Best Pubs with Rooms

No. 6: The Green Room
The opening act

In showbiz, a green room provides a relaxing place to hang out before the bright lights of a TV show or theater. So it goes with the Green Room, a new space that functions both as its own bar and a waiting room for the Multnomah Whiskey Library. It's a status symbol when restaurants can open adjunct bars to sip away the wait: Think Beast with Expatriate. But it's unusual when a bar grows so popular it needs an auxiliary lounge. With the Green Room, perched beside the Library's stairway, there's no doubt it's the opening act. The doorman even inquires whether you'll make your way upstairs. And you should. But this newcomer has its own pleasures, foremost the same quality service, attention to detail and a list of aperitifs and sherry cocktails opening the palate for more spirituous adventures upstairs. One area where the Green Room is never second-best is in its verdant hue: From wide swaths of green tile to small accents, it feels like Kermit the Frog went wild, and it works. But St. Patrick's Day aside, it's bound to pale in the shadow of the Library's ornate art direction and liquor wonderland. So why does it cost the same?

Order this: Stay on theme and invite the Green Fairy for a visit with an absinthe frappe: Verte absinthe, lime, mint, sugar and sparkling water over shaved ice.