Ristorante Roma

Recommends

poonslang

Joined 9 years ago

dont go there! lol its MY best restaurant. Had the sausage and mushroom tomato sauce pasta. Just a really solid dish, the flavors are not fancy just very sincere and made with care.

The appetizer was the parmesan beef salad. Anothe reviewer complained about the strong lemon flavor. But they are on crack. The lemon dressing augments the tanginess of the beef and thin slices of parmesan perfectly.

Dining partner has the gnocchi and i tasted it. Wow, a rich spectrum of cheese and cream starch, not overly garlicky. Very rich but not overpowering with just one flavor.

The bread and olive oil balsamic vinegar accoutrement is also high quality. This piece of the meal is key because if the bread is not perfect it would let the other food down.

For dessert the tiramisu is Smoooooth. Not a huge dessert guy but i liked it. Tried the canoli too, im sure its good but i dont like highly sweet stuff like that.

As for the ambience it works. Its very intimate meaning, one small room overlooking 12th street, just a few flourishes on the walls and the kitchen is right there. Really for food like this that is handmade you dont need a lot of presentation. Its not fancy just good. And thats exactly the mood of the place.

I hope this place stays like this forever. Good job owners!

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missirene

Joined 6 years ago

Lovely dining experience. I really like this little place! My friend and I had dinner before an event, and the gracious waitress was prompt and accommodating with our order, so we could dash out at exactly 6:30PM. However, there was no compromising with the food preparation. Our meals were delicious. Seating is limited, so if you have a group of 6 or more, I'd call ahead for reservations. The restaurant is a convenient walking distance from the Smart Park on 10th, so if you want to be leisurely, you don't have to worry about a ticket. I've already recommended Ristorante Roma to the organizer of the Portland Lunch Club so I'll be back soon. (and often!)

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2cooks

Joined 4 years ago

Definitely Italian from the food, servers and ambiance.. We celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary here and the entire dinner and servers were excellent. We selected this restaurant because it was one of the best rated on City Search and it did not disappoint. My husband had the filet Mignon and I had the ravoli Bolognaise, including Minestrone soup and dessert (Tiramisu), all prepared to perfection. The bread had a real nice crust and was a bit chewy - wonderful. We loved the entire experience and definitely will return.

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CSMobileUser

Joined 5 years ago

Excellent!!!. delicious , great service and very authentic. My favorite italian food place in portland. Fantastic!

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myohmygood

Joined 4 years ago

ROMA!. LOVE this little hole in the wall - YUMMY good. No better than that, PERFECTO! Seriously - i swear the chef jumped of the plane from Rome yesterday. The quality and flavor was the best i've had since i was in Rome.

GO!

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lilajax

Joined 4 years ago

Delicious Italian food, what more could you ask for?. My boyfriend and I went to Ristorante Roma tonight for dinner. We got there around 8 and were immediately seated. For appetizers we both had salads and the homemade minestrone soup. The soup was AWESOME! We could tell that it had been made fresh and was bursting with flavor. For dinner I ordered a simple penne with spicy tomato sauce and my boyfriend ordered the pesto with green beans and potatoes. Both were excellent.

This is our new favorite restaurant, and it is very reasonably priced as well. I also like the fact that it seems to be family owned. Before you spend your money at a mediocre chain Italian restaurant, try this place out. You won't regret it!

We'll be coming back very soon.

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Sophey

Joined 4 years ago

Execution of Excellence. Ristorante Roma's is the top notch authentic Italian spot in Portland as far as we are concerned.

We had the most wonderful lunch here. My husband who travels extensively all over the world and loves

to try gourmet food. He was highly impressed with the authenticity, the attention to detail and overall execution was superb ! The chef's signature is not just excellence, but that he truly understands cooking is an art form .

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Welikefoodalot

Joined 4 years ago

Best Date Restaurant Ever. My boyfriend and I discovered this place a couple of years ago and now we always go for anniversaries and birthdays. It's incredibly cozy and romantic. Authenticity is really the word here--amazing food and a family-run vibe. It's reasonably priced, especially for a "go to special occasion restaurant."

I'm not sure what the guy below me was talking about? Perhaps he ate at a different restaurant.

Doesn't Recommend

1carbon

Joined 5 years ago

I got duped by all these other good reviews. I thought it was a sure thing coming here being that all the reviews were 4 and 5 stars. Either these reviews are bogus or the people just don't know what good food is and/or have low standards.

I'll try and be as specific as I can here. We started with appetizers. The caprese was lackluster. The carpaccio was drowned in lemon juice and your lips puckered just eating it. Would you like a side of raw beef with your lemon juice? More proper would be to have a lemon wedge on the side so the patron can decide how much they want.

The restaurant consistently brought entrees to one member of tables around us and not the other. The other person was left waiting for theirs to arrive. I know I'd rather have my dish fresh than have it waiting and getting cold while my friend's dish is finalized, but the kitchen can plan ahead to have them come out at the same time.

Both pastas came with far too much cheese on top. There's something about a good pasta where even when you're full, you still want to just keep eating and eating it. This X factor was quite absent from these dishes. My rigatoni was supposed to feature pecorino romano cheese and the mountain on top just seemed like a basic parmigiano-reggiano.

Other notes:

The silverware was cheap. Cafeteria-style utsensils would be one way to put it. Not the kind of thing you would find at a fine dining establishment. Besides cooking, our server was doing everything (hostess, server, and busser).

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reareaotu

Joined 6 years ago

Great Authentic Italian. The food here is excellent, lots of great choices. It appears to be family run with the husband in the back cooking and the wife in front waiting tables. Be prepared for dinner to take a while especially if you order salads and dessert . It's definitely worth the wait, just don't go if you have some place to be. Coffee is great too!