Slushies are synonymous with good times: getting one at a gas station on a road trip, sitting at the movies, stopping at 7-Eleven for snacks and a Slurpee, or, in this case, sitting on a patio or sidewalk table and sipping a boozy version with friends. Read on for our picks, with flavors ranging from strawberry–passion fruit to chile-mango.

Bit House Collective's Slurricane

When someone tells you who they are, believe them the first time. This very potent, Absolut-based slushy has a lot going on: Tropical fruit? Check. Vanilla? Check. Baking spices? Check. Grenadine? You get the idea. Somehow it all comes together, delivering a real bang for your buck (three of these could flatten the middleweights among us) at a very reasonable $8. Non-slushy-related tip: if you start with a Slurricane and want to branch out, we’re all in on Bit House’s pandan old-fashioned. —CR

Eem's Jesus & Tequila

Eem comes through in the boozy slushy category (blushy? is this a thing?) with a double drop of cool and icy thirst quenchers. Most popular—at least judging by how often it seems to sell out and this reviewer’s personal favorite—is the Jesus & Tequila—smoky mezcal softened by lime fro-yo with an extra citrus kick and barely-there bitterness from curaçao. It’s a meal in itself. Meanwhile, the Mango Blaze is a lighter, zestier choice, the classic rum and sweet fruit combo—in this case, mango, obvs—leveling up with almond and a zing of lime. Perfect palate coolers for a barbecue brisket curry or smoked pork belly or sweet-and-sour fried chicken or ... well, you get the point. —FMcC

Gado Gado’s Mind Beach

Don’t mind if we do. This buoyant, pink number from Gado Gado is sweet without being cloying, a deft blend of vodka, jackfruit, guava, soursop, bitters, and the German digestif Underberg. Garnished with a maraschino, it’s basically a very icy Shirley Temple. Just, you know. Boozier. —CR

Hey Love’s Oaxacan Sunrise

First served at a brunch for a group of Latina DJs called Noche Libre, and added to the regular rotation by popular demand, this sunburst in a cactus-shaped glass is bright, fun, and probably dangerous. A sweet strawberry slushy bleeds into passion fruit purée and mezcal, while a lipstick stain of hibiscus salt on the rim doubles down: this is a desert dance party in liquid form, and everyone’s invited. —FMcC

Kachka's Piña Colada

Normally, you can count on Southeast Portland’s Kachka for your fill of horseradish-inflected vodka. But Russian oligarchs fleeing to their summer palaces upon the Black Sea also need a frothy drink. Hence, the restaurant’s summer menu spin on the flavors of the Caribbean: a $10 piña colada slushy, replete with rum, sherry, pineapple, and Coco Lopez, the delectable Puerto Rican coconut cream. It even comes with a darling hibiscus-printed straw, matching cocktail umbrella, and a maraschino cherry for good measure. It’s mind-meltingly sweet on first sip, but as you keep sucking it down, the alcohol takes over, and the complex flavors rise to the surface. Be careful, or you'll order six more. —JS

Oma’s Hideaway's Moonage Daydream

Can’t decide whether to order the Oma-Zing burger or the soft-shell crab sando at Oma’s Hideaway, the newest restaurant from the team behind Gado Gado? Keep cool while making tough decisions and start off with the Moonage Daydream slushy, a creation of bartender Emily Warden that combines tequila, aperol, and absinthe with pineapple, mint, shiso, and lime. The result: a super-frosty, slightly sweet, extra-refreshing blend that’s equal parts tropical, equal parts urban sophisticate. —KCH

Palomar's Rotating Frozen Daiquiri

Palomar offers one of the few rooftop bars in the city, boasting majestic views of Southeast Portland, downtown, and the West Hills. Watch the trains and bicycles go by below as you sip on the rotating tropical-flavored frozen daiquiri of the day—when I visited, it was a refreshing, creamy strawberry piña colada, served in a souvenir plastic cup that changes colors when cold. —KCH

Prey & Tell/Psychic Bar's Frozen Mangonada

What’s the ideal accompaniment to a late-night batch of Prey & Tell chef Diane Lam’s fried chicken wings, served with French-Cambodian ranch and makrut lime buffalo sauce and best enjoyed on Psychic Bar’s patio? A boozy slushy from Psychic Bar—and a tequila-based, mangonada slushy at that, combining the tropical, tart flavor of mango with spicy-sweet chile. —KCH

Sandy Hut's Chi Chi

At this retro Kerns haunt, open since 1923, cool off indoors or at one of the sidewalk tables with a Chi Chi, a frozen piña colada that subs the usual rum for vodka, with a float of rum on top, a sprinkle of cinnamon, and a paper umbrella for maximum festiveness. —KCH

Tropicale's Piña Colada

 

 

 

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Alfredo Climaco, one of the founders of bar and restaurant Tropicale, was known across Portland as the Piña Colada King. He got his start perfecting nonalcoholic piña coladas at pop-ups, then opened Tropicale in the summer of 2020, where diners could escape with an expertly crafted, rum-infused drink served inside a hollowed-out pineapple. Tragically, Climaco died of coronavirus at age 32 in January 2021, but his legacy lives on at Tropicale—and he’s still the undisputed king of the drink. —KCH