Riffle NW

Unimpressed with a McKayla Maroney scowl. Came in for happy hour, sat at the bar, prices didn’t really reflect that. Asked for the day’s special beer, and they were out. I got this other sour (intentional) beer instead which didn’t really float my boat. Food is passable, but probably a few bucks more expensive for each item than you would expect. The place was nice, I wanted to like it, but couldn’t.

Riffle NW was my second stop for Portland Dining Month this year (2013). For me this is the ideal time for restaurants to demonstrate their passion by showcasing it on three simple plates. The menu at this NW inspired fish house brought excitement by its overall feel, playful use of ingredients and lets face it, anytime pork belly is the entrée my interest level triples.
The atmosphere was full of open seating with touches of industrial materials and a few rustic details reminiscent of a boat yard, more delicately themed than some Pearl destinations. As bustling as the area is I was surprised to see such a lack of patrons on a Friday night, although this just helped encourage my expectations for service. My g/​f and I actually chose the exact same dishes instead of going with the mix and match approach, quite frankly because we didn’t want to share. It’s worthy to point out the solid beer list here which embraces NW favorites along with some top picks from around the U.S. Our meal included the following:
(1^st Course) — Mesquite smoked salmon salad, with a strawberry-​rhubarb vinaigrette and toasted walnuts. This salad had potential, however the salmon was a bit overwhelming and I love wood-​fired fish but the dressing went up in smoke much like the walnuts which only added a faint crunch, even the peppery arugula wasn’t enough to fend off this fishy forest fire.
(2^nd Course) — Braised pork belly with grilled prawn, a horseradish slaw and pork jus. Placed before us were what looked like two meaty candy bars that had been shellacked with multiple coats of pork protectant in the form of savory juices. My mouth was painted shut as I sat enjoying its richness and salty kisses. If I had one gripe it was the grilled prawn, it lay looking like a shrimp, shadowed by the belly’s meaty girth. The slaw did add a nice textural element with a light creaminess and subtle heat. All fish should be caught with pork!
(3^rd Course) — Brandied cherry shortcake served with a sweet biscuit and topped with a crème fraîche Chantilly. A lot of restaurants don’t offer a dessert course so I was looking forward to this play on a classic. Unfortunately this was a forgettable end to our meal. I was hoping for a warm, soft, flaky biscuit to seduce my mouth with a sponge bath of cherry glaze and cream. What I got was a hard as a rock, crumbled mess with barely a memorable flavor. I would have rather fed this to a flock of seagulls or have it sunk for the bottom feeders.
Our service wasn’t stellar nor was it lackluster but loving pork belly is too predictable. What NW Riffle proved is that some things just look better on paper but execution is what really matters and while taste is the feature, details leave a lasting impression. I felt $ 29 was expensive for one good course, maybe Pearlites would scoff claiming its a bargain but this NW advocate thinks for his money there’s better out there.

This is a review specifically for the pop-​up brunch on July 28, 2013. We were excited that Riffle NW was going to do brunch for the day, since we have eaten awesome seafood here several times for dinner. Service was EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING, although food was quite fresh and good.
Service was extremely lacking, particularly because there were maybe about 6 tables seated in addition to the bar. The hostess was nice, but our server seemed to be disengaged overall. After taking our order of a Crab Omelette ($ 13 or 14) with a side of the Ginger Sage Sausage ($ 5) and Fried Chicken ($ 17), we started to wait for our food. Two other tables sat down while we were waiting for our food, and to our surprise, both of those tables got their food before we saw ours. In fact, one of those tables finished eating before we got our food. After about 30 minutes of waiting, another waitress (not the person who took our order) came to our table to say, sorry, but we ran out of crab for your omelette. They offered to substitute several types of fish, and I chose salmon. Then it was another wait of at least 10 minutes before our food appeared.
To be fair, the food was great. I would give the food 4.5 stars. The chicken was juicy and portion-​size was generous. The salmon omelette is probably better than Olivia O’s crab omelette because it didn’t have the over-​powering cream cheese in it. In the middle of our meal, I realized that the side of the sausage never came, and I informed our original waiter. Finally, it came, without any acknowledgement that the order wasn’t put in AT ALL, and it took another 5 – 10 minutes for it to appear.
I’m not sure if I want to ever come back due to the horrible service, even though it is one of few seafood-​focused restaurants.

