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Hemp Bar: New ‘cannabis cafe’ now open in SE Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) —  Hemp Bar, a brand new “cannabis cafe,” is now open in Southeast Portland.

Hemp Bar is the flagship brick and mortar shop from Southern Oregon farm, East Fork Cultivars. No, it’s not a dispensary — owners say it’s Portland’s first-of-its-kind Amsterdam-style cannabis cafe featuring all things hemp and CBD.

“Hemp Bar is the first establishment of its kind in Portland. It’s not just a place to consume CBD, but to also learn about it and talk about it,” Hemp Bar Director of Operations Amy Speciale said.

The cafe offers a variety of products ranging from infused non-alcoholic beverages to tinctures, edibles, topicals, and more. Speciale says customers ages 18+ can also buy smokable hemp flower and hemp pre-rolls — and even light up on-site– just as long as the smoking is kept to Hemp Bar’s outdoor tables.

“It’s an all-ages space to have science-based cannabis conversations, to hang out, and enjoy a CBD mocktail,” Mason Walker, co-owner of Hemp Bar and East Fork Cultivars, added.

Now, you still can’t smoke weed in public in Oregon — but since legal hemp contains less than 0.3% THC, owners say it can be consumed outside at Hemp Bars.

“In 2018, the federal government legalized hemp across all 50 states, making low THC cannabis legal and so we’ve embraced that,” Walker said. “We grow USDA organic hemp on our farm and work with lots of different product makers to make it accessible, in products that you can ingest and put on your skin.”

Walker adds that goods sold at Hemp Bar are made from our USDA Organic craft hemp that’s grown, and often bred at East Fork Cultivars. He says that helping people understand what they’re consuming and this sourcing of their hemp and CBD products is also what the company focuses on.

“Education is a big part of what we do, and we’re really excited to have this physical place that we can hold classes and have one on one. Conversations about what cannabis can and can’t do, and really just make a little bit more normalized for folks that are still intimidated about cannabis,” Walker said.

East Fork Cultivars will host free, in-person cannabis education classes at Hemp Bar on July 15 and August 12.

Hemp Bar’s hours are 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday at 6258 SE Foster Rd, Portland, OR 97206. For more information, visit their website.