Arleta Library Bakery Cafe
| Address: | 5513 SE 72nd Ave, Portland, OR 97206, USA |
| Phone: | +1 503-774-4470 |
| Site: | arletalibrary.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8:30AM–2PM 8:30AM–2PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 10
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A Private User
It was a sleepy summer Thursday in August when my wife and I decided to venture to a new spot for some mid day breakfast. We enjoy trying new places all over Portland so we were excited when we found this place roughly in our neighborhood with mostly positive reviews. Now I for one can attest to and have grown used to Portlands severe lack of customer service when it comes to restaurants but I can usually forgive poor service if the food is good. After all thats what Im truly there for anyway. Strike one for this place was the wait time. We were one of 2 table in the small 7 table joint. Everything was fine until about 30 min had passed. Our waitress spent most of that half hour texting on her phone. Thats when the other table got their food. 30 more minutes passed before we got our food. I have never in my life had to wait an hour for breakfast. Strike two was that the food was sub par. My wifes eggs were burned, my biscuits were under cooked and gooey in the middle, and worst of all the food was luke warm when it made it to our table. If I have to wait an hour for breakfast it better be the temperature of a million suns. I understand they only had one cook but it seemed like they spent most of that hour filling to go orders and texting. Strike three was that I feel like we were pushed out the door. Our texting waitress flipped the closed sign more than half hour before the joint was supposed to close and sat at the table next to us and ate whatever she made for herself. And I can tell you it didnt take an hour for her to make her breakfast. Ive eaten all over Portland and that was by far one of the worst experiences I have ever had. If you want a great breakfast and a comparable price and much better service go to Genies or Jam. This place was the back road, dive bar, hole in the wall of breakfast joints and not in any of the good ways.
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A Private User
DONT BOTHER. My friend wanted to go here for her birthday brunch, so I tried to maintain a good attitude while we were there. If this had not been the case, I would have refused to pay for anything but my coffee. I tried to order eggs, biscuits, and "library" fries, but I was told I couldnt have biscuits because they needed them for the biscuits and gravy. Really, I thought, because you guys are closing in about an hour. Also, if Im paying for them, what difference does it make? To add insult to injury, after we had ordered I overheard the cooks saying they needed to make more biscuits anyway. I ordered something called the Hawthorne instead, which, besides being bland and a very, very small portion (FOR $8.50!!!!!!!!!!), came out ice cold. My girlfriends "library" fries came out cold too. Ive only been served two bad breakfasts in PDX, and this one was the absolute worst. Sorry, Arleta, the Nighthawk serves a better awful breakfast than you do. In fact, Burger King serves a better breakfast at a better price.
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A Private User
Service was great and friendly. Husband loved what he ordered, I did not think mine was that great at all in fact the eggs (special of the day) had no flavor. What really concerned me was two things, staff drinking out of open cups in the area where they cooked food (a health department no-no) and most especially the scary state of their sink area where they washed dishes. It was unbelievable. The wall behind the sink was black and moldy and chipping apart....this was at least 2 feet by 2 feet of the wall, no small thing. After seeing that (right in front of me where our table was) this was enough for me. We wont be coming back.
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A Private User
My husband and I met up with another couple on a Sunday morning. We waited for about 30 minutes for a table...which was fine. Once we were seated, we waited for about 40 minutes before getting our food - all the while we watched smaller parties grab tables after us and they all got their food before us! I will say in their defense, the food was delicious. My biscuits and gravy was probably the best Ive ever had. But I know we will probably never eat there again because they made no apologies for the long wait. I just wasnt impressed with their service.
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A Private User
Friends came into town on their way up to Seattle so we just googled a good cafe for a good breakfast. Came up with this place and thought wed give it a try. What a good choice we made because this place was just awesome! I had the Sicilian Hash with overnight marinated Italian beef, peppers, potatoes, etc. and I was in heaven. Friends had the pancakes which tasted like heaven, Beefsteak Sandwich which was the best hes ever had, and lastly the corn beef hash was to die for. Definitely try this place out!
RY
ryan herron
Expect a wait on the weekends. Its no Screen door type line, but youll sit outside for a few if theyre busy (thats ok, Space Monkey next door has killer coffee). The menu is unique without falling into the trendy category. Tons of solid options. Always check the pastry case on the way to your seat, and trust me when I say the jam is ALWAYS worth getting. If youre lucky, the sort-of hidden deck will be open. It might be crowded, but thats to be expected at the best breakfast spot in the neighborhood.
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A Private User
I tried the Biscuits/Gravy and the Hash. Found the price ($10 each) a little shocking for the portion. I did not expect a glutton plate, quality is better than quantity......still. The second thing was the potatoes in the hash, I know they are par cooked but they tasted like glue, was not expecting that. The egg on top of the hash was AMAZING! and the gravy was exceptional. ACB is not in my area, made a special trip to try them, will have to see if I return.
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Steffen Wade
Sunday menu is what brings me in. The brunch specials are fantastic. I order the painted hills braised beef, a delicious, savory, filling dish with plenty of diverse flavor. The coffee cake is a serious contender, try it. Can sometimes be a wait, but you can wait inside the coffee shop next door called Space Monkey which is sort of the thing to do when Arleta is busy. Then afterwards, take a walk in the enormous tree filled park across the street.
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A Private User
I feel like Im taking crazy pills. The experience I had was nothing like these other reviews.,, Ill chalk it up to them having an off day. The service was awesome and overly attentive, but in a good way! The food had very good flavors, but unfortunately they were hidden under the over cooked potatoes and eggs,.I would go back and give it another try if only to try the biscuits and gravy that everyone raves about.
CH
Cheryl H.
We were looking for something different than the usual breakfast fare. The food here is top notch! If you want a great hearty breakfast order the Sicilian with a scone. Delicious. Will go again. Great wait staff and Chefs! Just one little change they could make and that is to have more of their great pastries later in the morning, cause, like they say, if you snooze you loose. Loved everything about the place.
