Alexis Restaurant

My pregnant wife was determined to find authentic Greek food in Portland on a Monday at lunch time. Though we used Unilocal and Google, we actually found this place from their Greek colored sign outside the door. This was the place we were determined to visit.
You can’t see inside the restaurant from outside (although the lighting is bright and pleasant in the restaurant), so when you open and walk through the door it feels like you might be opening the door to a chocolate factory or a club or a mystery house. But as soon as you open the door you realize you are actually in a Greek restaurant. It feels authentic right away, with a big map of Greece and lots of good press on the walls.
This place has family all over it. I wasn’t expecting that, but I definitely enjoyed the family touch. The three of us were greeted and seated right away. We felt special, even though there were plenty of other tables going when we walked in.
We aren’t experts on Greek food, but we know we enjoy it, so we ordered a combination plate, a gyro and the saganaki to start. Definitely order the saganaki — the greek cheese comes out on fire. It’s fun.
The gyro and combination plate were good for trying everything and tasting what they had to offer. If I had any suggestions for this place, they should have invited us to order more different things, and maybe they should have offered us cocktails…
Overall everything was delicious and I would eat here again. I would eat here on my next visit to Portland or long off in the future.

It’s been over 5 years since my last review on Unilocal.I am going to try to be better at updating my reviews now… better late than never!
I just wanted to say last weekend I was able to throw a great dinner party for 30+ friends and Jerry made it happen! Even though there was a bit wait (Saturday night… as expected), but everything else was great! The service was exceptional and the food was great… the drinks were better!

Fantastic experience: great, friendly service, wonderful food that reminded me of being back in Athens, and they even had Mastika!

Best Greek food in Portland! My go to to get started is a Greek salad and kalamari and red wine.

A+ Greek food. The owners are from Greece, and their food is delicious. My family has owned more than a couple of Greek restaurants, and let me tell you the food at Alexis is incredible.
The lamb in the Moussaka was so flavorful, like they’d roasted the lamb long and slow before even putting it in the Moussaka. The pastitsio was creamy but not heavy. The avgolemono soup was light and full of flavor. They even bring over their own olive oil. This place is the best Greek food in town.

I dined with my brother and friends. I had the soup which was nothing to brag about. Then I had a lamb wrapped in filo dough that was supposed to have peas, Greek cheese, and vegetables. The small pieces of lamb and burnt filo dough left much to be desired. The dish was supposed to be served with rice and vegetables but there was only a smattering of rice and overcooked vegetables on the plate. I’ve had much better Greek food elsewhere in another state. Perhaps I would have had a better experience with another dish.

Excellent for lunch. Lamb kebab was perfect. Salad is so tasty with delicious feta, olives, cucumbers and more. Home made bread too good to resist.

You can’t beat Alexis. First– the atmosphere is so fun and friendly. It is like being a part of a relaxing party of happy people. Secondly– if you like hummus like I like hummus– this place has the best in the WORLD! It is smooth and creamy and really garlicky. It is like silk, with the perfect balance of tahini… PERFECTION. We shared a «small» greek salad, two orders of the warm grape leaves w/​meat in them, and an order of hummus.
It was an amazing dinner and perfect for two people.
Also, their olive oil is their brand and it is INCREDIBLE. They have it on the table and you can purchase it @ the restaurant.
If you love greek food you must try Alexis.

My son’s girlfriend highly recommended This restaurant and I can see why. There is no outside ambience to prepare you for the inside. Once inside, the bar is located down the steps to the right and the dining room is down the steps to the left. The five of us sat in the dining room. The waiter appeared immediately and was excellent through the entire meal. We ate just about everything on the menu. The calamari was lightly fried, tender and delicious. The appetizer platter with smaller portions of items on the menu went quickly. Lamb chops (2 bites per chop) were perfectly made. I have no complaint and highly recommend it. Oh yes, they also gave us a large order of baklava gratis because they heard my son graduated from his hospital residence program. Homey and fun! Oopa!

