Address: 3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd
Pricing: Theater: $3 ($2 on Tuesdays)
Phone: (503) 236-9234
Hours: See website for movie times
How To Get There:
Located on Hawthorne Street in Southeast Portland.
From downtown Portland, take the Hawthorne Bridge and head east, the theater will be on your right.
By Public Transit: TriMet Bus route #15 runs from downtown down Burnside Street.
Parking:Street parking is available
Visit Website
Bagdad Theater & Pub: Portland’s Historical Piece of Hollywood
Mar 31, 2010
Like a mirage rising out of Hawthorne Street, the Bagdad Pub’s neon sign lights up the street both day and night. Part movie theater, part restaurant/bar, the Bagdad is a perfect low-key excursion for every visitor to Portland.
Walking into the Bagdad, you will soon understand why this is no regular movie theater. Beautifully restored, it gives off an almost time-machine like vibe. It will transport you back to the days when people dressed up to go to the movies as they would for a play or opera. The interior can be described as “barreled arches, ornate wrought-iron fixtures, brilliant mosaics and painted Mediterranean designs and characters.”
While the theater looks exquisite, the atmosphere is pure Portland: laid back and inviting. To top it off, you can watch the movie with pint of McMenamin’s local brews. The theater specializes in “second-run” movies. This means it plays movies that are either classics or movies that have been out for a month or longer. Part of the allure is to see your favorite movie on the big screen or seeing that latest blockbuster at a bargain price.
The Bagdad Pub also has an affordable and delectable restaurant. So even if you’re not in the mood for a movie, you can grab a pizza or burger from the McMenamin’s menu. With a versatile kid’s menu, the restaurant is also a good choice if you are traveling with young ones. Please note, though, that kids under 21 are only allowed in before 9pm.
Outdoor seating is a perfect choice for sunny summer days. Located at the center of Portland’s eclectic Hawthorne District, there are plenty of shops up and down Hawthorne Street, including the popular Powell’s bookstore right across the street.
Owned by the McMenamins chain of attractions and restaurants, it is described as a “marvelous relic of Hollywood's Golden Age, a movie palace full of wonder and surprises.” The theater was designated as a National Historic Place in 1989. It is rich with folklore, the sight of the premiere for the movie classic "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" (starring Jack Nicholson) in 1975 and Gus Van Sant’s "My Own Private Idaho" in 1991.
HelloPortland Tip: $2 Tuesdays are a perfect deal, where you get a dollar off the price of a movie ticket!
- by William Crane, Portland Reporter for HelloMetro
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William CraneWilliam Crane is an accomplished print and online journalist (http://www.william-crane.com) His work covers a variety of topics including features, local community news, sports, music, and political/social issues.
Graduating from Seattle University with a B.A. in Journalism, William's writing has appeared in a variety of different publications including the Stranger, Capitol Hill Times, the Skanner, Backfire Magazine, and the Internationalist.
