Encore Poker Club

Going to Portland in july .So your telling me there are no casinos close to play poker? LOL if your playing poker and taking a photo of your hand .Your a clown !!

The worst service and the most unintelligent dealers in Portland… def not a place to go to… They flat out suck!!!
Never going back…

#1 place to play poker in Portland. Has a large selection of tournaments, shootouts, and satellites, with a budget for all.
Full bar and grill with an amazing ever changing daily special that’s worth coming for anyday.
Why give the house all your money when you can enjoy rake free poker here.

Shady Owner! Stay away.
Played in a tournament where the winner won cash plus a voucher for more than ~$ 500 to their Main Event the EPT Series. Got the voucher which doesn’t state that management has the right to void it. The following Friday I went again and Brian F. pulls me aside and tells me in front of everyone in the poker floor that my voucher is not valid. I asked for the reason and he said that they had forgotten to take the $ 500 out of the prize pool for the voucher. Thus, paying everyone else out more than they should have since it was an inflated prize pool. He said, we admit the mistake but cannot take the loss.
I told him I would email John O. (The OWNER) and he said go ahead cause he is already aware of the situation and that this decision is his. He couldn’t even respond to my email himself and told Brian to give me a call. I reached out to the poker community and they told me to go to the Gaming Commission. In Portland, there is none and only a Social Gaming Commission who cannot do anything unless a violation was made. Come to find out, there is a violation as one of the guys who cashed on the same event, wasn’t of age.
An owner who admits his employees’ mistake yet doesn’t want to cover them isn’t a place I will give anymore business to.

Five stars and two thumbs way up. This is the best poker club I have ever had the pleasure to enjoy. Better than Vegas.
The tournaments are professionally run, the dealers are great, the wait staff and food is exceptional. Other than a bad beat there is everything to love about this top shelf poker club!

I’ve played here many times. I have won some and lost some, but all in all, it is consistent.
Yes, they have cameras.

While I would sure like to write a negative review of this place (I’ve lost enough money here), this is a first-​class joint. I truly enjoy playing here.
Tournaments are run professionally, and while the dealers vary in quality, there is strict quality-​control in place. Encore is run with a tenacious sense of honesty.
The players are a mix of semi-​pros and newbies. As with any «club,» there are plenty of guys who are familiar with each other and their style of play. As a once-​a-​week player, my advice is don’t be intimidated. Play your game. It’s the best poker room in Portland. Plus the food ain’t bad either.

This is a low-​class place, with poor management and quirky rules. Two drunks at my table were loud and obnoxious and neither the dealer (who flubbed a few deals) or management did anything about it, despite complaints, from me and others. At one point I said, loud and firmly, to one of the guys to «Shut the !@@#@ up», and he was quiet, for about ten seconds. So I picked up my chips, about $ 400, and started toward the front desk to cash them in, only to be told that I couldn’t do that, as technically everyone playing there was playing in a tournament — first time I heard that, in any card room, and I’ve been in many dozen all over the country. Because it was so poorly run, I did not trust leaving my chips unattended on the table, so I had to wait an unnerving twenty minutes to even leave the table and cash in. What crap.

Great Poker Club and great action! Great owner and staff! Really enjoy playing there.
–Brent Russell

Probably the biggest game in portland right now. In terms of amount of people, tourney guarantee, cash games (shootouts) I give this place 3stars because they play 10-​handed cash games. Tournaments take forever and they don’t have potato chips.

