McMenamins Chapel Pub

Specialties

The name «McMenamin» is well known throughout the Pacific Northwest, signifying a great place to enjoy handcrafted ales, wine, spirits and pub fare with family and friends. The dream began more than 30 years ago in the hearts of brothers Mike and Brian McMenamin and continues to spiral upward. With 57 properties (and counting!), the siblings are considered to be pioneers of the Pacific Northwest microbrew, historic hotels and music venue industries. Go to mcme​namins​.com for additional information, photos and more.

History

Established in 2006.

When the Wilson-​Chambers Mortuary was constructed in the fall of 1932, the press lauded it as «an architectural gem that ranks as one of Portland’s finest.» Prosperous neighborhood funeral directors Clarence and Bertha Wilson had spent the substantial sum of $ 40,000 (positively exorbitant by Depression-​era standards) to secure the very best builders, craftsmen and materials available to erect this marvelous building. In the late ‘30s, new proprietors added a set of chimes to the building’s many features. The addition prompted a change in business name to The Little Chapel of the Chimes. The Little Chapel of the Chimes continued as one of the city’s finest funeral homes until late in 2005, when its corporate owners decided to consolidate operations and close the doors. In 2006, McMenamins renovated the venerable funeral home, an inductee of that year to the National Register of Historical Places, as both a restaurant and new location for its company headquarters.

Meet the Business Owner

Mike and Brian M.

Business Owner

The creative force behind McMenamins is brothers Mike and Brian McMenamin. At first glance, these down-​to-​earth men seem an unlikely pair to head the hotels, pubs and breweries company that began when older brother Mike and a couple friends opened Portland’s Produce Row Café in 1974. They just don’t fit the typical corporate make-​up — and perhaps that’s why it’s all worked out as well as it has? The McMenamins are of Irish descent and Portland birth — Mike was born in 1951, Brian in ’57 — and both fully absorbed the culture and quirks of their upbringing in Oregon’s City of Roses. From great bartenders to the razing of the classic Portland Hotel to the launch of Oregon’s first craft brewery and beyond left indelible imprints upon their psyches and cultivated their appreciation for local character and characters. Mike and Brian expanded their educations at Oregon State University in Corvallis, both graduating with degrees in political science during the 1970s.