While the rest of Southeast Division was being gentrified by Little Big Burger and labradoodles, there were a few “Old[er] Portland” haunts holding down the dive bar energy along the hip-strip.
Hosting Whiskey Wednesday live music nights for well over a decade, the Landmark Saloon has been a mainstay for Portland’s country music scenes since opening in 2010. The venue has reliably booked exceptional under-the-radar music from across genres, most nights of the week.
Home to their small, infamous indoor stage—and an outdoor stage added during the pandemic—the Saloon has been a haven for touring and local musicians with one-off and recurring players over the years including Michael Hurley, Mike Coykendall, Willy Tea Taylor, Denver, The Neon Prairie Dogs, William Surly, Jake Ray, and a long list of others. Not to mention having one of the best patios in the city for a lazy afternoon beer, a birthday party, or late-night rager.
Owner Nick Wilson officially announced the closure on the bar’s Instagram.
“Well…that was a good run,” Wilson sent to the Mercury Monday evening. “All the laughing, crying, spitting, and cussing over the last 15+ years here at the Landmark Saloon will come to an end this Friday (for now?). The landlord’s patience for us has run out. The good news is we have great tunes here every night until we take our grand exit on Friday the 13th. Come grab a beer with us and say goodbye to this beautiful mess while ya can.”
According to Wilson, the venue will go out with a bang hosting a farewell show on Friday, February 13, with Taylor Kingman’s all-star band, Casual Eddie, taking the stage for the final time with plenty of special guests, and drinks flowing until the very end.
A GoFundMe campaign launched in March 2025 raised over $10,000 in an effort to save the bar, but the fundraising effort came up short. The page cites ever-increasing rent, utilities, insurance, and product costs as causes for the small businesses’ struggles.
It’s in trying times like these—both generally and when a favorite watering hole closes—that we need our good times, bad times, end times places to go be in community with likeminded people (drinkers). The devastating news of Landmark’s closure comes hot on the heels of the similarly crushing closures of The Heights and Lollipop Shoppe, The Fixin’ To becoming an arcade, RonTom’s stopping its Sunday Sessions. Will Doug Fir ever reopen? Will Turn! Turn! Turn! carry on?
If something, many things, aren’t done on a city, county, and state level, Portland will continue losing its cherished music venues and watering holes, with places like Bend, Salem, and Ashland continuing to only have one or two places for live music. Put a cap on rent increases, Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission deeply needs to cool their shit, subsidies for live music venues should be beefed up—more needs to happen to make Portland a music city again.
