Coffee Beer
| Coffee Beer | |
|---|---|
 | |
_-_14.jpg) The restaurant's exterior, 2026 | |
 Interactive map of Coffee Beer | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Owner | Phillip Stewart |
| Food type | Vegan |
| Location | 4142 Southeast 42nd Avenue, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon, 97206, United States |
| Coordinates | 45°29′34″N 122°37′08″W / 45.4928°N 122.6188°W |
| Website | coffeeebeeer |
Coffee Beer (stylized in all caps and sometimes called CoffeeBeer or Coffee-Beer)[1][2][3] is a vegan restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States. It operates as a coffee shop and bar in southeast Portland's Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood, serving various coffee, espresso, and mixed drinks, as well as burritos, hot dogs, pastries, sandwiches, and other food options. Coffee Beer has garnered a positive reception and was deemed one the nation's best vegan restaurants by VegNews in 2023.
Description
[edit]The coffee shop and bar Coffee Beer operates on 42nd Avenue in southeast Portland's Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood. In 2019, Pete Cottell of Willamette Week described Coffee Beer as a "bodega-cafe hybrid" that "actually doubles as a design and marketing project" for one of the owners.[4] The LGBTQ-owned,[5] vegan restaurant has indoor and outdoor seating,[6] and hosts events such as VHS film nights.[7]
Menu
[edit]Coffee Beer has coffee drinks with plant milks, slushies (including alcoholic options), and other mixed beverages.[7] Among espresso drinks are Americanos with cardamom or CBD shots,[7][8] as well as cappuccinos, lattes, mochas, and an iced "cospresso", which has Coca-Cola or ginger ale. Coffee Beer also has cold brews with various flavored syrup options, including caramel, cardamom, hazelnut, lavender, and pistachio.[9] The restaurant also has drinks with whisky, as well as canned and draft beer from various breweries including Modern Times, North Coast, and pFriem.[4][7] Named after one of the co-owners, the Phillip's Cup has Fernet, Coca-Cola, and lime. The Cuddler has Tin Cup whisky, vanilla cream soda, and an espresso shot.[4] Other drink options include ginger spice chai, hot chocolate, and Thai tea with turmeric.[9]
The food menu includes Phatt Dawgs, described as vegan variants of the hot dogs available at convenience stores,[10] as well as Higher Taste burritos,[5] including a cheesy tofu scramble variety and a breakfast burrito with baked tofu, roasted potatoes, and vegan cheddar.[8][9] The Fiery Fiesta burrito has rice, sautéed vegetables, hot sauce, and lime. The bean and cheese burrito has pinto beans, rice, and vegan cheddar.[9] Coffee Beer has used Cultured Kindness cheese[11] and stocked sandwiches from Snackrilege as well as pastries from Shoofly Vegan Bakery.[1][4]
History
[edit]_-_08.jpg)
Coffee Beer current storefront opened in March 2018. Previously, the business operated as a pop-up restaurant.[2] Coffee Beer is co-owned by artist Phillip Stewart.[12] When the brick and mortar restaurant opened, Stewart also owned the adjacent convenience and grocery store called Cutiee Buys.[2][13] Cutiee Boys subsequently closed on December 31, 2023.[14]
Coffee Beer offers branded merchandise such as koozies, mugs, and lapel pins.[1] Some of the products have "blunt slogans that extol the virtues of a bullshit-free life powered by caffeine and alcohol", according to Cottell of Willamette Week.[4] A senior pug called A$AP Douglas has been described as the business's mascot.[5]
Like many restaurants, Coffee Beer operated via take-out during the COVID-19 pandemic.[12] In March 2023, Brooke Jackson-Glidden of Eater Portland said the business "takes the COVID-19 precautions more seriously than most these days".[6] Coffee Beer has hosted the vegan Venezuelan restaurant El Salto as a pop-up.[15] Coffee Beer was added to Vegetarian Resource Group's guide to vegan and vegetarian restaurants in the U.S. and Canada in 2026.[9]
Reception
[edit]_-_06.jpg)
In 2018, Thomas Alexander Ross of the Portland Mercury opined, "it's honestly hard to tell if they're a coffee and beer company or a coffee and beer merchandise company". Noting the abundance of branded merchandise, he wrote, "at this late hour in capitalism, I'm genuinely confused about whether it's a perfectly humane synthesis of service, makerism, and community, or a deeply embedded retail machine. Either way, I bought a lot of pins, drank some beers, and will happily do it all again."[1] Pete Cottell included Coffee Beer in Willamette Week's 2019 list of "our nine favorite new coffee shops".[4]
The business ranked third in the Best Vegan Coffee Shop and Best Vegan Bar categories of VegNews's 2023 overview of the nation's 28 best vegan restaurants.[16] The business won in the Best Vegan Coffee shop category in 2025.[8] The magazine's Tanya Flink also ranked Coffee Beer tenth in a 2025 list of 18 vegan-friendly bars and breweries, saying the business offers beer and coffee "to an incredibly high standard".[10] Nathan Williams included Coffee Beer in Eater Portland's 2023 overview of recommended restaurants in Creston-Kenilworth.[7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 Ross, Thomas Alexander (2018-10-23). "Welcome to the Neighborhood, Cafés!". Portland Mercury. Archived from the original on 2025-11-16. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 3 Reports, Staff (2021-10-30). "New 'mini grocery store' opens in Creston-Kenilworth". The Bee. Pamplin Media Group. OCLC 55663345. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ Allison, Megan (2021-06-07). "Police address safety concerns after four killed in SE Portland shooting". KATU. Archived from the original on 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Our Nine Favorite New Coffee Shops". Willamette Week. 2019-01-02. OCLC 54813570. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- 1 2 3 "Sixteen Queer-Owned Bars, Restaurants, and Cafes in Portland That We Love". Portland Mercury. 2025-06-26. Archived from the original on 2025-09-10. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2023-03-23). "Ask Eater: What Happened to All the Combination Cafe-Bars?". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2024-12-27. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Williams, Nathan (2023-05-08). "Where to Eat and Drink in Portland's Creston-Kenilworth Neighborhood". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2026-07-23. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 3 Bowie, Richard. "The VegNews Restaurant Awards: Readers Choose the Best Vegan Eateries of 2025". VegNews. ISSN 1544-8495. Archived from the original on 2026-08-02. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Vegan Restaurants Added to VRG's Guide to Veggie Restaurants in the USA and Canada". Vegetarian Resource Group. Archived from the original on 2026-06-27. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- 1 2 Flink, Tanya. "Come for the Drinks, Stay for the Food: 18 Vegan-Friendly Bars and Breweries". VegNews. Archived from the original on 2026-07-15. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- ↑ Wu, Waz (2021-10-01). "Portland Vegan Cheese Shop Cultured Kindness Wants to Make Dairy Irrelevant". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2025-07-22. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- 1 2 "The governor shut down restaurants. Many restaurant owners cheered". Portland Tribune. 2020-03-16. OCLC 46708462. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- ↑ Wong, Janey (2022-07-01). "14 Fantastic Specialty Markets in East Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2024-01-06. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ Wong, Janey (2021-01-20). "Portland's Restaurant, Bar, and Food Cart Closures". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ Wu, Waz (2023-09-19). "Vegan Venezuelan Pop-Up El Salto Is Opening a Food Cart on Belmont". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2024-02-23. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
- ↑ "The 28 Best Vegan Restaurants in America". VegNews. Archived from the original on 2026-07-19. Retrieved 2026-08-21.
External links
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