original bar, which has been serving customers for over 80 years... first, as a lunch counter, then a bootleggers saloon during prohibition.

The Holman's sold the bar to the current owners in the 1970's. Last summer the bar stools were empty.

​The Game Room
​

The game room with its slanted linoleum floor was practically empty, too. But the walls were full of entertainment!

Garden Patio
​
​Last summer, it was a lovely day when we shared drinks on the patio bar. It didn't look quite as inviting, when we returned on December 26th. 

But even in the cold drizzle, the little area behind the bar looked a lot better than it did years ago... when it was an old used appliance graveyard. I learned that from some menu trivia.

December 26,  2018
​
​We ended up having lunch at Holman's, on the day after Christmas. We were just finishing a festive holiday celebration with our kids and their spouses in Portland.

What better place to dine, before heading to the airport!

The North Dining Room
​
​I tried not to intrude with my camera, but there were quite a few people seated at the dark bar, at 11:30 am.

We headed to the dining room, which was added in the '70's.  It sort of felt like we were sitting down for a meeting at our round table, with rolling task chairs.
​
Settling In
​
​As it turns out, we were lucky to get this prized dining spot.

Holman's opens at 8 am and Heidi said the table is usually occupied, by older gentleman, when she walks by in the morning. 

BYOS
​
​I ordered a BLT with fries. That seemed like the kind of food I might have ordered years ago, at the lunch counter.

They would have surely delivered my beverage with a straw, back in 1933. The sign on the table was a reminder that it was 2018 and we were in Portland. (Too bad the metal straws that Santa brought me, were packed!)

Looking Around!
​
​While we chatted and ate our fairly decent meals, I took in all the fun decor.

The dining room had once been a Rexall Drugs and I tried to picture that. I doubt the Cigar Man was part of the drug store decor, but the lit up Rudolph and Snowman could have been. 

Shoes and Socks
​
​Before noon, the Game Room was very quiet. I checked out the slanted floor again and the pinball machines and the square windows, that let me peek in on the bar. I

 smiled to see the wooden shoe display, that I remembered. I was glad they had added some felt socks for the holidays!

​Meal Wheel

​We didn't have time to play Pacman or pinball, but our very nice server did invite us to spin the Meal Wheel, before we paid up.

She watched from the bar, while we took turns, hoping to match up the arrows for a free lunch.

Winner!
​
​This photo makes the wheel look like it was spinning crazily fast! It wasn't.

Luckily my wimpy attempt was strong enough to make one revolution... before finishing with the red arrows pointing at each other! Free Meal! 

My BLT was free and I got to write my name on the Winner's Chalkboard! This was my first dining adventure, involving a free meal!  
​