Paragon Restaurant & Bar Portland

09/24/09

My Favorite Pearl Restaurant!

by vjackson09

My boyfriend and I have frequented Paragon many times since I was first introduced to the restaurant in 2005. Every time that we have dined at Paragon both the food and service has been excellent! I even had my 21st birthday there! I would recommend this restaurant to anyone and am looking forward to many years dining at Paragon!!

• Pros: Wonderful Wine, Amazing Meals, Dessert to Die For!
• Cons: Only Located in Portland

08/30/09

Non Alcoholic Surprise

by SoHo97123

$2.50 coke w/ $.75 refill charges!! Oh my, what a happy hour surprise! Other than the sticker shock at the price of a coke, the food was fabulous and the service was good.

• Pros: Pulled Pork Sliders!
• Cons: Pricing

05/01/09

DudeSweet Rates The Burger

by DudeSweet

For the full review go to www.dudesweet (dot) com and search Paragon.

--DudeSweet Portland Food Reviews

www.dudesweet (dot) com

• Pros: Bun
• Cons: Cost

10/09/08

Avoid Unless You Like Snotty.

by agua01

I am a resident of the Pearl District and have gone to Paragon many times. However, when I leave, I hardly ever leave satisfied. True, their drinks are amazing and I am sure they have nice waitstaff, but everytime I am there I get the rude or snotty ones. I feel like I have given the Paragon all the chances it deserves. Especially recently. The last time I was there was with a group of friends from out of town visiting me. I have never left a place feeling so looked down upon. Maybe I am sensitive, but then again, maybe I was treated rudely and inconsiderately. I certainly leave it to the reader to decide, but I certainly will not be going back there again.

09/15/08

Must try Braised PotRoast

by bdazzled1313

I have been to Paragon on several occasions. We usually choose the outdoor seating as it is idea for people watching. The martini's tend to be strong, which is nice and the Braised PotRoast is amazing. It literally falls off your fork.

• Pros: Outdoor seating, Braised PotRoast, Strong Drinks
• Cons: Can be busy, service can be slow.

09/12/08

No longer sanitary!

by Lizardite

I have visited Paragon for several years and was there even on opening day! The establishment is a fun place to go and the food is fairly priced....over the last year, perhaps longer, things have changed though:

- We used to feel like the place was clean and sanitary. For years we actually noticed how clean the place was....but about a year ago, maybe a year and half this changed. My visit a month ago will be my last. Dirty and sticky floors, restrooms completely nasty and dust everywhere! I do not feel good about eating at dirty places.

- At first I thought it was just me until I had a small gathering of friends who meet me from out of town once a year. Our normal meeting place is the Paragon. Even they quietly told me about how there was a sour odor throughout the establishment, the floors beneath the bar stools has had insects still ALIVE and sticking to the floor!

- One of my friends actually refused to order because she noticed the large amount of mildew and grime on the mats behind the bar. She complained the whole time, ruining my gathering...she is a little prissy and walked the entire place to find the odor....she peeked behind the bar and noticed the mats were "gross".

- AVOID THE RESTROOMS! Nasty is an understatement! I'm not talking about walking in after someone did a #2....I am talking about lack of sanitation. The toilets had rings, the mirrors were splattered, the sink was gross and the dispeners were empty....this was at lunch right after they opened!

The good news - The food is not overpriced and the service is so-so, but better than most. The cleanliness is the worst that reflects poorly on the over-all feel of this establishment....They need to have thier staff properly clean this place. Until that happens....I am scheduling our events elsewhere and my normal weekly visits will be at an place that has sanitation in mind.

• Pros: Good Food
• Cons: Not as sanitary like it used to be

06/02/08

Perfect Fit

by heyyah

Just went to Paragon last night for the third time this week - it's my new favorite restaurant. It feels like like an old favorite sweater it's just cozy and consistently good. Nothing too fancy, not trying too hard - their tomato soup and grilled cheese panini is to die for, and nothing says comfort food like perfect mac n cheese. My server last night knew when to stay away from the table and when to come back - a qulity I can't speak highly enough. For a warm experience and consistly good food Paragon is a sure thing.

03/08/08

Avoid like the plague

by abrazo

Like a previous person pointed out: In a sea of fine dining in the Pearl District of Portland, Paragon falls completely flat and should be avoided at all costs. The service is the worst of any restaurant I've been to in the last 10 years. We waited for our water, for our cocktails and we waited an hour to receive our dinner. Our waitress seemed like she was right out of the school for the dumb. This place is not even worth checking out, at all. I'd write more, but our experience was so poor that it's not worth spending another second thinking about.

01/17/08

Great Squash Risotto

by evryonsacrtc

I was up in Portland last weekend to visit my brother and he had heard that Paragon was a cool place to hang out with good food so we decided to check it out. We didn't make reservations and even thought it was packed we got a table after 20 minutes (good microbrews on tap in the meantime!). Service was a little slow but the calamari alone was worth it My brother ordered the hangar steak which was good but pretty standard, my salmon was excellent -squash risotto was the best part. The place had a good vibe...busy but mellow and our food overall was quite tasty....I'd recommend Paragon to anyone visiting Portland.

• Pros: good food and atmosphere
• Cons: slow service

07/05/06

overpriced, overated fare in the pearl

by juniper420

In a sea of good restaurants in the Pearl District, Paragon falls flat on most counts. I had lunch here and had heard very good things about it, but boy was I disappointed. I ordered sparkling water and it took a good 10 minutes just to get it to my table. I was never offered a lime with it (standard at most restaurants) and I had to ask for ice! They brought me the ice in a second glass which I had to spoon into my other glass. At a restaurant trying to be upscale and trendy, I thought this was very tacky. It took a very long time for the server to take our order. I only ordered a salad; they wouldn't do a 1/2 order and when I asked for 1/2 of the entree to be boxed up before it was served to me, I was told that was no problem. It was brought out to me in full, covered in dressing that I asked for on the side. I wasn't trying to be picky, just eating healthy and the staff treated me like I had the plague for wanting less food with a lighter dressing. In a restaurant that claims to be of a higher caliber, service should be #1 priority and Paragon fell far short on that task.

• Pros: Good tasting food
• Cons: A mediocre restaurant with poor service in a neighborhood full of many other great choices. Not up to Pearl par!