At the Malarkey, more is more.
On Wednesday, The Malarkey, 1210 NW Hoyt St., unveiled a seven-day-a-week happy hour served from 4:30-5:30 p.m. in a sunken bar where a bronze elk with thick haunches confronts you. Cheeky, gleeful homages to Portland radiate from there.
Happy hour menu offerings include a Caesar salad; crispy chicken; halibut ceviche; and a vegan cauliflower dish. Draft beers are $2 off, and Pacific Northwest Oysters are two bucks a shuck. The star is the smash burger ($10). With it comes an option to order a $1 Miller High Life. The burger is two-patties, and a real doozy. It’s served with Tillamook cheddar cheese, grilled onions and ramekins of ketchup and aioli for the curly fries.
Chef and restaurant partner Jose “Lalo” Camarena said Portland feels more awake, reporting how large groups of people glide in for dinner at 10 p.m. Every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 8 p.m. to close, there is a live DJ in the lounge.
General Manager Britt Sparkey, or just “Sparkey,” moved to Portland before the Malarkey’s late July opening to oversee operations. To date, she has teamed up with celebrity chef Brian Malarkey at 16 of his restaurants. The Malarkey is his 27th restaurant, and the first, she said, completed on time. Both she and chef Lalo have been made partners at the Malarkey. Neighbors have shared photos of themselves at Oba, once the beating heart of this part of the Pearl District but closed since 2017.
The Malarkey delivers a giddy glimpse of what comes next.
The Malarkey is open Sunday-Thursday, 4:30-9 p.m., and Friday-Saturday 4:30-midnight.