Fuzzy, out-of-focus font on a slime green background. Viral social media moves. Specialty cocktails from bars like Holy Ghost. Your Gen Z + millennial relatives calling you “so brat.”
It’s been a “brat summer” whether you knew it or not, so we’re here to explain what it means and how to get in on the fun before flannels and pumpkin spice lattes take over in a couple of months.
Released on June 7, British singer Charli XCX’s album “brat” debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard charts. Its 15 tracks examine existential topics like womanhood, family, and insecurity — all with an electric veneer of dance pop partying. In essence, to be a “brat” is to be yourself, flaws and all, while still having fun.
Now that you’re caught up on the lingo, here are three spots to live out your very own “brat summer” in the city.
Monster Tea House | 3962 SE Hawthorne Blvd. | Embrace that chaotic creature inside that’s always telling you to treat yourself to a tasty boba drink or spam musubi. Don’t miss the matcha brat bubble tea.
Holocene | 1001 SE Morrison St. | Enter your electronic + art pop era with a stint on the dance floor. The 312-person venue has 25-ft ceilings and features a bar stocked with tacos, monthly cocktails, and local beers + wine — so you can “Vroom Vroom” without getting thirsty.
Bell’s Orchard | 24350 SW Farmington Rd., Beaverton | Reenact the viral “Apple” TikTok dance while you’re picking actual fruit at this all-ages, “short orchard” — you won’t need a ladder. The first batch, the Gravenstein, will be ready for harvest in the next month or so.
Need us to put another pop culture phenomenon in Portland terms? Drop us a line and we’ll share our findings in a future newsletter. Bye-bye, brats.
