Delta Cafe

07/31/09

What's happened to Delta?

by chapeaukiki at Citysearch

Delta was once a bastion for good southern cuisine in Portland. Yeah, it was a seedy place but the food was so good you could overlook the grit and grime of the place. Unfortunately, after having returned to Delta after a year or so sabbatical, I am duly under-impressed. The gumbo, once a regular favorite, now tastes more like something that should be rolled into a tamale than the bowl of Creole love it should be and once was. The greens were always delectable and spicy, now they are bland and boring. And what ever happened to all the great side dishes like stewed tomatoes with okra, BBQ beans, and the ethereal cauliflower casserole? They've pared the sides down to crowd pleasers for toddlers. With bland bad food, Latino music blaring (where's the Cajun beats?), and a plethora of flies landing on everything, Delta is now a major disappointment - bad food and seedy, not a good combo! But, hey, you won't have to wait for a table, even on the weekend! I put my money on My Brother's Crawfish - those guys know how to rock-n-roll Creole cuisine.

• Pros: No wait for table
• Cons: Quality has dropped off

09/02/08

Dirty..not authentic at all!

by sunlife2002 at Citysearch

My husband and I live just a few blocks from the Delta. I am from the south and agree that the food is not all that authentic, however I have not found an authentic southern restaurant in Portland ever. The sweet tea and Mac and Cheese is my favorite. But even living so close, we usually vote for another restaurant. If you get a chance, walk past the side door on the outside of the rastaurant that leads to the kitchen, you will probibly gag and turn right around. My husband jokes that the reason for the "mood lighting" is to distract people from the dirt and lack of cleanliness. YUCK!

• Pros: Sweet tea, mac and cheese
• Cons: very dirty, slow service, loud

02/08/08

What happened to this place?

by GaussLaw at Citysearch

Did they change ownership or something. I used to love this place. My girlfriend and I would go there all the time, and would never leave less than completely stuffed. I swear you used to get three sides with an entree, now only 2. Oh, and what happened to the complimentary cornbread. You used to get a basket right away when you sat down, then it changed to only being with the meal, now you have to order it as a side. If you are going to skimp on these things, at least knock the price down a little.

The service is at least still friendly, although I can't say I recognize any of the faces anymore. Maybe I am just getting old, but this place ain't what she used to be.

• Pros: Service is good
• Cons: You get less for your money than you used to.

06/30/07

Bad all the way round

by julietellen at Citysearch

A 25 minute wait, even though we'd called since we were bringing in a large party(the person who took our reservation 'forgot'). Indifferent service, grit and rocks in both the mashed potatoes and the pot/chz casserole. Led Zep 4 played over and over, dirty and delapidated building AND, the greasey dumpster in the back lot is not the most appetizing thing I can think of. And they have the worst hushpuppies I've ever eaten. The shrimp in the jambalaya was unshelled and the salad had brown chunks of lettuce. We took some friends from out of town and were totally embarassed to have picked such a lame place to eat; especially with so many other great eats in PDX. Maybe this USED to be a good restaurant?

• Pros: the blackeyed pea fritters were good
• Cons: everything else

06/11/05

Wait...how long is your ten minutes?

by shampooit at Citysearch

OK, so at least the people were entertaining to look at because the wait took forever.

05/26/05

bad service and ok food

by akg at Citysearch

The Delta Cafe was a favorite of mine for years. Every time someone came in from out of town I'd take them there. I enjoyed the bad attitudes of the wait staff and the inconsistent quality of food for many years, but things have changed. YOU CAN'T CHARGE OVER $10 A PLATE FOR MEATLOAF AND CONTINUE TO HAVE BAD SERVICE. Well, I guess you can and that is what the Delta is doing, but I won't be going there again.

• Pros: alcohol
• Cons: service , value

05/10/05

Get some real servers

by zornkorn at Citysearch

Hands down the worst service in town. I don't care if your known for the so called "Delta" service, if someone comes in and drops money at your place, the least you can do is come and check on them once before you drop the check.

• Pros: nothing
• Cons: service, food, did I say service

07/30/03

mr

by zire at Citysearch

Heard good things - really dissapointed. Service was unfriendly when around and otherwise non-existent. When we arrived we were told we could sit in the dining room by the host/ manager(?). I would have preferred he sent us to the bar to eat - that would of been fine. Instead no one even greeted us at the table for 10 minutes and then the host said he would tell the bartender to come over. The bartendar arrived 10 min later - this is just to take our drink order - come on. Mind you the place was near empty. That low level of service and unresponsiveness continued through the meal which frankly was subpar. The hushpuppies were small bricks that were definitely left and reheated in a fryer. The sandwiches were pretty average as well. I felt like I was in somebody's house that didn't want me there.

• Pros: grittty ambience
• Cons: service, food prep

05/11/03

Disappointing!

by verydisappointed at Citysearch

After a recent trip to the South and indulging in the DELICIOUS cuisine, I was eager to try the Delta Cafe. It was very disappointing! Waited over an hour for a table (Didn't really mind at the time, it was anticipation). The hushpuppies were disgusting little balls of deep fat fried corn meal or something - no taste! The corn bread was a bland gut-bomb, even w/honey & butter it was gross. The fried chicken was horribly horribly fried, beyond recognition of it ever being chicken. Mashed pototoes were bland too. Note to the cooks: Try at least using salt next time!

12/02/02

Oh miss Oh miss did you forget something

by byebarbara at Citysearch

The ribs were tough...needed to cook longer...the service or lack of service stood out..the salad that came with the meal never did get to the table...had to ask three times for cream for the coffee and the place is dirty ...but it has the....THE BEST FRIED OKRA....

• Pros: great okra, good sweet potato pie
• Cons: dirty, poor service, food undercooked