Queen of Hearts Tavern

Vrrrrrrooom.

I am giving the type of review of which I'd usually disapprove, because I have to admit, I have not been inside the Queen of Hearts. Mostly because the bank of bikes (and by bikes I mean vrroooomm VVVVRRRROOOOMMM-babba-babba) and the presence of their bedazzled owners indicate that it is probably not my kind of place.

However: does it take away from the interestingness (to borrow a phrase from flickr) of my neighborhood? Nah, I don't think so. It adds a dash of leather and a lick of flames, something to distinguish it from neighborhoods with more starched white collars or white boy dreadlocks. Not that we don't have those too.

Aw man... see, now I'm gonna have to go in and give a proper updated review.

Sometimes its hard to tell if a business is trying to clean up its act, or is balls out rolling in the mud. Queen of Hearts Tavern definitely lies somewhere in the middle.
The pros: live music, really tasty bbq that you can buy on the street and some pretty hot zz top looking dudes who hang outside to keep a watchful eye on their bikes.
The cons: its a dive, which isnt a con if your into real and true hardcore dive bars. The Queen has been from conception a divey, dusty joint. If you arent willing to roll up your sleeves and display your finest ink, Saturday nights here can be a bit intimidating.
The Queen is a great place to stop and get boozed up before hitting Mt Scott park for some kick ball or tennis, and you wont feel weird if you arent a regular neighbor hoody. The regulars might be the meanest looking crew around but have big hearts and are super friendly

Under new management -- NEW and IMPROVED!!
NOW called CADIGAN'S CORNER - and much nicer -- see the reviews and return for great music and more.

So you've got a hankering for leather vests, tight blue jeans, and some serious motorcycles, do you?

Well then, bring your toughest game face and your best raunchy joke on over to the Queen of Hearts. But you might want to leave your moped at home, or at least park it up the street...

The regulars know how to throw back some drinks and get down to one of their weekly classic rock cover bands. It's not rare to see a mid-50s couple, shaking what the good lord gave 'em, while the man keeps a steady hand on the tough woman's denim-lined butt. It always puts a smile on my face.

The crowd definitely knows how to talk the talk. But they're harmless unless you ask for trouble. The last time a patron punched Joe in the royal gems, glass was shattered. And I mean the front door.

It's a nice mix of bikers, greasers, and random wandering locals here at the Queen of Hearts. I wouldn't be surprised to see every single person at the bar out front having a cigarette while admiring the well-adorned and deeply loved two-wheel vroom vroom machines.

If you get a chance, ask the bartender if they know how to make a Devil's Angel. It's one of their old school bar drinks and it is fantastic.

They had an advertisement on the tables with a list of drinks and the Rice Krispy Treat was calling my name. The bartender, however, appeared confused when I ordered it and then informed me that they do not carry Whipped Cream vodka (which is one of the ingredients). I ordered the one listed next to it instead; Cherry Bomb. Bad idea. It tasted like medicine, and not the tasty kind. If it hadn't been so busy, I may not have felt so rushed to get my order in, and might have ordered something better. The bar was busy and the bartenders were a little unfriendly and in a hurry. I can't say that I blame them, as there were 4 bands playing and a decent crowd, all ordering drinks at once.

If you're going to drink here, you're better off just sticking to PBR, as they keep that on ice and readily available next to the counter.

This place is a freakin' gem. Last night stopped in, expecting nothing. Saw a bunch of people who looked like "musicians". LIke the types who had been around, not just in a bunch of bands, but all over the place. Turned out it was a bunch of old regular session / tour musicians. And guess what? When Hall & Oates' drummer and Robert Palmer's guitarist get together, they aren't playing "addicted to love" or "rich girl". The bass player was one of those Jaco acolytes with a beret and session musician hair who I worried was gonna "treat" us to a harmonics-laden soft funk showcase, but he behaved himself as best they could, and as a group they just absolutely killed it! And Joe, the apparent owner of the joint, bought my whole table a round.
I'mma go back!

It's such a dive but they have great bands here and the drinks are cheap. They even clear out a place in front of the stage where you can dance on the nasty carpet. We've been here more times than I can count, especially when Lisa and Her Kin are playing. It's so much fun to watch hardcore bikers dance around and rock out with done-up rockabilly kids. The food here is nasty bar food but the drinks are strong and the lights are low. It's a bit out of the way in a working class neighbor.

This is my neighborhood bar, and it has changed a lot since last year. its no longer a biker bar. the marquee reads "no cover ever", and they have some AWESOME bands that play (avoid hip-hop night, its a bad scene) the bartenders are very friendly, and all the regulars will give you good conversation. they have art shows sometimes, which draws a very cool crowd. drink prices are fair, $4 drafts, $4 wells, and $2 tall cans and pbr bottles. also, free pool.

This is my first review on Yelp, ever, however I decided I really wanted to commend the Queen of Hearts for the night they gave me and my friends last night,.

First off, we did not fit the stereotypical "biker" scene, nor do we look like we're "dive bar" people, so going into a bar that embraces both those scenes, it was intimidating. The first few moments I kept wondering if we'd get hassled for being different. None of my friends have problems with scenes, but sometimes people don't like folks who are different.

Went went to see the music artist Lady Kat and her amazing band. If you've never heard of her, you need to. She puts on quite the show. So even though this bar was a foreign to us, we didn't let that stop us for seeing her sing.

My group had only been sitting in our booth for a few minutes before a man came over, sat down at our table, and started a conversation about how happy he was we were there. We looked around, and the bar was semi-full, and clearly most of the people at the bar new each other. We found out later that the man was the owner of the bar, Joe. He not only made us feel welcomed, he introduced us to his wife, some of his friends, and genuinely seemed to appreciate having us there.

I will totally be back to visit this place. Their philosophy is to have a bar that follows the melting pot motto. An area free for all to enjoy without having to worry about fitting in. It's a dive bar, a biker bar, and a bar in which a group of lesbians and queer folk can go into, and feel like they'll be able to fit in with the lot of them.

I love a heavy handed bartender, one who gives a long bourbon pours and smiles while he does it. Had a great time here. A great band was playing some sort of raspy blues funk and i asked who they were and one of the cocktailers said, "Oh, they're just jamming." We've been trying to get them together for a while now. Super chatty, real friendly crowd. It was the type of people scene that me sigh, and say, Ahh Portland, I really could move here."