This review is just for their brunch.
My husband and I stopped by here today for brunch. The menu looked decent and my husband is a fan of crab, so I thought it would be interesting to try something in the area. We live in the neighborhood but had strangely never eaten here.
Now I guess we know why.
Although the location is cute, the service is not. We made the mistake of sitting outside because it was such a sunny day. No one noticed us so after a few minutes I went inside to flag a waiter. The bartender was courteous and told us she’d send someone out. Someone eventually did come — but he didn’t seem happy to see us or speak to us. He dropped off the menus and left, after having referred to my husband and me as ladies. «Hey ladies» — a phrase we often hear from waiters who aren’t actually looking at our faces.
We sat around with our menus for a while. Eventually we flagged him down and put in our orders. I didn’t really know what to get so I ended up with the eggs benedict. My husband got the crab omelet. I asked him a bit about the food but to be honest he seemed clueless. I was about to order a mimosa, which had been on their sign that lured us in, but was not on the menu. Before I could ask, our waiter had already flounced off.
I found a girl serving water and asked her if she could bring us a drink. She said yes but then wandered off and instead sent us back our waiter, who seemed irritated we had accidentally asked someone else for service he’s supposed to do. One thing I started to notice: no one here uses pens or pads to take down orders. Meaning perhaps different servers don’t know what other servers already wrote down, or that they are supposed to memorize things, which already looked like it was going poorly. He didn’t even remember we were seated outside.
We were perfectly content to pay Pearl-​prices for good service and a decent meal, but instead what arrived was a very greasy plate of eggs benedict, in which the pork grease overpowered the taste of the hollandaise sauce, and everything tasted like oil save the potatoes, which were spot on. In fact, the potatoes alone are responsible for the three star rating. They really pulled the experience above and beyond the blitz it was otherwise. They were incredibly crispy and I wish every place made them like this.
My husband was also disappointed with his crab omelette. The crab was sadly drowned in cream and other vegetables, and he could not taste any of the meat. Crab is a delicate flavor. Egg can be delicate. But loads of ingredients will pretty much destroy or mask what’s there. If they want to up the prices and actually have an omelette full of crab, or perhaps have a less gigantic portion of omelette and make a small delicate plate with the same amount of crab — that’d be fine. What they have right now is a HUGE plate of omelette and potatoes, with a few sad shreds of crab. The breakfast was enormous, not very gracious at all, and lacking in the finer ingredients we expected we’d be paying for. We’ve had better breakfast at Denny’s.
The waiter came by at some point to ask if our food was good. He started to leave before we could answer. I actually thought my eggs were greasy and bland, and wanted some salt and pepper. I had to actually ask him to come back for the salt and pepper. He brought me a pinch of salt in a glass cup and peppered my food without asking me how much I wanted or when to stop. He just gave me a bit of pepper and left. It was a tiny pepper shaker and I was kind of sad I couldn’t have just kept it at the table — had it stayed I may have been able to finish my meal.
I felt kind of afraid of our waiter so when he came back to give us the bill, I apologized if we had done something to offend him, to offer us such poor service. I’ve worked as a waitress before and have a lot of sympathy for waiters. If I feel at odds with waitstaff I always apologize first, just so that we can get better service and the waiter knows we are kind customers. He didn’t respond to my apology, did not apologize in return, and instead just kind of threw the bill on the table and left.
My husband was disappointed and so was I. We probably won’t come back even though I am a huge oyster lover and was dying to try their seafood sometime. When you pay that much, the food and the service just has to be more on point than it was today.

Their cocktails are excellent. I tried oysters here for the first time, and now I’m addicted. The ambiance was relaxed, a bit pretentious, but alright for a romantic evening. The server was new, so it’s a bit difficult to judge. He wasn’t as knowledgeable as my date wanted him to be, and for a restaurant such as this — all of the servers should be on it.
I would definitely come back.

