Out of Order is coming to 1224 SW Harvey Milk St in downtown Portland, with owners Ren Scheuerman and his husband Travis Lay confirming the news directly to What Now Portland. Ren said the space is currently transitioning from retail to a restaurant and bar use, with an architect finalizing plans before construction begins, putting the opening somewhere around late spring of next year.
The concept centers on a video bar format, taking advantage of the space’s 27-foot ceilings for large scale projections of music videos and visual content, a setup Ren is still developing with a couple of different production partners. Food will play a secondary role to meet city licensing requirements, with the exact menu still being worked out.
Ren and Travis bring more than a decade of retail experience to the project, having run two stores, Lou (in Louisville) and Lex Tee Time (in Lexington), in Kentucky for over ten years before closing them and relocating to Portland last year. Ren said his love for the city goes back to 2006, when he first landed at the airport and knew immediately he wanted to live there someday. He’s since become one of Portland’s biggest advocates, calling it the best city in America and saying he’s fully confident in its comeback after a rough stretch following the pandemic. Out of Order will include a retail component too, selling original Portland and Oregon themed t-shirts designed with local artists.
The name itself carries meaning for the couple. Ren said Portland’s reputation for doing things its own way, sometimes dismissed by outsiders as “out of order,” is exactly what drew them to the city, and he sees that independent spirit as something to embrace rather than push back against.
While the bar is designed to be a safe, welcoming space specifically for the LGBTQIA+ community, Ren emphasized that anyone is welcome. He said neighboring business owners, including a manager at the nearby McMenamins and Camp co-owner Logan, have been especially supportive as the project has come together.
“I want it to be a good space and a happy space,” Ren said. “I just hope that it’s really a happy space, and I hope that people have fun there and that they can get away from their problems for a few hours.”
