Decarli Restaurant

Reviews 5

CH

Charles Ferguson

Before I critique, Id like to praise the chefs. Outstanding cuisine. Scroll down for a summary. I ordered the beef short ribs and my wife ordered the wild boar ragu. These two dishes were absolutely phenomenal. The spaetzle had the most velvety, buttery quality about it that really worked with the phenomenally tender, savory short ribs with that wonderful espresso bite. Lovely combination all around, I highly recommend this dish. I believe it is their specialty. The wild boar ragu was also excellent. Surprisingly flavorful, especially compared to my short ribs. With its hint of citrus and perfectly al-dente tagliatelle, it was a big hit with both of us. While I feel like the food was to die for, the service was mediocre, and definitely not fitting of the excellent food. We received this sad, awful bread about 5 minutes before our food came out to us. Look, I could care less about the bread, but it was bad enough to make me wonder about what was coming up next. I would have skipped it, especially since we received our food shortly after. Your wine prices are a too high. I really wanted to pair some wine with our dishes, but I couldnt justify it. For the wine offered, youre asking too much. Call me whatever youd like, its the fact that yore charging $9-$10 per glass for a wine that costs $15 retail. Sorry, but Im not paying $10 per glass for VERY sub-$20 wine. My main complaint was the noise level. I cant believe how loud it gets in there. I couldnt have a conversation with my wife, sitting directly in front of me. Were both young with excellent hearing, so thats saying something. I am not exaggerating. Put something on/in the walls, it gets way too loud in your restaurant. -Youre getting the food right. Youre sticking to what works, and youre doing a great job at it. -Fix the noise issue. I have a feeling that its just your building. I dont mind noise, but its just that I cant have a reasonable conversation. Its horribly unpleasant. -Service. Not my biggest complaint, but worth working on. -Wine prices. Look, I dont mean to be cheap, but theyre a little bit ridiculous, even for a nice place. I want to give a 4, but I cant justify it. No matter how incredible the food was, I couldnt enjoy it. The three is only because of the food, which deserves a 5.

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Jody Heaton

Our first time at this restaurant, and we will not be returning. We were seated in the center of the room, and could not hear a word we were saying to each other. We had to yell the entire time! Our server was "nice ", but felt he was perturbed because we had no idea what anything was on the menu. We had never heard of most of it, so of course we had to ask a lot of questions. There was a lot of miscommunication, (possibly due to the noise level). Very few options for vegetarians like myself. I ended up with the Pizzatta, which is basically just a thin crust pizza with arugula, sauce, and cheese. I asked if they could put any other vegetables on it, but he said he would need to ask the chef. He told me they could put some mushrooms on it, and they were so chewy I had to remove them, not edible. One of my friends ordered a Caesar salad with just a plain chicken breast. He brought out a Cesar salad topped with what looked like a whole chicken. Breast, wing, leg and thigh attached. She told him that all she had asked for was a breast. He said well maybe you can take it home and someone else will eat it. At the end, she got charged for two separate dinners. Three people, probably four drinks between all of us (mine was seltzer and cranberry and a decaf coffee at the end, no dessert), and our bill was $85. It took forever to get our food – we were there almost 3 1/2 hours. (Obviously a lot of that time we spent talking after the crowd dissipated, just so we could actually hear each other. Not a good experience for us (unfortunately because we had high hopes)

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Christine Forward

Ive dined at a number of fine restaurants in the Portland metro area, but DeCarli was a huge disappointment. I made reservations to take a friend out for dinner before the holidays. When we arrived the restaurant was not all that busy but the service was just so-so. My companions medium steak was clearly not medium and I ordered the pork. The first slice was not tender at all, not what Id expect from "slow-cooked" pork...the other two slices were RAW. Yes, RAW. For my ruined meal I was offered a complementary dessert; I said no thanks because I was already nauseated from discovering the raw meat and requested they remove the cost of my entree from our bill. They did so and cooked my friends steak a little more, saying "Thats our medium." Medium is a standard, they didnt meet it, it was closer to rare than medium. The beet salad was made with canned pickled beets which is not how its described on the menu. It was okay and so was the cazuela but nothing to write home about.The restaurant started filling up after we got our orders in; clearly the kitchen could not keep up with even a semi-full house, and again, the service left a lot to be desired. Because I made reservations and we showed up on time to a not-busy restaurant, I probably wouldnt go again. They obviously have trouble getting it together, and they could have gone a lot farther in trying to remedy the situation than they did. I was not at all impressed. Save your money or go downtown.

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Jessica Sanico

I took my husband for a date night. Made reservations that morning. Friendly, warm, inviting before we even got in. Our waitress was wonderful ... we were there right before a rush and the kitchen got behind (as it happens sometime) .. she kept us informed and apologized. We did wait quite a while ... but honestly ... didnt mind at all. It was a lovely environment, we had some wine. Enjoying ourselves to the end of a long week. The second time she came around to apologize again, she also mentioned the owner wanted to pick up our entire tab! (We hadnt complained or anything.) ... The Mr and I have both worked in the food industry, and know that this is something great business owners do but also know it isnt something done as much lately. We were very impressed. They even bought us dessert too. We knew it wasnt our waitress fault, so we figured out a way to happily leave her a nice tip. Aside from all this, the food was amazing. Rustic, farm to table italian. (Not your typical italian menu.) Each item was delicious and I had the best salad I had ever had there. Polenta fries, Golden Beet Salad, Braised Short Ribs, Mussels, and Profiteroles. Not overpriced, fairly priced. Thoughtful ownership who make you feel welcome and treated like a valued guest. (Even compared to places like Jakes or City Grill)Weve already spread the word and have a dinner for 4 planned again next week. Support local, do yourself a favor, and check it out.

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Mark Neidengard

The Good: very flavorful, creative food served in an energetic atmosphere. I had bruschetta three ways, their bistro filet mignon, and one of the best panna cottas in my life. The Bad: hours feel constricted, especially on the late side, especially if you want the dining room. And when I asked for the lounge, I got grilled on whether I was expecting company -- the implication being that if I was we, "we" wouldnt be allowed to hog their precious bar seats. Ive literally never had staff ask me that before in this context, and I dont fancy a repeat. The Ugly: parking is *worse* than non-existent. They have signs on the restaurant itself warning of tow-aways from nearby stores parking, and Ive had real people confirm that for-profit towing companies prowl the area. Beaverton isnt helping with its woeful lack of parking garages, but Decarli isnt blameless as it devotes zero parking space resources of its own. The Verdict: I had great meal with expert bartending, and I want more, but I will never see this place as the same "drive up and feel pampered and at-home" experience as the abruptly-defunct Hall Street Grill. You, reading this review, should try Decarli for yourself and see.

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