Address: | 120 NE Russell St, Portland, OR 97212, USA |
Phone: | +1 503-281-4464 |
Site: | torobravopdx.com |
Rating: | 4.6 |
Working: | 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–11PM 5–11PM 5–10PM |
NE
Nelle C
Our server gave us some of the best service Ive received since moving to Portland! Finally a competent customer service experience! Our tapas style meal was delicious and amazing, the waiter have very knowledgeable descriptions of the menu items. The missing star is for three smaller things, we were seated in what they called the "enclave", it was a dark, cozy and romantic kind of hallway of two tops, but BUT Im not sure what else is going on in that building, we experienced a continuous, wall and table shaking thump for a solid 20 minutes at the start of our meal. Secondly, for the price our clam dish was a little TOO sparce, though the sauce was delicious. And finally, though it wasnt really the restaurants fault, the two men seated behind us halfway through dinner (shortly after the thumping subsided) were SO LOUD that their voices boomed around the hallway. Their conversation drown out my dates, and annoyed two women also in the enclave so much they decided to box their meals and leave. We had to sit the meal out silently rolling our eyes. Topics discussed included racist jokes about eating cats, using tinder to hook up with freshly 18 year old girls (and other tips and tricks they use to get young girls to sleep with them, hanging around college campuses etc), eating human placenta, getting a friends wife drunk and nonconsentually feeling her up...the list goes on, and on. I considered asking to move tables, because at this point our expensive and romantic dinner was completely ruined, but the place was completely packed. In a place that strives for a cozy fine dining feel, I wished they had taken it upon themselves to politely ask these men to stop talking about assaulting women and puking up jager bombs in what could be described as a yell. Instead every other table in the enclave packed up early and left. Will not be returning because now I can only associate that place with the horrible conversations that down out my dates voice. If you go, I recommend the meatballs.
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John Huynh
Tapas Bar - Spanish Service: 5/5 Food: 5/5 Prices: Reasonable Without getting into too many details.. If youre looking for good eats tapas style with excellent customer service, this restuarant is a must try. Read on for more details. My girl friend and I arrived early(highly recommend) at the restaurant 20 minutes before they opened at 5pm. Despite arriving that early, we were 3rd in line and the restaurant instantly filled up to capacity once doors opened. Hot tip if not obvious enough: ARRIVE EARLY or be prepared to wait 60-120 minutes. Drinks: Sangria - tart, fruity, refreshing, and easy to drink. I personally loved this but my girl friend prefers a sweeter kind. My gf had a Modernista and a Ginger Beer Mojito. I had an Old Fashion. The Modernista is good is you like something a little spicy and a hint of citrus. My gf loved the Ginger Beer Mojito. The GBM is definitely something tasty enough even for somebody that doesnt enjoy the taste of alcohol. The Old Fashion was strong but very drinkable. Food: We both ordered the $40 per person tapas sampler that ranges from 10-12 small plates of food. I wont go into exact details of each and every plate but I will name our favorites. Must tries: Squash stew, Duck Pate, Oxtail Croquette, Seared Scallops. We were both quite satisfied at the end of our tapas sampler dinner so it was definitely worth the value. Ill be looking to try the squid ink pasta and paella. Definitely go give this place a try and head there early.
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Xess Dx
Toro Bravo is a hard place to review, because it is as complex as its menu. Much has been written about the food, chef-inspired tapas and tasting plates, and the food is truly excellent. As it is tasting plates, portions are small, and to amass sufficient sustenance to make a meal the bill can get quite high, but for the same "fine dining" prices you wont find as much variety as if you go here. But be aware that an inexpensive meal is not what youre getting. Toro Bravo makes a point of listing where they source their food, and this is a plus, food is as local as possible, and of very high quality, so you are getting what you pay for in this regard. If you are not an adventurous eater, this is absolutely not the place for you. Im not an adventurous eater, so I only come here to "treat" a date, or bring foodie friends who I know will enjoy the menu. If you are a very adventurous eater its always a great decision to go with the Chefs tasting menu. As for atmosphere, its loud. The space feels like an echo chamber, and so it could be called "lively" if you want to put a positive spin on it, I just think it makes for a poor place to hold a conversation. Service is attentive, but be prepared to wait what will seem like, and is, an eternity to be seated. There is almost always a very long wait for a table, so if you do choose to come here, you had best commit.
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Ginger Racing
I am a foodie and have the blessing of being able to eat out often, in fact, I spend thousands of dollars a year on eating out all over the United States. Suffice to say, I LOVE food and I love quality. That being said I am critical of any restaurant I eat at and as the cost rises so do my expectations. I am sorry to say I was underwhelmed with my experience. The service was good, when we had it. But there were several times we waited for extended (10ish min.) periods of time for things such as clean plates or clean forks. In fact, we waited for 18 min with my card resting on top of the closed wine bottle trying to pay our bill. We had 11 courses over 150 min or so and I was extremely pleased with three of the dishes, satisfied with five of the dishes and disappointed in three. That being said The wine was excellent (in fact we ordered a case) but in the end, it was not enough to save the meal. When I walk out of a restaurant with a bill of around $75 per person in portland I expect more from both the staff and the food. To compare, their sister restaurant tasty N sons had a staff on an entirely different level. In fact, dare I say one of the top 3 staff experiences I have ever had in my life! But NOT at TORO, here they have the level of service you generally find at a mid-level national chain.
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Chris Midgley
A fun dinning experience! We arrived at 4:35 PM on Sunday and were already the 4th group in line. By 4:50 PM the line was to the end of the building, but those people still made it in. Since we were close to the front we got to pick our seats and we opted for the alcove. It had a nice intimate feel to it, glad we got there early. It was however warm inside the alcove, which made it not as nice as it couldve been, but still an excellent table choice for a date. Like many others we opted for the Tasting Menu, which was the way to go. So many great dishes we got to try and fill our bellies. The Toro Kiss was the best thing of the night. There were many other greats like the octopus, Spanish kiss, green beans in tomato sauce. Both of us were stuffed and said we couldnt eat any more. Then our final dish came out, which was the House Smoke Coppa Steak, we both finished it. That steak was incredible! The only thing that we didnt care for was the barnacles. It was a little like eating worms, but we gave it a try. It was an adventure, not a bad one, just not one I need to try again. We both were talking about our next visit and who we want to bring to share this experience with. We would 100% go with the tasting menu again.