Tug Boat Brewing

A great place to come with others, to have good beer and play a board game. But I was alone and had a blast going through their book collection. Good times

It’s the kind of place I don’t want to give a 5 star review to because I don’t want everyone to come here. That said, it’s my favorite after work haunt in downtown Portland. It’s often not crowded, it’s quiet enough to hold a conversation with someone across the table from you, and the beers on tap are excellent.
It’s a place I take my friends who are visiting from out of town to give them an idea of what a Portland bar is like. In the best ways.
It’s a place I go after work because it’s relaxing and accommodating.
Highly recommended.

This spot is a downtown gem for folks looking for a sophisticated dive bar (is that an oxymoron?) Friendly service, clean, dimly lit, book-​lined walls, no shortage of good beer and bar snacks. Jazz music playing over the speakers last time I was in. Safe space for women and LGBTQ drinkers. Order at the bar — no table service.

Cool little bar! It looks really small and closed from the outside but as soon as you walk in, you’re transported into a mood lit room with a library feel (possibly due to the books on the wall). They also have board games! Which are a great accompaniment to beer. We tried some of their house brews but all seemed much stronger than other IPAs on the market. They have higher alcohol content than most as well!

Really charming place filled with locals. Great service and house brews. A small, but delicious and satisfying food menu

Fantastic dive bar if you want to relax in a darker, library environment and play board games with friends. It kinda looks shady from the outside but was cozy and welcoming in the interior.

The Tugboat Brewery is a stop you cannot afford to miss in Portland. A very eclectic atmosphere and great beer coupled with amazing service make it an amazing and unique experience far removed from the cookie cutter breweries popping up everywhere. Ask for Linsel. He’ll make it an experience you won’t forget.

Best little brewery in Portland. Not a big name, but they have big personality. Great, strong brews and an incredibly engaging and friendly staff. It’s like your buddy’s house were everyone used to hang out before they started wearing suits. Bookshelves line the walls, mismatched chairs around old wooden tables, and enough board games to last all night. Never too crowded, but you can always find good people in good spirits. Also an excellent $ 3 craft pint happy hour from 4−7pm.

I loved this little brewery! It’s dark, moody a bit like a little tug boat might encounter out in the salty water.
At this little brewery Steve and I got several beers here. We got a stout, an amber and a Red ale.
All very delicious and refreshing while we were out and about in downtown Portland. If we lived in Portland and in the neighborhood this place could easily become a watering hole!
Great place!

We were visiting Portland for a week and while checking out downtown we made our last stop here. We love a more quiet and laid back spot to have a drink so this place was perfect. It has a great ambiance with dim lighting and some classic Mickey cartoons playing on the tv behind the bar. There are books and board games surrounding the walls which you are welcome to play. The bartender Linsel was incredibly nice and helpful when helping you out. He helped us decide which need to get based on our preferences. We enjoyed the two IPAs on tap as well as the Alameda Ale and their I house brew which was very good. Linsel came by our table every once in a while to check in on us and when we were ready to head out he came to our table to ring us up. We were pleasantly surprised to find that our total for 4 pints was only $ 18! Definitely the best priced beer I’ve ever had anywhere. Would definitely make this our regular place if we lived here in Portland.

Got a fiah tail amber. Was g9od. The people greet you when u come into the bar its part of the bar tradution.
Nothing too special about the place nice tourist attraction

One of a kind old haunt in Downtown Portland. I don’t know the full history, but I believe it’s the Oldest Brewery in Portland.
So they have their own beer and approximately 14 guest beers and cider. I admit I go for the Guest taps. It’s dark and cozy — plenty of seating for a small pub. They have about 6 seats at the bar. One big screen TV usually on an Animal or History Channel. Loads of cool old pictures, nautical relics, light fixtures.
I came here many years ago and now — have reunited with TugBoat again. It’s charming and authentic. The lead host/​bartender, Linsel is very thorough and well acquainted with the beers. I stumbled in here once on a Monday eve. They cheered me as I walked in the door. Every Monday «Cheer Monday» — patrons are encouraged to cheer guests «yay» as they walk in. It creates a bit of old school charm and camaraderie.
I see they have food offerings, but I have not dined here. It seems legit, quick, and satisfying from my impression. They have a few eclectic items and seem to prepare them in a pretty tiny space. They have books and games lining the walls.
Genuine warm feel. If you are waiting for a table at Imperial for instance, or feel a bit claustrophobic at Bailey’s Taproom — don’t overlook TugBoat Brewing Co.

Located on a little alley-​looking half-​street, this place could easily be missed by the casual beer drinker. It was, several times, by this author, until I commanded my handheld device to show me the way.
Stepping inside is a bit of a warp — old text books line the walls, and it has that dusty, mote-​y feeling that a warm afternoon ray of sunlight might just ignite the whole place, releasing the ghosts of drinkers past.
With cheap beer and food on hand, all of it made nearby (somewhere), it’s a nice little downtown bar with a neighborhood british or local pub feel. Board games and the aforementioned books make for an inviting atmosphere. Not exactly on my top brewery visit list, but it could be worked into a lazy weekday writing/​reading schedule.

