Patisserie Cafe Lili

10/02/08

Friendly service, GREAT FOOD, and gluten free options!

by erialcp

This restaurant is an undiscovered gem. The food is some of the best I have had in Portland. I have eaten there for dinner on several occasions, and everything I have ordered there was flavored with nuance and cooked to perfection. And for the price. I think the most expensive item is around 20 bucks, while most are closer to 12. The ambiance is quaint and romantic. The wine list is amazing (albeit they haven't always had everything in stock), and the beer list is unexpected. Service is informal and friendly. It's as if you are eating over at a friends house. I even brought a friend there who was neither ate meat or gluten, and Lili was happy to make a dish to order. Really, I can't speak highly enough of this place. Try it for yourself!

• Pros: Ambience, Friendly Service
• Cons: Food is not the fastest

08/17/08

Excellent breakfast, veggie sausage!

by megabites

Went here for breakfast on a Saturday morning with a couple of friends and we all agreed that the food was top-notch! As a vegetarian, I was pleasantly surprised, nay, astounded, that I had so many options on the menu... that's far from typical. I finally decided on the swedish pancakes with lingonberries and vegetarian sausage (which is offered as one of the "meat" choices on most or all of the menu items, the other being bacon). The pancakes were perfectly textured and the lingonberries were tart with just the right amount of sweet. And the traditional powdered sugar was spread around the outside of the plate so that I could use as little or as much as I wanted (okay, I used a lot; 20 extra minutes on the Wii Fit for me). The decaf coffee was fresh and strong without that "I've been sitting here all morning waiting for you to come drink me" bitterness that us decaffers are so often subjected to...

The wait staff was friendly and on top of things. The food prep took a little longer than usual, but, hey, this isn't a breakfast mcmuffin and this kind of quality is worth the wait!

03/01/08

Excellent brunch!

by RandaPrince

We went to Cafe Lili for brunch with friends on a Saturday in March. It wasn't too crowded at 11 a.m. -- full, but there wasn't a line stretching out the door or anything. The service was a bit slow -- it took maybe 10 minutes for someone to come and take our order, and it seemed to take longer for our food to be prepared than I would consider usual. However, the waitress was friendly, and the food was really, really good. I had the biscuits with mushroom thyme gravy. Everything was excellent -- the potatoes, the bacon, the biscuits themselves, and the gravy -- yum!

The decor is cute, very country French in feel. The pastries in the case -- apricot tarts, a chocolate cake, and a couple of other things -- looked delicious, and I will have to try one next time.

The prices are on the high side -- my dish cost $9.50 and it was one of the less expensive items on the breakfast menu. But the food is well prepared from high-quality ingredients, and I'd rather pay $9.50 for something wonderful than $7.50 for a plate of bleah at Denny's.

I knocked off one star for slowness, but really, I have no complaints. I'll definitely go back.

• Pros: Excellent food, charming decor
• Cons: Service is a little slow