Bar Lolo

DH and I were out for an after dinner place to continue a date night. We had eaten at The Station and were looking for a warm, cozy place to have another glass of wine before we headed home.
Bar Lolo was just down the street. We were warmly greeted by what turned out to be a very good waiter, and had a nice half carafe of wine. Food looked good, maybe we’ll try that next time.
Thing I liked best about this place was the service. Our server was very friendly and helpful, but not overly in our face. DH and I get into lots of good conversations when out and continually are being interrupted by the server asking if they can pour more water/​coffee etc. Just do it already. This server slid silently in, poured, cleared, served and checked in easily and with minimal fuss. Loved it! We’ll definitely be back.
Ambiance: Super
Service: Wonderful

My friend and I were both disappointed in the quality of this restaurant. We ordered two different cocktails and both were pretty generic. One was supposed to be spicy, but had all the kick of a legless mule.
Then we had the opportunity to be saddened by their food. The cold options were clearly made long ago and put in the fridge. The presentation looked like nothing so attractive as what gets served at the average 4^th of July picnic. Just stuff slopped on a plate.
Finally, it all cost $ 27 and I frankly felt ripped off. It just wasn’t worth that much. If it had been $ 16 — 18, then this would be a 3 star, but way overpriced.
The two stars are for the service, which was perfectly adequate.

Cute space, nice staff, pretty good drinks (fig manhattan!) and conveniently located on the corner of 30^th and NE Alberta.
Food was ok — we had oxtail empanadas and a pasta dish — both of which were pretty filling for being small plates!
It’s a sweet little neighbourhood joint — especially if you’re looking for a lovely little glass of wine and some snacks!

Dinner and drinks at Bar Lolo this past Sunday were just what the doctor ordered.
On a drive earlier in the day from the Tri-​Cities, on 1 – 84 near Boardman, we encountered a blinding dust storm. At the same time, we were dodging massive tumbleweeds hurtling across the freeway. If that wasn’t enough, we were buffeted by heavy winds and hard rain between Hood River and Troutdale. And everybody knows what a treat that stretch of I-​84 is when it is raining, particularly when you have to pass a semi and you can’t see through the water the truck throws up. So, Bar Lolo was the ideal remedy for jangled nerves.
We loved Bar Lolo’s ambience, enhanced by huge windows along two walls. Never having been here before, we called to make reservations, but were told reservations are only made for parties of six or more. However, we were assured that being seated would not be a problem. That turned out to be true, as we were the only patrons when we first arrived (though the restaurant began to fill up during our dinner).
JP and I opted for the drink of the day: gin tonic made with a cranberry orange peel infused gin prepared with Fever Tree Tonic ($ 8). The drink size was decent and gin imbibers who like flavorful drinks that are not too sweet will like this one.
In true tapa fashion, we ordered several dishes: including crostini, flatbread, deviled eggs (topped with anchovies), calamares, chickpea stew and lamb sliders. Our favorite dish was the chickpea stew. Though it might have just had the slightest tad too much cumin, we loved its buttery broth, spinach and saffron. Upon ordering this dish, I came to discover that a chickpea is the same as garbanzo bean.
We also liked the calamares (calamari) spiced with piquillo pepper. Accompanying the calamari was a very very nice saffron aoili. Yet, the calamari might have stood to have a pinch less salt.
My least favorite dish were the lamb sliders. Oh, the lamb itself was great, topped with manchego cheese and roasted red piquillo pepper. But gee, the sliders came on, yep you guessed, those ubiquitous Brioche buns. The Brioche buns had a lousy texture, but what Brioche bun doesn’t?
Nonetheless, service was great, and JP and I agreed we want to return.

My friend Aaron and I popped into Bar Lolo the other night for a drink while we waited for our reservation over at Yakuza, a few blocks down.
My Vesper was decent and he said his Cucumber Martini was great. We also shared an order of the deviled eggs, which were pretty basic, but good all the same.
Service was friendly and efficient, without being intrusive, and I appreciated that we were seated immediately on a Friday night. We had tried to find 2 seats at 3 other bars before coming upon Lolo.
It looks like they have a pretty decent HH Tuesday– Friday, 4– 6pm as well as a Gluten Free menu.

