First look at Backwoods Brewing in the Pearl Portland

Just 3 weeks ago, Backwoods Brewing Company announced plans to move into the space once known as Pearl Tavern. The turnaround was quick and the makeover is impressive. We were able to attend a small friends & family event on Saturday, July 7th to preview the new satellite pub. The pub officially opens to the public today, Monday, July 9th at 11:30am.Folks who have been to Backwoods' pub in Carson, WA will be right at home in the Pearl District. The aesthetics mimic the forest and wood-centric environment of their space in the Columbia Gorge - right down to the burnt-in iconic bottle n' tree logo on the tables and bar tops.The menu for this event was a teaser of what's to come. The new location does not have a pizza oven - something Backwoods has become well-known for at their original pub. Backwoods in the Pearl will feature appetizers, salads, sandwiches and burgers at price points visitors to the Pearl will be happy to see. For appetizers, the Hummus Plate was fairly standard while the Garlic Parmesan Tots were to die for. (Pro-tip: Get the tots with an added sprinkling of feta.)For lunch, we enjoyed Pa Dale's Chicken Sammich - a slightly charred hearty helping of chicken with pepper mayo, avocado and mozzarella hit the spot. The 'sammich' is named for one of the brewery's first employees and a recognizable face around Backwoods, Dale Bybee. You can't miss his white Detlef Schrempf-style flat top and white Santa Claus beard. He's the type of guy that you're going to get an introduction from if you're within eye sight and embodies the old-school hospitality that Backwoods intends to bring to downtown Portland.Backwoods will have 14 beers on tap and, according to co-owner Kevin Waters, you'll begin to see some offerings available exclusively in The Pearl. For our pre-opening visit, just 8 beers were on tap and we enjoyed Copperline Amber, Mosaic Single Hop Pale and Logyard IPA.Another first for Backwoods is the offering of a full bar and signature cocktails. We enjoyed a cocktail called All Day Lemonade which seemed to be based on a Lynchburg Lemonade with Jack Daniels. It was far more tart than expected, but in the best way possible. A great beverage for the 85+ degree day we had.Backwoods in the Pearl is family-friendly and their hours will be 11:30am-10:00pm Sunday-Thursday and 11:30am-11:00pm Friday and Saturday.