Duke's Public House — Restaurant in Lake Oswego

Where Bourbon Flows and Parking is a Contact Sport

Ah, Dukes. The crown jewel of Lake Oswego’s nightlife, assuming your definition of “nightlife” includes bourbon-fueled debates over whose kid just won corn hole and whether the Blazers will ever make it past the second round.

Ambience Step inside and you’re immediately greeted by the comforting hum of sports commentary, the clink of cocktail glasses, and the distant shriek of a child discovering that tic-tac-toe is harder than it looks. The indoor seating is cozy enough to make you forget you’re still in Oregon, while the covered outdoor area offers the perfect vantage point to judge other patrons’ parking attempts.

Food & Drink The poke nachos are a culinary paradox—raw fish meets tortilla chip in a union so bold it could only be conceived in a place where bourbon pours like water and fries are treated like royalty. The burgers are so good they might just make you forget you’re sitting next to a coloring with the intensity of a Vegas gambler.

Drinks The bourbon selection is so vast and generous, you’ll start to believe you’re in a speakeasy run by Ron Swanson. Mixed drinks are crafted with the precision of a NASA engineer and the flair of a Vegas magician. One sip and you’ll be convinced your bartender moonlights as a chemist.

Parking Ah yes, the true sport of Dukes: parking. Street-only, unless you’re brave enough to poach a spot from Wells Fargo and risk the wrath of a banker who just wanted a quiet lunch. It’s a thrilling game of strategy, luck, and mild trespassing.

Family-Friendly Chaos: Bring the kids, they said. It’ll be fun, they said. And they weren’t wrong. Between the games, the TVs, and the occasional sugar-fueled sprint through the patio, Dukes is basically a local Lanter’s with better cocktails and fewer animatronics.

Final Verdict: Dukes is the kind of place where you can sip top-shelf bourbon while watching your child beat a stranger’s kid at corn hole, all while pretending you didn’t just park illegally. It’s chaotic, charming, and just the right amount of unhinged. Five stars, one stolen parking spot, and a side of...

Been here a few times for Portland Week specials like Burger Week, Nacho Week, Sandwich Week, etc. Came in tonight only to be turned away around 7pm. Gal said they were backed up and weren’t seating anyone (despite seeing multiple seats available on the counter and the bar). Didn’t even give me an ETA or timeframe of any sort. I left disappointed as I had just stopped by Aji Tram earlier and wanted to hit Duke’s as well since they were kinda close by each other and this is a bit of a long ways away for me to go.

I really wanted to hit this neck of the woods before trying other Burger Week locations so I waited a bit to call back to see if anything had changed or what the ETA would be. I was told there’s open seating available and I was happy to hear that and went back within a few minutes only to be greeted by the same gal as before who told me there’s still no seats available. I told her I literally JUST called and was told there was. She insisted there wasn’t and when asked how long it might be, she said they weren’t seating anyone for the rest of the night!

Suffice it to say, I was not happy for being misled and had my time wasted. But maybe just as well, because the last few times I’ve been here, the special’s have been a hit or miss with me and their bar counter had a funky smell that made eating there a bit unappetizing. And now on top of this experience, I will never come back here again.

Aji Tram, who’s under the same ownership, has always been great to me. And so by proxy, I’ve always wanted to do both places whenever I could during these promo weeks. But now, I think I will skip both altogether. While I still love Aji Tram for their normal dining experience, it’s a bit far for me to travel to. And due to my underwhelming experience with Duke’s, it’s made me a bit sour by adjacent and I can’t see myself making a trip out here that’s worth my time...

I’m so disappointed with this place. I have rated Duke’s in the past with 5 stars, but went to have dinner yesterday (5.25.2024) with the family and regretted.

They increased the kid’s menu price by 20%!!!!!! LOL who does that?! So now it’s pretty much anything from the kids menu at $12 !!!!!! I’m sure the person who decided this (and the items listed on the kids menu) doesn’t have kids!!!

But then I also came across that they cut in half their main menu… and guess what? They also increased prices!! So now a simple tasteless salad costs $22.

I do understand that everything has gone so expensive and that you have to put up with the market, but they are only increasing prices without leveraging the quality/quantity of their food.

I ordered the Miso Asian Salad… literally tasteless and missing 2 ingredients (cilantro and grapefruit)… I would usually not care if there’s something missing, but this for $22 ?!?!

My wife ordered the Taco Salad Bowl… tasteless.

Now, remember I mentioned at the beginning that I used the rate this place with 5 stars, so I’m completely disappointed with the new decisions or new management or new chef…

Service as always was great, servers are always nice, and the place used to be...