When you look at the menu at Bar Lolo, you think «meh…I’ve had all that stuff before. How good can it be?» But after not being able to get reservations at the top places on our recommendation list, we «settled» on Lolo. Boy, am I glad it worked out that way. Turns out, their versions of common tapas dishes are THE BEST VERSIONS OF THESE DISHES EVER. Flatbread? Had it before. Not like this! Empanadas? Had ‘em. But not as flaky and perfect as the ones at Lolo. I’ve NEVER had vegetarian paella that was as tasty as the traditional dish before, but Lolo NAILED it. I live in Seattle and am always a little sad to leave Portland, but driving 300 miles away from Bar Lolo made my heart ache a little bit. One of the best meals I have ever had in Portland. I definitely recommend a family style meal so you can order as many dishes as possible.
On top of that, our service was top notch. The waiter was very patient with us as we struggled to choose a wine. He offered tastes of as many bottles as he could and worked with us until we found «the one». He also rolled out the dishes at a perfect pace, obviously keeping a close eye on our table to make sure we were served at just the right time. I wish I’d gotten his name. But I imagine all the wait staff is just as spot on.
The most amazing part: After having been wowed with such great food and ordering many MANY dishes, our bill was SHOCKINGLY cheap. DO NOT MISS LOLO.

Perfect place on a dreary rainy night… or any night! Great bartender, delicious tapas and drinks! Specialty gin and tonic was remarkable

I kind of have low expectations when going into tapas bars, especially ones that feature paella. I have been to Bar Lolo five times now, and each experience has been better than the prior.
Food: try the forest mushroom crostini, ox tail empanadas, patatas bravas, warm spinach salad, and paella. I enjoyed the vegetarian paella.
Drinks: while they have lovely wines, the servers aren’t as knowledgable about them as perhaps they could be. Worth trying out their selection though. Where they kill it, is their cocktails, especially the rotating gin and tonic.
Service: well intentioned, prompt, very friendly, and quick to clear and bring dishes. They always have a recommendation for the evening that you know they actually tried.
I would definitely recommend trying them out.

This the only place in Portland that we know of to get Basque (ish) pintxos (which is Basque for tapas). Of course, it’s not exactly like being in Bilbao or Pamplona, but definitely enjoyable. They serve great drinks, including Basque wines like Txakoli and the silly and fun and oh-​so-​Basque kalimotxo (which is coke and red wine).
We always love the croquettes. I am also a fan of their kalimari. We have been a few times and have never been disappointed. You’ll never go wrong with the patatas bravas. Last time we went there, we tried the sturgeon, which was pretty good. The brown butter sauce on the sturgeon, though, was AMAZING! I’m pretty should you could put that sauce on a McDonald’s burger and it would taste gourmet.
The service has been slow at times, but always polite.
Be prepared to share 2 – 3 plates per person for a real pintxo experience and be sure to keep the drinks coming for an excellent, elegant time.

If you are looking for a fun place to come with a small group of people (who like to share food), I’d highly recommend Bar Lolo! We had a group of 4 come here for dinner and drinks.
I love that they offer a Gin of the Month special, so of course I had to give it a try. I’m not certain what it was, but it was very refreshing and served in a cute vintage glass. Good start to the meal.
We decided to order the Grilled Zucchini, Patatas Bravas, Roasted Forest Mushroom and the Seafood Paella. I surprised even myself by liking the roasted mushroom dish the best. I could have had a whole serving of those by myself. (And I am not normally a mushroom girl). In second place would have to be the Patatas Bravas. Perfectly cooked and an excellent sauce! The 3 small dishes and large Paella left everyone feeling pretty full.
We decided to splurge on dessert as well and ordered the Flan (topped with mangos) and the Churros. Oh. my. gosh. Both were heavenly. The Churros were so prefect-​not too greasy, and lots of cinnamon sugar. It came with two sides to dip them in as well: honey and dark chocolate. mmmmmm!
Overall, everything was very flavorful and served quickly and correctly!

We went in thinking about tapas, but once we spotted the seafood Paella on the menu, that is what we had to order. Because the dish takes a bit of time (they say allow 30 mins, but it was faster than that), we also ordered the Spanish Meats and Cheese plate while we waited. Both items were excellent.
The variety of very good meats, cheeses, and accompaniments was first-​class, with each item explained to us upon delivery. I love paella but usually no restaurant gets it right; this one does – it was spot on – and the whole was more than enough food for two. Lots of clams and scallops with very large prawns over a extremely tasty rice with vegetables throughout. This is a dish not to be missed!

Great place!
outdoor seating. good drinks. friendly, attentive staff.
The food was delish, everything we ordered hit the spot. My favorite were the garlic prawns, the sauce that they came in was off the hook. I actually dipped my bread in it when all the prawns were gone. Yep, that’s when you know it’s good. Try the hibiscus margarita on a warm evening, bomb. Very glad my guests and I decided to randomly come here.