We’d been watching this place for awhile, wondering when we were going to make our move and try to grab a table outside.
Awhile = months
And when we did, we were greeted with «want a fresh oyster?» Ummm… OK. Fresh and delicious and salty — so good! I loves me a fresh oyster on ice!
We proceeded to order cocktails — do yourself a favour and order the Hovercraft — if you like a spicy drink, you’ll love this. I certainly did. Then follow it up with a Vieux Carre — they do them a wee different at Riffle, but still really really good.
Order the caprese with heirloom tomatoes and the crispy polenta. Enjoy the people watching. Listen to the sounds of the pearl district. Have another oyster.
See? Life ain’t so bad after all, is it?

The location is great and the restaurant itself is cute but I did not have anything that made me think I had to have it again. I ordered the Portland Dining month pre fixe menu items and everything was just OK. The smoked salmon salad seemed a bit lazy to me, as if they shredded smoked salmon onto a bed of mixed greens dressed in viniagrette and called it done. I desired a little more thought. The pork belly came with one prawn, both were underseasoned. I usually love pork belly but prefer it in smaller portions rather than the large cut they offered which lacked crispness. The dessert was a biscuit with tart cherries. Overall, I was underwhelmed. I’d probably come back for drinks and oysters but not likely the rest of the food.

Have eaten here 10+ times since its opening. Food and service were great every time. Menu favorites include; Brussels sprout salad, whole fish, tuna salad, scallops.
Good wine/​drink list and nice décor. Open door to the deck is a nice addition as well.
Expect to spend $ 30 to $ 40 per person on food. Not cheap eats, but a solid offering.

Excellent in concept, poor in execution.
We arrived here for dinner after realizing Andina was full and Bluehour was still closed. There were empty tables but we were told we could only sit at the bar. Apparently they had only one regular server and few other people helping, and no backup plan. We finally asked a buser/​barback to take our drink order. Things took very long, only the bar staff acknowledged and apologized. The empty tables remained empty, but the place was otherwise packed. The server was clearly stressed. The rest of the staff was almost making excuses.
We were hoping the food would make up for the service, but unfortunately it didn’t. My monkfish was undercooked, and the gnocci was overcooked, and overall lackluster in flavors and presentation.
Portland is full of too many great places to eat, so I’ll never eat here again. Too bad. I really wanted to like this place.

First Impression:
We went for our wedding anniversary fully dressed up and expecting the best! The restaurant entrance leaves you feeling like you may be lost, or mistakenly entering what looks like a bar. They sort of weaved us through bunches of servers rushing around, and some just standing in small groups. Very awkward setup. We had a booth as requested during reservation.
The service was painfully slow. We had 2 plates of bread brought out, and were still waiting for our food long after. The bread was tough as can be. Stale in my opinion. My husband was eating it I think out of desperation. I ordered a cocktail and when it was gone, I was giving my best PLEASE HELLLLP face with no avail. It was really annoying.
The worst part of going to Riffle was the noise level. No joke, I felt like I was screaming across the table to chat with my husband. I felt like I was in a dive bar. That atmosphere sucks. Not a romantic place by any means.
What we ordered:
–Cocktails: we both had a white russian which was great, followed by vodka and house made grenadine, also good.
–Shared the Brussels sprout salad. It was alright, but I wouldn’t order it again. Just sort of one note. Could have used more walnuts.
–I ordered Oregon Cod over a red pepper pistachio olive tapenade which was wonderful. No complaints.
–My husband ordered the seared scallops, which came out bone cold. It was very disappointing. The waiter asked if we wanted to get a new plate, but with the incredibly long wait we already had it seemed nuts to continue waiting, and to let my food also get cold?
–We shared the fingerling potatoes as our side which were delicious.
The waiter was very friendly, I had no complaints other then his lack of checking in with the table. He brought us a little shot of something with the check to make up for the cold sea scallops. A good gesture, but not good enough. It would have been nice to have hot food when you are paying 30 bucks for the plate.
I may go back, may not. There are a lot of restaurants in portland, and this one didnt leave me feeling amazed. Food was good… but its the overall experience in the details for me that count.