I adore this place… it’s truly my go to bar. Now I’m not a beer drinker so I can’t speak to that… and I must admit I am thrown by the low star reviews. To me thia place is all charecter! All ambiance! Fantastic, friendly service and great snacks!
The lighting is dim w/​vintage flare. Silent films play, big band and jazz play and the fireplace flickers. Books line the walls for days and there are games of plenty to pick from. A haunted cheif stares back at you from a rad painting. Finally the appropriate wooden boat wheel adorns the back of the door.
This place was opened in 1993 and was Portland’s first local brew pub. The wine is only $ 4/​glass (what!?) and all the beers are homemade or locally featured! Also… the nachoa are amazingggg.
Love, love, love it here!

I almost don’t want to review this place because it’s my go-​to spot for a quiet, relaxed, post-​work drink, and I don’t want it getting overrun. The only problem is Tug Boat is too good to not say a few kind words.
If you’re in the mood for a cold beer (or cider) and a little privacy to read a book or chat with a friend, then Tug Boat can’t be beat. However, if you’re looking for a lively, energetic spot to start a party or wild night, then this is likely not what you’re looking for.
The charm of this place is that it’s one of the few venues where you can actually go and talk to people rather than shouting «what? what?! WHAT?!» while a bartender’s favorite «Partytimes» Spotify playlist thunders in the background

Loved the Tug Boat, like others have said it’s very much not your usual brew pub, it’s a lot more quaint and low key. The atmosphere is almost like a coffee shop with booths and tables, but dimly lit and very relaxing. The beer was good and the service was amazing. Our luck that night was to be served by a nice fella named Linsel (not a name you see every day). He was so friendly, so accommodating and so nice to us all.
It was really late but he wasn’t phased at all by whipping us up some food so close to their closing time. My nachos were so big I believe I shared them with at least 5 people. My friend got the Mac and Cheese and was delighted with it. You wouldn’t think food made behind a bar would be good, but it was great! Overall I would come here again and I would hope to see the friendly face of Linsel again.

What an awesome place! Great atmosphere, bartender was awesome. Monday was «cheer everyone who comes in» day, made for a very inviting atmosphere. Good beer selection, decent food, but overall just a nice place to hang out. Definitely a place to have a few beers and have a good conversation!

Cozy dive brewery (I never thought those words would flow together so well!)
This cute little brewery has countless board games and books to enjoy with friends over a cold beer. The service here was wonderful with one of the happiest bartenders in Portland.
Hint: they keep decks of cards and Cards Against Humanity behind the bar. Just ask!

Big fan of this place after one visit, I will surely be back for more. We had a larger party and had no problem getting served on a summer Wednesday evening. The beer they brew in-​house is delicious (for the most part; all agreed the beer they had on special called something related to bears was pretty piss-​watery) and I especially enjoyed the Amber and the Stout. The price is great too, $ 4 for a pint.
Food wise their options are fairly slim, don’t go here expecting gastro-​pub fare. Basic nachos, potstickers, that sort of thing which are nothing special and, though I didn’t inquire, don’t strike me as being made in-​house.
The feel of the place, though, is what really made my experience great. Shelves of books line the walls, there’s a big stack of board games I imagine are available for customer use (everyone refused my challenges to play chess), and there’s kitchy art hung on the walls. The lights are dim, a stark contrast from the bright outside, giving it a speakeasy, neighborhood pub type feel. It isn’t cramped though; plenty of space between tables and a nice high ceiling contribute to make it feel spacious.
Both a perfect place to grab some drinks with a bunch of friends or tuck away in a corner to sip alone or have a conversation with someone else, Tug Boat Brewing is a hidden gem of downtown Portland.

Cozy, super chill, small brewery in the middle of Portland where they have an antique TV (one where it’s not a flatscreen, yes those used to exist believe it or not!) showing super super old cartoons from back in the 60s and 70s.
Bartender was very knowledgeable in their beers as well as the area around Portland, very easy to talk to and just overall a friendly person. Pricing is pretty cheap here as well, they carry their own brewed beers as well as a handful of guest tap beers.
Great place to come and hang out with your small group of friends if you’re looking for a good time and not trying to get all crazy like or spend a ton of moola, or if you really want to just relive the old days of watching actual cartoons!

We stumbled upon this place two summers ago by accident, and the atmosphere in this little hole in the wall brewery has brought us back two summers in a row. What’s not to love about board games and beer? It’s quiet enough that you can actually carry on a good conversation (Good enough to continue the evening at the Pope House with our newly met acquaintances after sharing my love of bourbon), that Chernobyl Stout packs a delicious punch, and I’m a sucker for anywhere that supplies a plethora of chex mix for me to munch on. Make sure to try a half and half concoction of the Atlas blackberry cider and Schilling apple cider… Yumm. This place is just so perfectly Portland, and one of many reasons we miss this city as soon as we leave.

Cant believe im reading that this place makes great beer. I didn’t find n e beers pleasing at all. Kind of have a running joke of taking people here and I will get whatever is the guest tap.
Avoid this spot and stay at Bailey’s.
Parvis 2 Men

Good beers, good bar food eats. We are loving eating the Mac n cheese… Potstickers are good, too. Yes, better beers are out there, however, the experience of being here is worth much.
Monday night cheers and boos is pretty fun haha. Also, the board games and books make this a lot of fun! We are playing battleship.
Mac and Cheese is nice and cheesey and well prepared. Automatically brought salt, pepper and hot sauce — which is a nice touch.
The «guard dog» who shuts the door is amusing.
I would recommend — this is a great little whole in the wall!