Portland
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Nel Centro
Great spot!.
My husband and I won a Nel Centro gift certificate at a local benefit event. We had never been to the restaurant before. What a wonderful dining experience!
We were very excited by the menu we saw online and were prepared to try a number of different items. We were very pleasantly surprised. The meal provided complex flavor profiles and really creative dishes. Many items are made in house and it was absolutely fabulous. We had starters, salads, entree and dessert.
Our waitress was very helpful in recommending particular choices and offered much background on the house made items. She also recommended a wonderful dessert wine that we had never tasted, and it was spectacular. We are now on the hunt for the same bottle.
I will definitely recommend this restaurant to friends. The outdoor dining area, inside dining and the atmosphere were really lovely. It's a perfect spot for those dining before or after a show at the Keller. Yum!…
Beautiful - love the huge outdoor fire pits.
I eat here often when I stay at the Hotel Modero (attached to restaurant). Bartenders and wait-staff are always friendly - and the atmosphere is perfect to unwind (I'm usually alone and wiped out
from work) or to have night-out with friends -- especially gathered around the firepits.
Menu is "creative". Get the roasted beet salad (my favorite) or the warm goat cheese (YUM!). Pasta and meat dishes too of course.
One night I sat outside with my sister-in-law for two hours and no waitress came to ask us about fresh drinks (although plenty waitresses were circulating) We didn't like that - but that is the only negative I can think of.…
Consistently wonderful..
We hosted a wedding rehearsal dinner for 28 last week at Nel Centro. They were outstanding in service, quality of food, and bang-for-the buck.
In fact, we were so impressed we decided to try them again tonight for a birthday dinner for a party of 7. No disappointment! The server was very friendly and knew the menu well. The food was, again, really good.
Two visits, two excellent experiences. Can't ask for more than that. We will definitely be back.…
Good Food, Business Atmosphere.
Nel Centro is in the business district of Portland, so it's definitely built to cater to that type of crowd. The atmosphere was upscale and a little sterile, however they have a great outdoor seating
area. Our server was friendly, but I found the service to be slow overall. It felt like we were waiting longer than usual for our drinks & food.
The food was great. A small menu with interesting, seasonal choices & manageable portions, and the dessert was excellent. They seemed to emphasize wine, as the beer selection was quite small for a Portland restaurant.
If you're staying at the adjoining hotel, or want to take someone out for a business meal, this is a fine choice. However, I wouldn't recommend it for those who want a more lively & unique Portland experience.…
Seriously?.
Nel Centro is an affront to good dining. As someone who works downtown, I have had several acceptable lunches here. So, with the mother-in-law in town last weekend, we decided to give it a try for
dinner. That was a big mistake.
I love the space at Nel Centro/Hotel Modera - it's a shame that service is abysmal and the food is even worse. I ordered the "spit roasted pork loin." The pork came medium rare and almost cold in temperature (a new way of serving pork?). It had no taste and was accompanied by greasy asparagus, nasty polenta, and canned tomato chutney. My wife's pasta looked equally nasty. How do you mess up pasta?
For 15 to 20 minutes at a time, we had also no service what so ever. The appetizer course (soup and salads) was slammed down on table by the expediter with no offer of pepper. Since there was no pepper on the table, I had to walk over and request some. Water glasses remained empty until after we received the check.
I may come back for a happy hour drink to enjoy the Hotel Modera's beautiful courtyard, but I will never eat at Nel Centro again.…