My boyfriend had a gift certificate for this place, so we decided to give it a try while we were out and about enjoying the springtime weather. The restaurant itself is very nice. I feel classy just writing about it.
There’s a really nice seating area near the «boardwalk”-esque sidewalk/​ramp thingy that opens up so when the weather is nice, even if you’re sitting inside, you can still enjoy everything mother nature has to offer.
The happy hour menu is small, but nice. The real deals come in with the beer selection, which is why it was so disappointing when we found out they had run out of the IPA. It also had repercussions on the IPA Oyster Shooter, which is a featured item on the menu. No IPA = No shooter … unless you want it with the lager, which my boyfriend did. And enjoyed.
We were only there for a short time, but enjoyed the fact that they were projecting Finding Nemo on the wall of the bar. Gotta love a place that appreciates some premium Pixar goodness.
Also, Riffle is apparently known for their gigantic ice cubes … which was fun. Especially when we got to watch one of the waitresses take a machete to it so she could hack it down to glass size.
An item on the menu that I’m going to have to try the next time is the Bacon, Chorizo and Cheddar Grilled Cheese. Am I right? Pork, more pork AND cheese? How could I say no?
Definitely a place worth checking out if you’re hanging around in the Pearl District!

We went here for the $ 95 per person Valentine’s Day dinner, which advertised wine and salt pairings with each course. Overall it was a major, major disappointment.
Things did not start well when we asked our server about the salt pairings and she said something to the effect of «Yeah, I know they are doing it but I don’t know anything about it…». It turns out the salts were just used in the dishes, there was no real pairing of them for us to try.
The food was pretty sad. The chowder was fine, the amuse of raw oysters had diced raw tuna on it, which was just muddled things. The bacon-​wrapped lobster stuffed monkfish sounded like a sure thing but a few tiny bits of rubbery lobster inside flavorless fish wrapped in bacon was not enjoyable at all. The so-​called «kobe» (as far as I know no one sells real kobe/​wagyu in the USA) beef entrée was incredibly lean, chewy and flavorless. The chocolate beignet was very salty. The passionfruit sorbet dish was O.K.
Service had trouble too, with wines not coming out with the dishes. The server explained it was because this was «sort of a trail run». Can we please get the trail run price then?
The manager came out and reduced our bill significantly and handled things with the utmost professionalism, kudos to her!
While there were some decent dishes, you can do far, far better in PDX for nearly $ 100 a person.

Came here with some of my lady friends last week, and left with mixed feelings. First off, our server was great (attentive, patient, knowledgeable, genuinely seemed to enjoy her job). She is also the wine director and her passion for the wines on the list was clear, and I was really happy with the wine she chose to go with my entrée.
Between the five of us we started with four small plates. The kale salad had a delicious dressing, the brussel sprouts salad was flavorful, the polenta was crispy but light on the outside and so creamy on the inside (I dare say it’s the best I’ve had), and the quinoa was suprisingly way too salty. For my main I chose the mahi mahi, and I was excited that the rub had some real heat to it. The spice was offset by a cool apple/​vinegar slaw underneath. One friend cleaned her plate of scallops (they give you 3 if you’re curious), and the two ladies who ordered the chicken left with generous leftovers (not because it sucked, they literally give you half a chicken!).
So why 3 stars? It pains me to give this place such a low rating, because my experience was pretty positive. I just don’t think I can justify returning to this place because the prices are really high. My mahi mahi was $ 28, the scallops were $ 32, the sides are 7 – 12, drinks are north of $ 10. There are so many great restaurants within a stone’s throw that I could eat at for almost half the price. I would come back for Happy Hour but the menu doesn’t sound nearly as interesting. I would recommend this place, especially if you’re a seafood fan, but make sure it’s right after you get paid!

i went at sat at the bar. For a happy hour that I was very late to. Sorry! I am about to say somethings that won’t sound nice. MEAN ALERT. The ceiling was made artificially low, which can be nice if the décor wasn’t so modern and cold, in which case, I want some tall, minimal ceilings. I hate feeling claustrophobic. The bartender was slow slow slow, I know I was rude in being late but man, have some initiative. Offer me a drink. and while you’re at it, plop down some menus. I had to ask for a drink, a menu, everything one by one. Being attentive doesn’t hurt bartenders, they sell more drinks this way, I promise you. I tended bar for years and made a shit ton of $ during grad school!
I had a couple of beers — I guess it’s more of a cocktail joint? — beer selection is pretty limited. Then I wanted to grub.
I must have ordered badly, really truly, because. I had the grilled cheese off their happy hour menu and the chowder off of their apps list. The sandwich was near inedible, made on some highly textured bread that did not do any favors to the butter or to the cheese. The chowder had potential except it was over salted. If they can’t do the basics, I am hesitant for the more complex seafood dishes. It’s a sad sad thing, where else can one get refined seafood dishes anywhere in PDX? If you know of one, let me know. This wasn’t it. Thanks!

