During our year of living in Portland, we discovered a chain of very quirky hotels and restaurants called McMenamins. Founded in 1983, the family-owned business has become famous in the Pacific Northwest. Although they are a chain, no two locations are alike.

Our friends from California visited us during the spring of our year in Portland, and they raved about McMenamin’s Kennedy School Hotel, which they visited for cocktails. The location of the hotel was a former elementary school that was built in 1915, it had been abandoned until McMenamin’s renovated it, turning it into a unique hotel with a movie theater, multiple bars and restaurants.

Here is a picture of the Kennedy School in the 1940’s.

And how it looks today…

The entire property takes on an Alice in Wonderland air, as visitors explore the different rooms, passages and multiple levels. The art work that adorns the walls are clearly not original to the school house, as they take on a nightmarish quality. I kept sensing that this would be a fantastic building for a halloween event. It also must be a very trippy experience for visitors who worked at or attended the original Kennedy School.

In keeping with the “school theme” the hotel has a detention bar. The principal’s office has also been turned into a bar, which two of our friends who are retired teachers, really loved.

We parked ourselves in The Boiler Room for the signature cocktail, Ginger Pear Sidecars. The Boiler Room is an overwhelming experience for the eyes: exposed pipes, ornate lighting fixtures, and beautiful stained glass.

Whether you visit the Kennedy School Hotel or one of their other properties in the Pacific Northwest, you are sure to have a memorable experience at a McMenamins! Make sure to bring your appetite for adventure and stomach for a strong, well-made cocktail! Also, if you plan to visit more than one McMenamins Property, make sure to ask for a passport. Each location will stamp your passport, challenging you to drink your way through all of the McMenamins.