Holy Ghost

Holy Ghost is a bar in Portland, Oregon, operated by the hospitality group Three on a Match. It opened in November 2021 in the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood of southeast Portland, at the intersection of Southeast Gladstone Street and 28th Avenue. The venue occupies a building that previously housed the dive bar Pub at the End of the Universe and opened alongside two other Three on a Match concepts, The Electric Pizza Company and 28 Tigers. The business was developed over approximately four years before opening. According to an owner cited in coverage, the original idea began as a rough sketch and a collection of memories associated with the former bar. The space was remodeled for the new concept. Its name comes from a song by the American funk group Bar-Kays, while the cocktail program was influenced in part by an agave plant near the property. Holy Ghost also became known for its playful interior details, including a marble bar and bubble-tea shakers given the nicknames Jake the Shake Roberts and Shake Gyllenhaal. Holy Ghost's beverage identity is strongly associated with tequila and mezcal. The bar maintains an agave collection of approximately 400 bottles and uses that focus across cocktails such as ranch water made with infused tequila, a mezcal Old Fashioned prepared with Cazadores Reposado, and an Aperol spritz made with Altos Plata tequila. The menu also includes more experimental drinks, including a bubblegum-infused vodka cocktail. Alongside spirits-based drinks, the venue serves beer, wine, sparkling wine, lower-alcohol options, and non-alcoholic beverages incorporating drinking vinegars, Seedlip, and house syrups. Examples of its mocktail-oriented offering include a combination of gin-style flavors with ginger, hibiscus, and raspberry, as well as a whiskey chai-inspired drink. The bar presents itself as a family-friendly neighborhood establishment rather than solely as a nightlife venue. It also operates an Agave Social Club, which provides recurring tastings and gives the business an educational and membership-oriented dimension. Before opening, Holy Ghost was among Portland bars that committed to checking proof of COVID-19 vaccination, reflecting the operating and public-health environment in which it launched. Community participation has remained part of the venue's public profile. In 2023, Holy Ghost and other Three on a Match businesses supported Portland teachers during the Portland Association of Teachers strike by offering teachers free drinks and allowing customers to purchase drinks for teachers. The group has also hosted bingo events involving drag performer Peachy Springs. Media attention has particularly highlighted Holy Ghost's non-alcoholic program: Portland Monthly recommended it in a 2023 survey of Portland bars with mocktail offerings, and the venue won Willamette Week's Best of Portland readers' poll for Best Bar for Mocktails in both 2024 and 2025.

Holy Ghost was created by the Portland hospitality group Three on a Match and opened in mid-November 2021 in the city's southeast Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood. The bar occupies a remodeled building at Southeast Gladstone Street and 28th Avenue that had previously been home to Pub at the End of the Universe. Its opening formed part of a larger hospitality project: The Electric Pizza Company and 28 Tigers opened in the same building under the Three on a Match umbrella. The concept was developed over roughly four years. An owner described its beginnings as a simple sketch combined with hazy memories of the former neighborhood bar. The team subsequently remodeled the premises and shaped the venue around a distinctive cocktail and agave-spirit identity. The name was taken from a song by the American funk group Bar-Kays. Cocktail development was influenced by an agave plant located near the site, linking the venue's physical setting with its beverage concept. Holy Ghost's design and service model combine bar culture with a more accessible neighborhood orientation. The interior includes a marble bar and playful bubble-tea shakers with the names Jake the Shake Roberts and Shake Gyllenhaal. The business is described as family-friendly and offers more than conventional alcoholic cocktails. Its menu is led by tequila and mezcal, supported by a collection of approximately 400 agave bottles, but also includes beer, wine, sparkling wine, lower-ABV drinks, and non-alcoholic options. Signature and representative drinks include ranch water prepared with infused tequila, a mezcal Old Fashioned using Cazadores Reposado, and an Aperol spritz made with Altos Plata. The venue also serves a bubblegum-infused vodka drink. Its alcohol-free program uses ingredients such as drinking vinegars, Seedlip, and house syrups; examples include a mocktail combining gin-like botanical notes with ginger, hibiscus, and raspberry, and a whiskey chai-inspired drink. This breadth helped establish Holy Ghost as a destination for customers who want a cocktail-bar setting without necessarily drinking alcohol. The venue's opening occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Before launching, Holy Ghost was among Portland bars that publicly committed to enforcing proof-of-vaccination requirements, a decision that situated it within the city's wider public-health response and hospitality debate. Holy Ghost also developed programming beyond ordinary bar service. Its Agave Social Club offers recurring tastings, giving regular customers opportunities to explore the venue's agave collection. The bar and its sister businesses have participated in community events, including bingo programs involving drag performer Peachy Springs. In 2023, Three on a Match establishments supported teachers during the Portland Association of Teachers strike by providing free drinks to teachers and allowing customers to purchase drinks for them. Recognition has focused especially on the non-alcoholic menu. Portland Monthly included Holy Ghost in a 2023 guide to Portland bars offering non-alcoholic drinks. Willamette Week readers subsequently selected it as Portland's Best Bar for Mocktails in both 2024 and 2025. The available record presents Holy Ghost as an active, locally focused bar whose differentiation comes from agave expertise, playful presentation, inclusive beverage choices, and neighborhood engagement.