They have upgraded the bathrooms! There are now two stalls and two urinals and a row of sinks for the men, and a separate couple of stalls for women. No more long waits on tournament breaks for two unisex single-​stall bathrooms!
That takes care of one of my two previous complaints about Encore.
My other complaint, that there aren’t enough novice players — well, maybe my game has improved, or maybe there are newbies coming in more often. It does seem like the competition might be a little easier than it used to be!
Another pleasant change is that the club is offering more special tournaments, with extra-​large guaranteed prize pools. Get on the text-​notification list to find out when those will be (there is at least one a week, sometimes more, often with short notice). And they have moved the cash-​game-​like «shootouts» to a more visible part of the room, and added some high-​hand prizes, so those seem more popular now too.
On the down side: the quality of the food specials has declined since one chef left awhile ago. And the regular menu is small and never changes. The hummus plate is always good, though, and the salads are pretty good too.
Also the average competency of the dealers seems to have declined — maybe they are enlisting more inexperienced dealers.
And my other new complaint is about the music. I think they use Pandora or some such service, which probably offers a million songs. Yet they play the same damn ‘90s rock numbers over and over and over,. You really can hear the same song four or five times a day, every day. Don’t know why they don’t vary the playlist. You can try requesting a music change, even a specific style or artist, from the desk. Sometimes they will honor your request. For half an hour or so. Then it’s back to that same short, tired songlist.
Oh well. Still the nicest place to play poker around here. And a better deal (no rake, just a daily cover charge) than any casino. Bring earplugs.

Great poker here. Nice pots. Huge variety of beers and really tasty menu. The people here are very social and friendly. Ideal friendly place to play some good quality poler. The dealers here are also really good. Friendly and knowledgable bunch. Really a good atmosphere here.
The food here is great as well. 7 days a week. They even have a 10pm tournament.

The good: classier than most dark dungeon type poker establishments. Decent food and good adult beverage selection. Obviously, poker players can range from young to old and from classy to despicable, and this place seems to (mostly) attract decent people. Clean, professional, and kind of swanky.
The bad: they have a blonde dealer who goes a little over the top in enforcing every possible «house» rule ever imagined, which can hinder the customer experience. Also, on two or three occasions I have seen staff lack the courage to throw out drunk and/​or unruly players.
Really, this is a four star establishment with some minor issues that management needs to work out.

One of the larger prize pools available in Oregon for no limit hold em…

I like playing at this venue, the dealers are good, staff is friendly, they have a full bar and food, the place is high end probably one of the nicest in Portland. They up the stakes with there tournaments all the time.
only complaint i have about this place is parking, its tough sometimes, but if you live in NW its a no brainier place «to go»

Encore Poker Club’s room is larger than Spirit Mountain’s.
Encore Poker Club’s room is nicer than Spirit Mountain’s.
Encore Poker Club’s room has more tournaments than Spirit Mountain’s.
Encore Poker Club’s room is closer than Spirit Mountain’s.
Encore Poker Club’s room has a million times better drink selection than Spirit Mountain’s.
Tips and things worth considering though:
1. Safety. This goes for all Poker clubs. Needless to say, there is a lot of moolah changing hands. I would like to see a bigger security presence like a big bouncer or uniformed security. That mean looking Sons of Anarchy Bouncer from Devil’s Point comes to mind. Lock everything in your trunk and don’t walk to your car alone at night. I’m not trying to scare you, just be ultra safe and you will be fine.
2. Dealers. Encore has very good volunteer dealers. Very good. However, don’t mistake that for very good PROFESSIONAL dealers. As a player, you have to be be more engaged in the game because the volunteer dealer might not announce every action by the players and may miss a thing or two. Don’t be the putz who always asks, «How much? Is it to me?» Once, the dealer misread the board and I almost lost a pot that should have been split. If the dealer makes a mistake there is no eye in the sky monitoring every hand. You’re here to play poker, not facebook on your phone until it’s your turn. Pay attention.
3. Daily Membership fee is $ 10. This is their cover and how they make money. If it is your first time, go to
and go to the GrouponNow tab and get your first admission for $ 3. The $ 10 fee isn’t as greedy as it sounds. Even if you go to Vegas or SM, hidden in your $ 60 tournament entry is probably a $ 10 or $ 15 admin fee. A typical casino tournament only pays out 60%-80% of the total buy-​ins. Encore Poker Club pays out 100% of the tournament buy ins.
4. Tournament structure: The schedule is on their website. They run standard tournaments every 2 hours. The rounds are 20 minutes long and the number of payouts is determined by the entrants. In my tourney of 60, 8 spots were paid. Legally, They cannot run cash games. In lieu of cash games, Encore runs NLH Shootout tournaments. Buy-​in is $ 50 min and $ 300 max. Blinds are $ 1/​$ 2 for 1 hour and 45 minutes. At the end of that time you win what ever amount of chips you have in front of you. And if you cash in either tournament please tip your volunteer dealers 10% of your winnings minus your entry.
5. Rocks. This is a poker room of regulars. It has fewer donkeys sprinkled in than Spirit Mountain and casinos. «If you can’t spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, then you ARE the sucker.» — Rounders. This is especially truer here.
6. Chairs. They don’t recline and don’t have wheels.
7. Parking. There is a lot you can use on Glisan and 16^th, but only during specific hours and specific spots. Make sure to check the website for parking details.
If you love poker tournaments, skip the long drive and the «safety corridor» to Spirit Mountain and just head to Glisan and 16^th.
Encore Poker Club’s room is a very professional looking and operating poker room that any Portland Poker Player would be happy playing in.