Going to keep the review simple. Food is VERY GOOD, service was good, and very kind and gracious. Food came fast, hot and was excellent. I have eaten in Athens so I know it’s a bit «middle eastern» compared to traditional Greek, but it’s fresh and tasty.
4-​stars instead of 5 due to pricing. About 20% to 30% higher than what I would expect for the quality and portions. Dinner for two in this area should be around $ 35-​$ 40. Expect $ 60+ here w/​o alcohol.
Also seating is uncomfortable, but that’s so you don’t stay long… (I would assume) and it’s so very dark, I had to use my phone to read the menu and receipt.
Regardless, still a fan. However that being said, I can only go 1x to 2x a year due to prices. When we got there on a Saturday Night there was only 3 tables in use, we were #4. Lower prices may fill the house, less profit per meal, but with more people and a full house, it would be make up in quickly showing a much higher profit.
But it’s their place and the food and service is good.

The absolute BEST lamb chops I’ve ever had. They’re small, as lamb chops usually are, but done perfectly with a fantastic marinade. I’ll be going back often!

The vibe inside the building and the service was great. It had a very authentic feel to it, and everyone was friendly.
Our party of 8 started off with some Kalamarakia. It had great texture, and the sauce to compliment it was delicious and wholesome. However, for nearly $ 16, it’s a fairly steep price to pay. They said the $ 16 portion would be enough for four people, but frankly we needed two plates for four of us to be content with the appetizer.
We also ordered soup and gyros. We ordered the Abgolemeno and the Lentil soup. It was very average. They both had a strong starchy after-​taste. Unfortunately, the soups were nothing special.
With the exception of two people at our party, we all ordered the lamb-​beef gyros. For $ 5.95, it makes up for the overpriced Calamari and the underwhelming soup. One warning, they drown the gyro with tzatziki sauce, probably to make up for the meager amount of meat. The sauce, while overflowing in portion, was still good. The meat was fine too. Overall, the gyro was pretty good for the price. However, The Gyro House in Hillsboro, The Mad Greek Deli in Portland, and a couple other Greek places have greater portions for the price and produce better overall quality of gyros.
To sum it up. It was OK. It was slightly overpriced. There are better places out there. But if you’re in the area, and want to be treated well in an authentic environment, I’d say try it out. There were also a handful of dishes we did’t try, including the Greek salads. But for our group, we are very gyro people, and that’s probably the main ingredient that factors into our view of a Greek restaurant.

I ate here on my recent trip to Portland and really enjoyed it. I had the sampler entrée and it was really nice to get to try all the main dishes which were all done well. This restaurant seems like a family business and all the staff were very friendly and welcoming.

A really cute place that you wouldn’t suspect as being so from the outside. It’s kind of fun just to be there plus the staff is very nice and attentive. The owner also check on us personally during the meal which made us feel at home. The food isn’t the best Greek I have ever had but it’s good overall and at least it’s true Greek style which is hard to find these days vs the more Middle Eastern style of similar cuisine.
The Gyro was tasty as was the Spanakopita, Dolmathes and well most everything we tried they also offer fresh house made baked bread with olive oil.
Overall the food could use some improvement but the friendly and charming atmosphere made it a solid 4 star experience.

My husband and I started off with the sagnaki lit table side followed up by a combination platter of lamb kabobs and chicken with a side salad and wonderful fluffy bread to go with it.
It’s a bit of a drive to get out to Alexis but it’s worth it. We had excellent service and the price was just right for the two of us to eat. Can’t wait to go back again!

I used to come here frequently when I would find my way downtown. As the years passed PDX got more and more food options and I simply forgot about this place. In the last six months or so I remembered it again and I’m glad I did. I don’t think anything has changed in the last 10 years. The same older gentlemen greats you at the door and treats you like long lost family. The food is very good and reasonably priced. The gf and I always share the appetizer platter with one dinner and this seems to give you the most variety for your buck. Not a huge fan of the salad or the vegetables (canned) but the lamb options and gyro are fantastic.

