Located just 15 minutes from the Portland International Airport, the McMenamins Edgefield offers guests easy access to a wonderful bucolic retreat just outside the city limits. The 38-acre estate is the most ambitious property in the McMenamins' northwest empire of bars, hotels and restaurants. Originally the Multnomah County Poor Farm, the Edgefield includes a 100-room hotel, restaurants, bars, meeting and banquet rooms, a chip-and-putt golf course, movie theater, winery and tasting room, lovely gardens and more. Like most properties restored by the brothers McMenamin, the Edgefield has the feel of WPA meets the Grateful Dead. The buildings retain their historical charm, but funky decorations adorn walls and even exposed pipes. More historical even are the rumors of ghosts that haunt each floor of the ex-poor house, including even the shades of long-gone cats, along with their one-time owners -- though such rumors come easily with properties rich in the past. Guests can stay in rooms with private or shared bathrooms, and the Edgefield even offers inexpensive hostel accommodations with rows of bunk beds. To encourage a feeling of genuine escape, rooms have neither television nor telephone.

Even if you're not an overnight guest, the Edgefield is a great place to visit for drinks, dinner and live music. It also offers quick access to the beauty and outdoor activities of the Columbia River Gorge.

Categories: Hotels & Motels, Restaurants

Official Website | Directions | Nearby Businesses | Send to Cell