Dingo's

10/06/07

Finally a place on Hawthorne that's unpretentious and hip.

by m_blannchet

My partner and I have been trying to find a bar/restaurant near our new home to go for tasty cocktails and good food. We heard about Dingo's from a neighbor who suggested the lime chicken enchiladas and a Blushing Rita (grapefruit and cranberry margarita) . I took my friends advice and the food was delicious, my boyfriend has food allergies and the waitress was well informed on all the ingredients in everything!!! let me suggest a fruity mojito, and Steve says to have the fajitas, they're huge. Well be back... probably tonight!!! Stars and A plusses all around.

• Pros: Friendly well informed staff, tasty food and delicious drinks
• Cons: Not one!!!

11/06/09

excellent all the way around

by Jessica Susan

My favorite little homeslice (who is almost three) is quite possibly the best/worst food critic I know. She is picky, has an attention span of about 4 seconds and can wait for maybe twice that amount of time. Dingos is, quite possibly, her favorite food spot -- to the extent that she asks (at 8am) if we can go there for breakfast at least once a week. Someone always takes the time to take her order from her -- as tricky as that can sometimes be -- and will double check with her on everything that is going into her food (the kid knows what she likes). Any other place we have gone to wait staff has talked completely over her head as if she is not there -- not the case with Dingos! And to top it all off, I get to eat food that I really enjoy as well (Dingos Quesadilla? Yes please!), and for nights when the little one is not with me, the bartender always knows how to treat me right.. :) The Pink Drink is definately a must have. Definately tops in my book if both myself and the kiddo can eat food we like in an atmosphere that caters to the both of us.

And as a side note: Yes, its a bummer that you have to pay for chips and salsa but if my (almost) three year old can go through 2 full baskets of them then I'm sure you (adults) can eat about the same. Given the amount of free chips I have had at Dingos over the last year and some months, its really not that big of a deal to pay for them when I want them now.

• Pros: child friendly, good looking employees, DINGOS QUESADILLA!!
• Cons: nada

09/12/09

Good food, bad service

by midsecrets

I really like the food at Dingos. I've been going there for several years and I've always been able to overlook their inattentive service because the food is served piping hot and it's fresh and tasty!

I was there about a week ago and I've noticed that they've stopped giving complimentary chips and salsa. The chips & salsa weren't the best, but they do make you wait quite a while to get your food so they really do need to provide the chips & salsa.

They also now require you to ask for a glass of water, okay whatever, but know that you will also have to ask for every single refill - and that's IF you're lucky enough to catch the attention of your server and they usually seem to blatantly avoid you once the food is on your table. If they want to conserve tap water, fine, but their inattentive service is inexcusable. Most of the wait staff has always acted as if they were too cool to bother with customers, but I'm not paying any more money to support them. The menu prices recently went up also, along with breaking everything down into individual items so you wouldn't notice. There are no more "meals" - everything is ordered as a separate item.

Lastly, everyone here raves about the drinks... and they do have a decent selection of "different" drink to try out, but their margaritas are horrible and are way overpriced.

I am so disappointed in this place and I'm sad to leave behind their lime chicken enchiladas, but so be it.

• Pros: fresh, hot food
• Cons: no more free chips & salsa, rude wait staff

07/11/09

holy cocktail

by bonch

I frequent dingos on a semi-regular basis for many reasons. One, the drinks are to die for!!! Every time I go in, there is a new drink special, or liquor infusion (jalapeno tequila is my favorite). The weekend bartender is one of the friendliest in town, and cute to boot!!! I love to sit at the outside tables, but on the weekends they fill up kinda fast, so I usually end up at the bar, which can get a bit cramped,but it's not a big space.

Overall, the service is great, the employees are friendly, the drinks are fresh, and amazing, and the food that i've had has been delicious. Hello mini carnitas tacos!!!!

• Pros: delicious drinks, friendly atmosphere....cute employees
• Cons: close early, small wine selection, wait for outside tables

06/13/09

The Worst Service Ever

by PDXBeerBaron

I can honestly say this is the worst service I have ever received at a restaurant.

After arriving, my wife and I chose to sit outside. We were the first of six groups to show up and sit outside. After waiting at least 8 minutes, the server greeted us and took our order. The other tables started to fill up after we placed our order. My wife and I were hungry, so we ordered bean dip as an appetizer. This order was placed while we were the only people outside.

The server appeared to be busy so the wait time wasn't bothering us. Both my wife and I were servers when we were in college so we know what it's like to be in a busy restaurant that's short staffed.