It just feels right… to have to take stairs underground to a poker room. I like that.
A poker room with a bar and several TVs, trained dealers and a friendly staff. This makes for a great place to get your poker fix.
I played in a couple of their «freeze out» tournaments ($ 60 Buy-​in) and the amount of chips you get and blind structure are pretty good. Gives you plenty of time to be patient if your card dead.
My husband also likes the $½ no limit game. I haven’t played that yet.
As previous reviews have addressed, I have run into a couple of the typical whiny, cry baby players here. They are entertaining in the end!
Lastly, their bartender Alex is pretty fricken awesome! I would like to make this a regular spot for me.

Great place for some tournament action, with tournaments offered every 2 hours from 12 to 12. They allow late reg up to 1hour after a tournament starts so usually if you bust out of one you can still get in another one without much wait.
Foods good and they seem to have a decent selection at the bar.
Only that that sucks here is parking. Good luck getting here, but its worth the trip if you can find a spot!

The best place to play tournament poker in Portland. They have 5 of them a day, every day, and you can usually get in one whatever time you show up.
I love the computerized system they use for managing the tournaments. I always want to know the value of the «average stack» and this information is readily available.
The drinks can be a little steep, but it’s the only complaint I can find. Highly recommended!

How do you write a review of a poker club? I won= five stars! I lost = one star.
You have to grade the club not the play. I have played at almost all the official (and unofficial) clubs in town. This is the nicest poker club in Portland, and hopefully will grow to have a big following.
The interior is done with class. Standard «black» theme with nice lighting. It features new carpet and modern, sleek looking furniture you can wait for your game in. The bar is a ‘real bar’ where you could enjoy a drink even if you were not a poker player.
I apprectiated the fact the that the floor manager wore a nice suit and the dealers had on professional looking black attire. There was no attitude from the dealers and the conversation was pleasant. I would have liked the dealers to have pushed the action a little quicker.
Because the Encore Club is a classy, clean place it seemed to me that they drew a higher caliber of player. The players were not obnxious jerks (there are always exceptions), but good players who appreciated good poker. The money is nice, but for me it is about playing good poker and playing against good players. I think that if the management continues to tap this market this club will continue to grow.
The poker club scene can be imtimidating for a new person. I would not hesitate to bring my girlfriend there and let her learn the game. There were a higher than average number of female players.
This would be a five star review, however, if off duty employees of the club are playing in the tournament (which I am totally cool with), the employee still should check their drinking and behavior. While they have every right to act like jackasses on thier own time, they are still affiliated with the club and cast it in a negative light, fairly or not.
Side Note: Tournament players, actually all players, can be big babies. The rise of poker on TV has given rise to the Phil Hellmuth ‘poker brat’. They act like very narcissistic man children and are rarely good players. They learned this from TV. They inhabit many of the clubs, usually playing at the lower levels. Ignore them and bust them.