Portland has been sorely lacking in great seafood restaurants for years so I was excited when Riffle NW opened. I know this is «yelp cliché» but I really wanted to love this place. Unfortunately, I didn’t.
They have made very little changes to the interiior from when 50 Plates was housed under the roof. One of the things I dislike about the interior is that the two tops tables are about 2 inches wide and 2 inches apart. Okay, okay, that is an exaggeration. They are probably 12 inches wide and 12 inches apart. What this means is that if someone is sitting at the table next to you as to try to squeeze between the tables, your butt in a mear 2 inches from their face. Not ideal for a romantic dinner out.
We started off with the grilled octopus with chorizo cream sauce and potatoes and tuna tartare. The octopus dish was OFF the charts delicious! I think it is one of the best dishes, small or large, that I have ever had in my life. The octopus was perfectly cooked and retained a nice tender consistency. Oh man, was it good! We should have stopped there and just ordered a couple more plates of that.
My tuna tartar was like eating air. No flavor whatsoever. I can appreciate the chef wanting to show the fresh flavor of a very mild fish but adding some flavor by mixing in a bit of chopped scallions, maybe a little soy would have made this dish stand out a bit. Very underwhelmed by this.
Then came our main dishes. I ordered the scallops and my boyfriend ordered the petrale, mainly to try the deep fried bones that we had heard from fellow foodies were so delicious. The petrale was extremely fishy tasting and swimming in the caper sauce (I think) that it came with. And at $ 26? For petrale? And a la carte at that except for the fried bones? I don’t think so.
My scallops were perfectly cooked to a dark golden sear on the outside with a nice opaque center. Unfortunately, when I took a bite of the perfectly cooked scallop and then followed with a bite of the saffron risotto that it was served on, the risotto was terribly bitter. Not a good pairing for my tastebuds anyway.
We also ordered a side of crisp polenta and fingerling potatoes. Those fingerling potatoes tasted like they had been sitting in a warmer for an hour. Definitley not cooked to order but the server was very undrstanding and offered to take it off our bill. The polenta was good but not outstanding.
The service was very good.
When I go back, which I will, I will only order the octopus and a glass of wine at the bar and call it good. The octopus alone is worth the visit. Maybe we came on an off night but at these prices, not sure we want to chance it.

Friday six o’clock. Bars jammed and all’s that are left for seats are three stools by the front window (with a very narrow shelf to stage your drinks on). Decide to get a table instead. Nice seat by the garage door window.
Round of cocktails arrive with shaped ice and dinner is ordered in the following order:
— Shrimp Ceviche
— Tarte Flambé
— California Halibut
— White King Salmon
Typically we have a couple drinks here then arrive at Moonshine for burgers. Not this time. As my partner noted, here it is six thirty five on a friday nite and there are only three tables occupied ordering food. (?) Oh and word of warning — the dinning chairs are horribly uncomfortable unless you like a horizontal bar jammed in your back.
Riffle NW is a great place to taste delicious drinks. Not so much on the food however; and I love seafood. It isn’t bad food by any stretch but it isn’t memorable or tasty for that matter either.
Dishes are a tad on the pricey side of things — comparing it to South Park (price-​wise), Riffle NW comes up short on delivering a memorable food experience.
Still coming here for Riffle Collins’.

