Creepy's
Creepy's is a nightmare-carnival-themed dive bar and restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Creepy's is a themed dive bar and restaurant on Morrison Street in Portland, Oregon's Buckman neighborhood. Opened in September 2017 by artist AJ Fosik, Jason Radich, and Matt Relkin, the venue occupies the former site of the cowboy-themed Charlie Horse Saloon and combines a deliberately eccentric interior with a casual bar-and-grill format. The founders are also associated with White Owl Social Club, another Portland bar and restaurant. The venue's identity is built around a darkly comic nightmare-carnival aesthetic rather than a conventional polished cocktail-bar concept. Its interior includes wide-eyed child portraits, clown paintings, animatronic dolls, wind-up toys, vintage beer-company sweaters from the 1960s and 1970s, and a roughly five-foot portrait of John Quincy Adams whose eyes move. The space also displays large hand-painted Ghanaian film posters and other objects collected by the owners over many years. Writers have variously characterized Creepy's as a polished nightmare carnival, an old-timey carnival freak show, and one of Portland's strangest bars. Despite the name and unsettling decoration, coverage has also emphasized the venue's playful and welcoming qualities. Creepy's food menu has drawn on East Coast and bar-food influences. Items reported in coverage include a breakfast sandwich made with Taylor Ham, a spicy chicken sandwich inspired by the Commodore in Brooklyn, a smash burger, French fries, deep-fried peanuts, hushpuppies with sriracha, and nachos. The venue has also been associated with the Hot Breast Sandwich, a fried chicken sandwich recognized in local restaurant coverage. Its beverage program includes beer, wine, tiki drinks, Harvey Wallbangers, and cocktails incorporating coffee, including a frozen coffee preparation. The Pickletini has been identified as one of its popular drinks; other named cocktails include Coffin Cutter Marg, Dark Arts, Ghost Machine, The Grasshopper, and La Bruja. Entertainment is part of the brand experience. Creepy's has hosted DJs playing new wave music and screenings of cult films, including Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla and Phenomena. This programming reinforces the venue's appeal to customers interested in horror, cult cinema, unusual design, and alternative nightlife, while its food and drink offerings maintain the practical functions of a neighborhood bar and restaurant. Local and national food-and-travel publications have repeatedly included Creepy's in discussions of Portland's theme bars, unusual restaurants, eerie destinations, and distinctive fried chicken sandwiches. Reported coverage has praised its eclectic visual environment, its unusual combination of memorabilia and theatrical decoration, and selected menu items. The available reference material does not identify a corporate parent, public listing, financial results, expansion outside Portland, or a formal multi-location strategy. Creepy's is therefore best understood as a single-location hospitality brand whose differentiation rests on immersive decor, cult-oriented entertainment, and unconventional bar food and cocktails.
History
Creepy's was established in Portland, Oregon, by artist AJ Fosik and hospitality operators Jason Radich and Matt Relkin. The bar and restaurant opened in September 2017 on Morrison Street in the Buckman neighborhood, taking over a space previously occupied by the cowboy-themed Charlie Horse Saloon. The founders also own or operate the Portland venue White Owl Social Club, linking Creepy's to an existing local hospitality group while giving the new establishment a distinct visual and culinary identity. From its opening, Creepy's was designed as an immersive themed bar rather than a minimally decorated neighborhood drinking establishment. The owners assembled much of the decor over a period of years. Reported elements include paintings of clowns, portraits of children with unusually large eyes, animatronic dolls, wind-up toys, vintage sweaters produced by beer companies in the 1960s and 1970s, and large hand-painted posters from Ghana's film industry. A prominent portrait of John Quincy Adams has moving eyes, adding a mechanical and surreal feature to the room. The resulting environment has been described by local publications as a polished nightmare carnival, a carnival freak show, and a deliberately strange or unsettling bar. The concept extends beyond the room's decoration. Creepy's has hosted DJs playing new wave and screened cult films, including the 1974 Japanese film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla and the 1985 Italian horror film Phenomena. These activities position the venue within Portland's alternative nightlife and connect its brand to horror, cult cinema, retro pop culture, and offbeat collecting. The tone is theatrical and macabre, but published reactions have generally treated the venue as playful rather than genuinely threatening. Its food program combines familiar American bar fare with selected East Coast references. The menu has included a Taylor Ham breakfast sandwich associated with New Jersey, a spicy chicken sandwich inspired by the Commodore in Brooklyn, a smash burger, fries, deep-fried peanuts, sriracha-topped hushpuppies, and nachos. The Hot Breast Sandwich has received particular attention in local fried-chicken coverage. Drinks have included beer and wine, tiki preparations, Harvey Wallbangers, and coffee-based cocktails, including a frozen coffee drink. The Pickletini is among the cocktails specifically identified as popular, alongside drinks named Coffin Cutter Marg, Dark Arts, Ghost Machine, The Grasshopper, and La Bruja. Creepy's attracted editorial attention soon after opening. Eater Portland presented it as a contender for Portland's strangest bar, while The Oregonian included it in a guided survey of the city's theme bars. Later coverage recognized the Hot Breast Sandwich, placed the venue among unusually strange restaurants, and included it in guides to Portland's best theme bars and eerie establishments. The available material does not document additional locations, a formal parent corporation, financial performance, public-market activity, controversies, lawsuits, recalls, or major ownership changes. The documented history therefore centers on the venue's 2017 launch, its sustained operation as a Portland destination, and the continuing use of its highly distinctive decor, menu, and entertainment programming.