4.5 stars, really Portland? There is sooo much good food in this city, unfortunately Bar Lolo was a bit of a let down. I had a hibiscus margarita that was pretty good, but the food did not meet or surpass expectations. For tapas I tried the sauteed prawns ($ 12), tuna empanadas ($ 7), devilled eggs with crab ($ 9?), and croquettes with serrano and manchego ($ 6). Everything was alright, but nothing to write home about as the flavors were quite bland. Sauteed prawns were the best dish, but kind of skimpy for the price (there were 5 – 6 prawns tops). I’m not saying this place was bad, just definitely not worthy of 4 or 5 stars compared to its competition.

I love Bar Lolo. The Chef creating the food here «gets it». All of the plates I’ve had here were wonderful composed, well prepared, complex and delicious. The staff is extremely well trained, attentive and kind. Bar Lolo is always an experience I look forward to and I always mention it when someone is looking for Tapas or or just a great restaurant or happy hour.
I love it!

Absolutely delicious tapas, with a wide array of options, including really good seafood (try the garlic prawns: perfectly cooked!), fun drink specials, a really laid-​back environment (not too loud), and awesome service. It’s romantic, casual, with delicious food and attentive service: what more could you want?!
I love Bar Lolo!

This is my kinda spot:
*delicious tapas (the mushroom are sooo good)
*food, drink, and dessert specials (why didn’t I get a dessert? What a fool!)
*chill, non-​dive bar atmosphere
*windows for people watching
I met a lady here and we each had a margarita. Apparently it was national margarita night. That could have been lies though. Either way, I had a sour one and she had a peppery one and they were both really good. I don’t recommend going back and forth between the two very much, the contrast almost made me stand up and spit. My mouth wasn’t ready for that at all.
Like I said, the mushrooms were top notch, and she got this salad which was tasty too. I’m not usually a dressing person for salads, but this one was nice. It had good croutons too.
Along with the margaritas I had a really good blood orange gin + tonic, and a spanish 75 (I think that was the name). Both of them were also super good. They’ve got a ton of mixed drinks, probably 20 different tapas, and wine as well.
If this place were only in walking distance…

I moved to NE Portland about a year ago and started making my way up and down Alberta Street to try all of the great restaurants in the neighborhood. I lucked out the night I landed at Bar Lolo. Great spot to go with a group of friends or by yourself… the dishes are the perfect size for sharing so you can get a little taste of everything. My partner and I are there at least once a week and, at this point, we have pretty much tried everything on the menu… My favorites are the ham and cheese croquettes, empanadas and there is a spinach dish with golden raisins that was fantastic (I typically do not care for spinach).
The owners are very nice, the staff is friendly and it has a nice, casual atmosphere. I have always liked having a neighborhood place to go and this one does it for me!
PS… The Spanish Coffee is DELICIOUS… ask for extra whipped cream. This is how I end my nights there.

I am actually a little shocked at the reviews on this place, but every one has their ow opinions. :)
When looking up where to go Saturday night, I thought this place looked interesting, but disappointing is what it turned out to be.
First of all, the noise in the place was so loud, I couldn’t hear myself think. It needed some kind of sound barrier, like rugs and what not. The noise was to the point of being obnoxious.
Second of all, I understand that it is a tapas bar and the portions are small, but this was ridiculous and so not worth the price. I have no problem paying a little high for good food, but this was not even close.
The empanadas were bland and boring and the lamb burgers were overcooked and very dry. The bread was the best part of the whole thing.
Third, the service sucked. We watched the staff walk by are empty glasses at least a dozen times, that is just bad service.
After choking the food down and over the service, we decided to move on and go somewhere else.

Visited tonight for the first time. It was late but my wife and I wanted a drink in the neighborhood for a small celebration.
Nice atmosphere, subdued lighting but not cave-​like. Wasn’t too crowded (unlike Branch whiskey bar nearby) so we gave it a try.
That vibe is nice but not stuffy. Creative cocktail selection and variety of tapas at reasonable prices. Our server was warm and friendly.
Cocktails were quite good, and the spinach & apple empanadas were amazing.
Will definitely return to sample more of their fare soon.

Bar Lolo has a really nice atmosphere. It’s perfect for grabbing a drink with friends or having dinner. I’ve been there at least once a week in the past month as I live and work in the Alberta area. The food is delicious and affordable. My favorites are the Patatas Bravas and the Grilled Zucinni.
Tip on the Patatas Bravas: Make sure you stir them when they come out so that you get the amazing sauce all over the potatoes :)