Birthday time! And time for an adventure in eating!
This place was one big wow to me! Unusual options and the magicians behind the stoves know what they are doing from appetizer, to entrée, onward to dessert.
Even the wine choices lent themselves to be not on the usual. I had a big red and it was just what I asked for. The cocktails are not your typical either. Daughter was flipping out over the absinthe in her collins. It was very herbally (yes herbally, or is it herbescent) and earthy to say the least. It included celery juice and it was a great combination. We even got to hear about their specially made ice that’s carved a certain way as to not have your drink get completely drowned out by the melt factor. Thinking on their feet!
On to my awesome appetizer. Had a shot of uni with a quail egg mixed in. It was light, sweet and easy going down.
Next up was some big and perfectly cooked scallops sitting on a bed of squid ink risotto. All fresh, all creamy and delicately flavored.
Of course I had to have a dessert and so did everyone else. I think the winner though was their bread pudding. This bread pudding was not on the heavy side either but was dressed up for the occasion.
The server was intuitive, knowledgeable, and interesting.
Great choice for a very special evening.

I am pretty much consistently blown away by the food, drink and service at Riffle. It makes me wish I could afford to dine at this price point more often!
Riffle represents Portland’s likely best seafood option, if you’re in the market for that sort of thing. While you can score a piece of salmon or halibut on almost any high-​end menu in this town, Riffle specializes in all sorts of various seafood including cod, octopus, sole, shrimp, halibut cheeks and more. And everything is cooked pretty much to perfection. My recommendations are the charred octopus with potatoes and a chorizo cream sauce, the halibut cheeks, the scallops, the uni and quail egg shot, and the bone marrow. Yeah, that last one is not seafood, they have meat too.
The drinks at Riffle pretty much seal the deal. From the cold-​draft, hand carved ice to the carefully crafted concoctions, everything about the drink program here is dialed in tight thanks to a stellar opening team and a good group of folks carrying the torch today. The cocktail program is backed by a nice wine list.
Prices here are what reality is going to reflect for high-​end seafood. Sure, you may be paying a couple bucks more for the nice environment and the Pearl location, but unless you’re buying seafood straight off the dock (and even if you are), this stuff ain’t cheap. In the end, I always leave full and never feel like I’m getting a bad deal.
Of course when you’re paying this much you expect great service. We’ve had nothing less than stellar service on both visits, with this last one (last night) standing out as one of our better service experiences in PDX. Friendly, welcoming, smiling, never missing a beat. Well done.
For seafood and fine dining aficionados, I highly recommend Riffle.

In the heart of The Pearl, Riffle is certainly a welcome new addition. Specializing in seafood you probably won’t love your experience here if you don’t like things with scales or tentacles. However, if you’re just popping in for a quick drink (and a good one at that!) you’ll be pleased with the offerings.
As a big seafood and cocktail fan, it’s like this place was made just for me. My boyfriend and I requested to be seated at the bar and from there our lovely night began. First out of the kitchen was and order of halibut cheeks and a whole roasted sole. Beyond the beautiful presentation of the dishes (especially the sole), everything tasted great too. In fact, as someone who loves to try all foods and will eat any animal you put in front of me, I still have a werd aversion to bones. But when I read that the whole roasted sole was cooked in such a way that the skeleton itself was brittle, deep fried and totally edible, I went for it. And good thing I did! It was absolutely delicious and made for a fun way to try something a little new. I never thought I’d be eating a fish skeleton but I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
And while those two main dishes were really good, they were still not as unbelievable as the sea urchin and quail egg shot and the fried heads on shrimp. Both of these dishes blew me away and while they weren’t large enough to fill you up as an entrée, they are 100% worth ordering in addition to something else. The salmon carpaccio and brussel sprouts dishes sounded great too. The worst part about this meal was having to choose what to eat. Everything sounded so good you just couldn’t order it all and finish it. But hey, there’s always next time, right?
I’m not a huge dessert person but the words «cookie platter» spoke to me. Not one, not two but a plate of various cookies? Hell yeah! There was a red velvet whoopie pie, a housemade shark shaped oreo, a gingerbread cookie, a little mini chocolate cream pie, and chunky chocolate/​oatmeal type cookie.
Overall this place was great. I can’t even get to the drinks without writing another 3 paragraphs so please go and check it out for yourselves. I loved it, I want to come back for more and I will. Soon.

We’ve been there several times, just the two of us and with a larger group. We’ve had a great time and great food every time. We’ve had the whole roasted fish and while it was very good, olive oil, salt and pepper, we felt that they could have dressed it up even more. Maybe a slice of bacon in the center of the fish, or herbs.
The service was always very good and we’ll go back.