I noticed that the other groups (three of which were bigger than the duo of my wife and I) were getting served before us. We were sitting right next to the door where the server was entering and exiting from. I smiled at her to get her attention and that did not work. She made eye contact with me several times and completely ignored me. I had an empty water glass at the end of the table and she would look at it and keep walking.

In total, for the 35+ minutes we were at this place, the server came over twice. She never brought our appetizer or food. She never offered a refill on my water.

I kept saying "she's busy, let's just wait" but when she brought out the order of the third table that ordered after us and then looked right at my wife and I and kept walking I had to leave.

Not once, did she say anything to the affect of "I'll be right with you", "we're really busy", "sorry for the wait" etc. It was like she wanted us to leave. It was a little bit weird actually.

I saw the reviews on this site (I was actually prompted to join to share this experience as it was that bad) and others that stated that this was a lesbian restaurant/bar. At the time I thought nothing of the fact that the groups getting served around me were all same gender couples/parties. Now reading other reviews and contrasting my experience there, I believe my wife and I were essentially discriminated against.

In short, stay away.

• Pros: None
• Cons: Many!

05/11/09

Excellent local Mexican

by ForeignAffairs

My wife and I have been coming here for a couple years since a friend brought me here. I got hooked by the fish tacos and love everything else I have had. Big portions, with leftovers enough for tomorrow's lunch. Good drinks. Good service. We have always had a good experience. My favorite mexican in town.

• Pros: All good
• Cons: On street parking

02/17/09

Dingo's has changed my life.

by kagonv

I never understood the meaning of fresh before walking into this establishment. That may sound sad, but it's very true. They put so much creative thought into their drink concoctions, and the food is brilliant. The portions are amazing, the gals and girls working there, amazing. Hilarious actually. Let's just say I am SO glad to have found this place. What really sets it apart from other restaurants/bars is the staff. They are so intuitive and so cheerful. I LOVE that. I'll be back soon.

• Pros: Friendly staff, amazing food, fresh drinks.
• Cons: Street parking.

01/16/09

Dingo Baby! To:thatwillbeall 10/27

by foodcruiser

I am a Dingos regular and have been acquainted with the staff for a very long time. Though through the years there have been many new faces, i have never heard of any major displeasure from the waitstaff, or kitchen employees, which makes me wonder where you're sense of them being treated poorly comes from. I laugh at the fact you think there is any type of discrimination between staff and customers. Also, the staff is of a mixture, so obviously they do not discriminate when hiring.

I have tried pretty much everything on the menu, and though i don't like everything, i have found the food to be tasty, and fresh. And this might come as a shock to you, but almost every restaurant pre-chops, and seasons their food.

The drinks in my opinion, are delicious, though I have tried some questionable, creative concoctions, i have never been dissatisfied with a drink. The blushing ritas are to die for.

To sum it all up, my advise to you is that you're better off at Taco Bell with a bottle of booze...... while the rest of us are having a blast at Dingos!!

09/23/08

Drinking the main draw here

by cardiaca8

Only good if you are a drinker. I got a taco and the chicken was cold, but for some reason the lettuce was hot. It gets really loud in the evening when alcohol seems to be the main draw here. A nightmare if you want to take your kids.

• Pros: drinkers seem to like it here
• Cons: food quality is abysmal

09/18/08

I crave this food!

by blissgyrl

I am so surprised to read negative feed back about Dingo's, my all time favorite Portland, neighborhood taco bar! They have actually developed a new delicious non-canned, non refried pinto beans, with a unique and tasty blend of spices! I'm usually a black beans only person, but I like a mix at Dingo's! And the Tostado's, are salads, hence the name Tostado Salad! I highly recommend trying one of their unique blends such as Chiptole Lime, Cumin or Dill "dressing" which is really more like a sauce. The halibut tostado with pinto beans and dill dressing is so yummy, it make s my mouth water just thinking about it! Don't believe everything you read, I would say go try it for yourself, you will get hooked!

YUMMM!

• Pros: Good food, yummy fresh juice cocktails, good looking servers
• Cons: Food too delcious

08/17/08

Lifetime Family Favorite

by savannahmae

This is one of my top favorite 3 restaurants in Portland. This one satistfying the "everyone" topic. I can bring my conservative east coast grandparents, my lesbian bff and her wife, my punk rock friends, and my dreaded brother and his "bros" there and we are always guaruteed delicious fresh made food, a plethera of top notch drinks....what else can you ask for??? regulars and newbies alike... they are accommodating, friendly and down right portland FUNKY!!! much love!

• Pros: food, drinks, service, music.......what else you need?
• Cons: NOTHING COMES TO MINID