Deschutes Brewery was founded in Bend in 1988 and helped establish the city's reputation as a craft beer destination before that was even a phrase. The original brewpub on Bond Street is still there — a lively, loud, welcoming place with long communal tables and a menu of burgers and pub food designed to go with beer. The Black Butte Porter and Mirror Pond Pale Ale are the classics; seasonal releases are worth trying when available.
The pub fills up early on weekends and doesn't take reservations, so either arrive before 6pm or be prepared to wait at the bar, which is not the worst fate. The Bond Street location brews small experimental batches alongside the flagship beers; ask the bartender what's new from the pilot system.
Deschutes now distributes nationally, but drinking their beer in the original pub, a few blocks from the river it's named after, still feels like the right place to do it.