This place has been around for what seems like forever. It warms my heart to see family businesses like this that manage to remain successful and become a Portland landmark.
Most recently me and my pal Oscar B. popped in for a little appetizer. We both had the Avgolemeno soup which is a delicious chicken broth, with orzo pasta, egg and lemon juice. We also shared the feta and kalamata olive plate. The feta was lightly seasoned and was terrific. On a previous visit I had the octopus marinated in olive oil, vinegar and a dash of garlic. It was perfect, not chewy or rubbery, but just right.
The fine folks at Alexis are always so welcoming. I love the bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar that comes without even having to ask. I do wish that there was a happy hour. I do not see that they have happy hour listed on-​line. Still, Alexis is a wonderful place and I love it.
2014 — Review # 98

It makes me very sad to write this review bc I’ve had several fantastic experiences here with good service, delicious food, and very good accommodations for large groups. For that reason, and Jerry, the owner, always being extremely friendly and doing his best to keep us happy, my friends and I have gone there several times.
However my most recent experience was a little different. Our entire meal actually went alright. The table arrangement was a little weird, and the waitress got pretty irritated when we suggested changing it (though we were upstairs by ourselves and were willing to do it without assistance) and Jerry came and told us not to. Whatever. After the meal, Jerry took me to the side and ask to speak with me. He then proceeded to scold me for my whole group not showing up (I had told him 25 – 30 and we ended up having 21) in front of all of my friends. It was super uncomfortable and embarrassing, and he ended up making me cry, which was pretty awkward. I understand his frustration with expecting more customers than he received, but we bought tons of drinks and spent plenty of money so it seemed a little unnecessary. Additionally, we were planning on staying after dinner for some drinks at this bar, but needless to say we moved on.
After that experience, I unfortunately have to say I will not be back to Alexis. Jerry’s behavior was extremely inappropriate and unprofessional and I hope he feels good about losing business to many future gatherings for throwing a fit over around 50 bucks.

Come for the entrees you can’t pronounce, stay for the ouzo.
Sidenote — the owner has not aged physically since the 1980’s and he’s always on the house floor, pretty impressive.

TWICE WITHIN FOUR DAYS
Yu-​go chauffeur has had this Greek restaurant on the Garmin forever subsequent to reading about their products being widely distributed to restaurants and grocery stores. I just happened to be very familiar with their product line.
There were no more excuses on this sunny afternoon so we walked to the fringes of the Old Town Chinatown District and in the process gingerly walked by the homeless encampment by the Chinatown Gateway. Has to be an embarrassment to the PDX and Chinese community.
We opened the wooden door and of course immediately noticed the odd layout where you have to climb a few steps onto a short hallway and walk down a few more steps onto the dining area. On the other side of the hallway is the bar. The high walls are bright sea shell white while the wood trimmings are stained dark walnut. Matching are wooden stained tables flanked by matching dark wooden chairs upholstered with midnight blue padding. The tables are arranged like a jigsaw puzzle.
We’re greeted by a strikingly handsome woman who said take any table you like and handed us their lunch menu as we sat down. Couldn’t help but stare at the high windows above us as they were covered in strings of wine bottle corks for a most interesting effect as the natural sunlight pierced through the arched translucent windows.
Sorta got that feeling that we were hiding from the rest of the world behind these tall white walls. The noise of the of the public buses stopping in front of their sky blue building persistently reminded us that the city is just on the other side of the white walls.
Another female server dressed in all black approaches and smiles at us to ask what we had decided to order. We order the following:
— Avgolemono Soup: chicken broth, orzo pasta, egg & lemon juice
— Combination Plate: Dolmathes, Kolarakia, Souvlaki Pork, Spanakopita & Tzatziki accompanied by Horiatiki Salad (Greek) combination of veggies, Kalamata Olives, Feta cheese tossed in olive oil, vinegar and oregano plus homemade bread.
— All Yu-​go chauffeur wants to try is their appetizer gyro.
It sounds like a lot of food and as it turns out that it was plenty of food. What I can’t overstate is how enjoyable the food was. Clean, rich and incredibly delightful in flavor and in texture. Yu-​go chauffeur was so impressed with the Souvlaki Pork that he came back for a second time just to have it again, and it was just as impressive as the first time.
I can’t imagine what it would be like for this Greek restaurant to had it been located a few blocks further north within the Pearl District of Portland. I’m sure there would be a waiting line to dine at this incredible place with it’s excellent Greek cuisine.