Portland City Grill

06/01/09

Great view

by norcal1 at Citysearch

Brought an out of town guest here for lunch, the view made it the perfect place. The food was just fine and the portions were not too large; we didn't think the prices were overly expensive. Our waiter was friendly and made good menu suggestions; however, his white jacket was filthy! The napkins and plates were also very worn which made everything look grubby.

• Pros: View, people watching
• Cons: A bit worn around the edges

05/11/09

Excellent view, great service, very expensive

by Raven777 at Citysearch

I brought two out of town guests to view Portland and have a wonderful meal. The service in the restaurant was perfect. The waiter was helpful and didn't rush us. The Kung Pao calimari was fantastic! Though I had ordered that terrible glass of wine in the bar (service not very good and really loud in there), the mohito I had in the restaurant was great. I ordered New York steak - which for some reason comes only at 20 oz which is way too big. However, it was very good quality. I asked for it medium rare and it was more on the rare side. The sides were decent. I highly recommend the fresh cookies for dessert. Be prepared for the bill! Still, once in awhile, it's a special place to go.

• Pros: Wonderful preparation of food, nice menu
• Cons: Really bad Pinot Noir at $12 a glass

03/07/09

PDX PHat Guy Food Guy Says Overpriced Lackluster Food

by PDXFatGuyFoodCritic at Citysearch

We requested an appetizer (waiter never asked) crab cakes, the large Australian lobster tail and the 22oz. Porter House Steak requested Medium. There was no offer of a salad or soup (Guess they figure the fat guy does roll large with the dolla dolla bills yawl!) but I was fully prepared to drop a few large on dinner for two. The steak comes out and they ask me to check if the temp is to satisfaction?. The fat guy never sends food back but I couldn?t even cut the darned thing even if I was a ninja with a Katana slicin? thru your melon! OK guys! Pay your freaking gas bill turn up the flame and cook the freaking food. How hard is it to throw that little sea creature into bath and boil until it turns redder than the devil in a cell with Bernie Madoff after he was scammed on the market.

The bearnaise sauce lacked that normal zing that makes you say oooh laaa laaa and was rather flat on the pallet. During the course of the meal the service was somewhat lackluster. The wait staff appeared more enthralled with aerating and filtering wine and heating cognac or brandies than checking to see that their guest where enjoying the meal. The wait staff was nice and responsive but lacked polish. They failed to offer wine/scotch, salads or soup and made excuses that they cooked the steak properly and I must have wanted a medium well steak because they cook to temperature. Overall I would save your money and your time?. And can you believe a fat guy skipped desert? Well PCG got skipped for dessert like ferris bueler skipped a school all day and without paying the tab. The only saving grace on an otherwise abysmal experience was the manager taking the steak charge off.

• Pros: Great view, steak was OK after re-fire & location was great!
• Cons: Overpriced, Food quality control was not up to snuff

01/04/09

Too bad you cant eat a view..

by therestaurantsearchers at Citysearch

My wife and I went here for a romantic anniversary dinner. The view was incredible but the food was terrible. Over-sauced, over-priced and undercooked.

12/18/08

Overpriced, Bad Service, and Bad Food

by PacificNorthWest at Citysearch

If you want the views, just to the OHSU cable car. Please dont waste your time and money at the Portland city grill. We were so disappointed. It is way overrated. Food sucked, service sucked and it's overpriced. In this economy just save your money and go see the Portland views from OHSU cable car for like $4. YA! Don't mention it....

• Pros: Views, umm NO, only if you get the seat by the window
• Cons: food, service, overpriced, snobby staff

12/18/08

disapointed

by cringemo at Citysearch

This used to be one of my favorite bars to visit. Ever since the company switched owners, the quality has steadily declined, and I've noticed the "regulars" are no longer regular. The drinks aren't as good and the prices have skyrocketed. No thank you. But hey, what a view.

12/15/08

Great view?

by mcpherren at Citysearch

If you're looking for a great view of the city, this is definitely the place to go. Nothing compares if you're fortunate enough to get a window seat. But be prepared to pay top dollar for all the entrees, appetizers and drinks. Everything is ala carte so as long as you know that in advance and you're willing to part with saved up funds, this place makes a nice place to visit for a special occasion. Shy away from the sushi, however, unless you're into dry, undercooked rice and tasteless fish. The head sushi chef has moved on to open own establishiment and it's starting to show.

• Pros: Great view, nice service
• Cons: Poor sushi, high prices

09/14/08

God awful sushi

by dmeryl at Citysearch

Great views (from the 30th floor), terrible sushi. We didn't try the other menu items, so I can't really judge the quality of all the food served. Perhaps it's better. The sushi was almost inedible. We sent half of it back and asked for a refund. All in all, I think you're paying for the atmosphere here. Do not go for the sushi. There are better, and cheaper, options in Portland.

If you're going for the views or bar-scene... this place might suit you well.

09/02/08

PERFECT PLACE TO GET MARRIED!

by goldielocks777 at Citysearch

In August of 2006 I had my wedding at the beautiful Portland City Grill. We used all three banquet rooms and had a fabulous time. The food was first class! We had everything from prime rib to salmon to sushi and it was all beautiful and delicious. With just over 100 guests, it was the right amount of room and the perfect ambiance. I couldn't have asked for more! The staff went above and beyond our expectations by changing over the room from ceremony to reception in a matter of minutes! If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't have changed a thing! The food, the view, the party, everything was perfect! Thank you Portland City Grill!

• Pros: Ranked one of the top one hundred restaurants in the nation!
• Cons: You may not always get a window seat

08/27/08

JIm's Review of Portland City Grill

by jpmcardle at Citysearch

I am writing this in August, 2008 about my dinner there on Friday, December 7, 2007, but I just found this site. I had a special friend that I flew up from Los Angeles to spend the weekend in the Northwest. Included was dinner at the Portland City Grill. This place has got to be one of the most special settings in Portland, and I really wanted special care for my guest. I was not disappointed with service or drinks, but was with the food. I believe we had fillet mignon, which was great, but the sides - mashed garlic potatoes - were an incredible disaster, dry and devoid of flavor. In any case, I did write the restaurant upon returning to Los Angeles, outlining that I came there, traveling quite a distance, and was disappointed with the meal. I never received any comments back from the place. My only feeling on this is, for such a great place, that the sides were so poorly managed . . . it was also disappointing that they never sent anything back - I was not looking for freebies or anything, just perhaps an acknowledgement, and something that says they are aware and working on the problem. So, overall, I would not have done it any differently, but perhaps send back the sides until they were done correctly, since that would be the only way to reach the management.