Portland's smart cocktail lounges and dive bars easily rival those of Seattle. The city is a beer-drinker's haven, with over thirty local microbreweries . BridgePort Ale House , 3632 SE Hawthorne Blvd (tel 503/233-6540), and BridgePort Brewing Co , 1313 NW Marshall St (tel 503/241-3621), are two solid choices, and the McMenamins "concept" brewpubs sell their own locally-brewed ales in unique settings, such as former schoolhouses and renovated hotels ( www.mcmenamins.com ). The coffee -swilling scene looms large, but without Seattle's ubiquitous coffee carts naturally, though, Starbucks is everywhere. For music , the place to head is downtown, with the coolest venues centered around Burnside.
The art scene in Portland revolves around the Portland Center for the Performing Arts , 1111 SW Broadway (tel 503-248-4335 or 224-4000, www.pcpa.com ), a dynamic complex consisting of two main buildings the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall and the New Theater Building, containing the Dolores Winningstad Theater and Newmark Theater . The "Schnitz" is a sumptuously restored 1928 vaudeville and movie house that presents big musical extravaganzas, opera and theater, hosting performances by the Oregon Symphony Orchestra (tel 503/228-1353), Portland Opera (tel 503/241-1407) and Oregon Ballet Theater (tel 503/222-5538), amongst others. Several blocks east at SW 3rd Avenue between Market and Clay streets, the Ira Keller Auditorium (tel 503-274-6560) is home to traveling musicals.
As for festivals , Portland State University hosts the mid-July Portland International Performance Festival ( www.extended.pdx.edu/pipf ) for contemporary dance and theater productions. During the summer, free concerts are held at Pioneer Courthouse Square, Tom McCall Waterfront Park, and the zoo.
The free Willamette Week ( www.wweek.com ), available on any street corner, carries listings of what's on and where, as does the Friday edition of The Oregonian , the main local newspaper ( www.oregonian.com ). Just Out is the chief gay/lesbian publication ( www.justout.com ).