• 2025

  Second consecutive mocktail award

  [1]Holy Ghost (bar)en.wikipedia.org

  Holy Ghost again won Willamette Week's Best Bar for Mocktails readers' poll category.

• 2024

  Best Bar for Mocktails

  [1]Holy Ghost (bar)en.wikipedia.org

  Holy Ghost won the Best Bar for Mocktails category in Willamette Week's Best of Portland readers' poll.

• 2023

  Teacher-strike support initiative

  [1]Holy Ghost (bar)en.wikipedia.org

  Holy Ghost and other Three on a Match venues offered free drinks to teachers during the Portland Association of Teachers strike and enabled customers to sponsor drinks.

• 2021

  Holy Ghost opens in southeast Portland

  [1]Holy Ghost (bar)en.wikipedia.org

  Three on a Match opened Holy Ghost in November 2021 in the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood, in a remodeled building shared with The Electric Pizza Company and 28 Tigers.

A neighborhood, family-friendly Portland bar with a playful identity and a deep tequila-and-mezcal focus, complemented by a substantial mocktail, low-ABV, and non-alcoholic program.

• Cocktails · 2021

  Agave-focused cocktail program

  Holy Ghost's central beverage offering is built around tequila and mezcal, supported by an agave collection of approximately 400 bottles. Representative drinks include infused-tequila ranch water, a mezcal Old Fashioned made with Cazadores Reposado, and an Aperol spritz prepared with Altos Plata. The menu also includes more playful creations such as a bubblegum-infused vodka cocktail.

• Non-alcoholic beverages · 2021

  Mocktail and non-alcoholic program

  The bar offers non-alcoholic drinks made with drinking vinegars, Seedlip, and house syrups, alongside other alcohol-free combinations. Noted examples include a botanical drink with ginger, hibiscus, and raspberry and a whiskey chai-inspired mocktail. The program has become a major part of Holy Ghost's public identity and earned repeated local recognition.

• Beverages · 2021

  Beer, wine, and low-ABV beverages

  Beyond spirits and mocktails, Holy Ghost serves beer, wine, sparkling wine, and lower-alcohol drinks. This broader selection supports the venue's family-friendly and mixed-preference positioning rather than limiting service to full-strength cocktails.

• Tastings and experiential offering

  Agave Social Club

  The Agave Social Club is Holy Ghost's recurring tasting program. It extends the bar's agave specialization into guided or social sampling experiences and provides a regular event format for customers interested in tequila and mezcal.

• 2023Teacher strike drink-support program

  Portland, Oregon

  Holy Ghost and other Three on a Match businesses supported Portland teachers during the Portland Association of Teachers strike by offering teachers free drinks and allowing customers to purchase drinks for teachers.

  Outcome. The initiative positioned the bar and its sister venues as participants in a local solidarity effort.

  Source
• Peachy Springs bingo events

  Portland, Oregon

  Holy Ghost and other Three on a Match establishments have hosted bingo events involving drag performer Peachy Springs, adding entertainment and community programming to the venues' regular operations.

  Source

• 2021

  Commitment to checking COVID-19 vaccination proofStrategy

  Background

  Holy Ghost prepared to open during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Portland hospitality businesses were making decisions about vaccination policies and guest safety.

  Action taken

  Before opening, Holy Ghost was among Portland bars that committed to enforcing proof-of-vaccination requirements.

  Aftermath

  The policy formed part of the bar's launch-era operating posture; no further outcome is specified in the available reference material.

  Source

1. 1Holy Ghost (bar)en.wikipedia.org