- 2024
Included in Portland spooky-venue coverage
[1]Creepy's appeared in an overview of Portland's spooky and eerie establishments.
- 2023
Included in Portland theme-bar recommendations
[1]Portland Monthly listed Creepy's among the city's must-visit theme bars.
- 2022
Included among unusually strange restaurants
[1]Creepy's was featured in a list focused on uniquely strange restaurants, emphasizing its highly decorated interior.
- 2020
Hot Breast Sandwich receives local recognition
[1]The venue's fried chicken sandwich appeared in a Portland roundup of notable fried chicken sandwiches.
- 2017
Creepy's opens in Buckman
[1]AJ Fosik, Jason Radich, and Matt Relkin opened Creepy's on Morrison Street in southeast Portland's Buckman neighborhood, in the former Charlie Horse Saloon location.
Products and positioning
A theatrical Portland dive bar and restaurant that combines nightmare-carnival decor, cult-film and new-wave programming, East Coast-influenced comfort food, and eccentric cocktails.
Breakfast
Taylor Ham breakfast sandwich
A breakfast sandwich incorporating Taylor Ham, a New Jersey-associated ingredient that gives the menu an explicitly East Coast reference.
Fried chicken sandwich
Hot Breast Sandwich
A fried chicken sandwich associated with Creepy's and highlighted in Portland food coverage as one of the venue's notable menu items.
Sandwich
Spicy chicken sandwich
A spicy chicken sandwich inspired by the Commodore in Brooklyn, reflecting the restaurant's broader East Coast and American bar-food influences.
Burger
Smash burger
A burger prepared in the smash-burger style and offered as part of Creepy's casual restaurant menu.
Cocktail
Pickletini
A pickle-forward cocktail identified in coverage as one of Creepy's popular drinks.
Cocktail
Coffin Cutter Marg
A named cocktail whose macabre title fits Creepy's horror- and carnival-oriented beverage branding.
Cocktail
Coffee cocktails
Cocktails incorporating coffee, including a frozen version, form part of the venue's distinctive drinks program alongside tiki drinks and classic cocktails.
Brand decisions
2017
Launch as an immersive nightmare-carnival barStrategyBackground
The founders converted a former cowboy-themed bar location into a venue centered on unusual visual design, cult entertainment, food, and cocktails.
Action taken
Creepy's opened with an extensive collection of clown imagery, dolls, mechanical objects, vintage beer memorabilia, Ghanaian film posters, and other eccentric decor.
Aftermath
The concept generated sustained editorial attention and established Creepy's as a recognizable Portland theme bar and destination restaurant.
- Development of an East Coast-inspired food and cocktail menuProduct launch
Background
The venue paired its theatrical surroundings with casual American food and drinks influenced by East Coast sandwiches, Brooklyn bar culture, tiki cocktails, and retro mixed drinks.
Action taken
The reported menu included Taylor Ham breakfast sandwiches, spicy chicken sandwiches, a smash burger, bar snacks, coffee cocktails, tiki drinks, and the Pickletini.
Aftermath
Several food and drink items became recurring subjects of local restaurant coverage, including the Hot Breast Sandwich and Pickletini.
Recent events
- 2024
Creepy's included in Portland eerie-places guide[1]
Other
The venue was included in an overview of Portland establishments with spooky or eerie themes.
- 2023
Creepy's included among Portland's must-visit theme bars[1]
Other
Portland Monthly included Creepy's in a selection of the city's recommended theme bars.
- 2022
Creepy's appears in national coverage of unusual restaurants[1]
Other
The venue was featured in a list of unusually strange restaurants, with attention to its clown, doll, taxidermy, and horror-oriented decor.
- 2020
Creepy's sandwich included in Portland fried-chicken coverage[1]
Other
The Hot Breast Sandwich was included in a local roundup of notable fried chicken sandwiches in Portland.
- 2017
Creepy's opens in Portland's Buckman neighborhood[1]
Other
The themed dive bar and restaurant opened on Morrison Street in September 2017 in the former Charlie Horse Saloon space.
- 2017
Creepy's receives coverage as a distinctive Portland theme bar[1]
Other
Local coverage highlighted the venue's carnival-freak-show design, unusual memorabilia, and combination of food, cocktails, and themed atmosphere.
Sources1 sources
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