Swiss Hibiscus

I’ve been meaning to write a review on this place for awhile as it is such a hidden gem and I’ve had a great experience every time I’ve gone.
First, the service is excellent. The owner is very sweet and greats guests as they come in. She even recognized me after only being in a few times which I thought was pretty cool. It’s clear that she cares about her customers and their experience. The servers are great as well, and while the food may take awhile, they are quick to bring appetizers and offer refills on drinks and fresh baked bread to keep you happy while you wait.
Second, the food is amazing! Everything has delicious unique flavor and comes with generous portions. I had the Emince Zurichoise on my last visit which I think is my new favorite. I could eat the spatzli everyday for the rest of my life and be happy.
The only down side of this place is it is pretty tiny so you may want to make a reservation if you are going at a busy time, but you won’t be disappointed!

We came here after «accidentally» going on a six mile hike. We initially walked away because we thought it would be extremely expensive and have small portions, but we were definitely wrong. Our waiter was extremely friendly and offered to refill our basket of fresh bread every time she stopped by (which we shamefully said yes to every time) and was even kind enough to give us tips on what to do in the city on a rainy day.
I ordered the Emince Zurichoise which came with an enormous fresh salad as an appetizer. The main dish itself was a little bit salty for my taste buds, but it was definitely extremely filling due to the creaminess of the mushroom sauce. I’m normally not a fan of mushrooms, but it wasn’t too overpowering and balanced very well with the mild taste of the dumplings that came with it.
If you ever find yourself in this area of Portland, definitely give Swiss Hibiscus a shot.

The food was great — the service is even better. It’s family run and they give each table a lot of attention with the balance of letting you and your party talk and have dinner. The chef is the dad, the mom and adult children run the front. They remember you too. The food is authentic and not fancy. It’s home cooking in a restaurant setting. The place is small — make a reservation

Always a hit!
We have come here several times, and the food and service is always excellent! Tonight I brought my brother and two of my sisters. We had fondue, two of the specials (roast pork and fleischkase), and two of the traditional menu items (Wiener schnitzel and paprika schnitzel). We scarfed up everything! The service, the presentation, and the food are all top notch.

I had a flawless meal on a busy night. The food was delicious, came out hot, and was served by the most cheerful server I’ve encountered in pdx in far too long. Counting down the days until I can stop in again!
It’s a small place so be patient for a table, you won’t be disappointed.

My husband and I visited Portland in April, and I am beyond ecstatic that we decided to eat dinner here. I now want to move to Portland and survive solely off this place and Bing Mi. Another 6 out of 5 stars, and this review is way overdue.
Whenever I’m visiting a new place, I always start out with a Unilocal search of things to do and places to eat. I get a good list and then cross reference TripAdvisor and Google reviews for good measure. Some call it neurotic but it assures a great time. Knowing that Portland is foodie and brewery heaven, I wanted our 5 days here to be packed with a huge variety of beer, the best quality food, and then the most scenic hikes to shed some of those calories.
I was caught off guard when this Swiss restaurant showed up at the top of Unilocal when I sorted Portland restaurants by rating and filtered for $ and $$ only. After checking the other aforementioned sites and seeing similar stellar reviews, my interest was piqued and this one was added to our short list. It’s no surprise that our «short list» of Portland restaurants and food trucks grew to more than 70, which is ridiculous for a 5 day trip. So as it goes, Swiss Hibiscus became overshadowed by other, trendier restaurants I kept reading about. Oh, did I forget to mention that I also read travel blogs and local newspaper reviews? Having fun takes serious planning, people!
It’s strange to say, but I actually feel so lucky that another restaurant a few blocks away we planned on going to had a long wait which means we ended up here by default. All I can sheepishly say in retrospect is I just didn’t expect to be wowed by a Swiss restaurant, so I held onto my preconceived notions when I should have just trusted my fellow Unilocalers from that first search I did. The service was phenomenal! The food was perfection! The flow of our experience from the moment we walked in to the moment we signed the check was everything you could expect from a Michelin starred place.
Our server, whose name escapes me, said she lived close by and loved the place so much she wanted to work there. She was friendly and knew when to chat it up, when to leave us be, made excellent recommendations for food and which nearby bars to visit afterwards, and is the best server we’ve had at least this year but probably much longer.
I had the Emince Zurichoise with spatzli and green salat. Their menu says the pork is sauteed in a mushroom cream sauce. Oh how humble of them. This is the best cream sauce I’ve ever had. Ever. I’d be heartbroken if I found out it was not homemade there, but something tells me I don’t need to worry. The spatzli was great — cooked perfectly and so delicious. And I’m not one to get all crazy over salad dressing, but theirs is outstanding.
We sat outside since it was a nice night. As we got up from the table, the co-​owner came out and while I wanted to give her a huge hug for helping make this place exist, I checked myself and settled for a quick compliment. Swiss Hibiscus was one of the highlights of our trip, and whenever I’m within 50 miles of Portland, I will definitely be eating here.

Great place. Friendly staff. Food is unique to the area with a lot of flavor and the bread with the dipping sauces are amazing. I’m just visiting but I would come back I’m a heartbeat the next time I’m here.

Loved this seemingly mom-​n-​pop style Swiss restaurant. Firstly the service was top notch. There’s the formal upscale restaurant perfect service, and there’s the homey «we are the proud owners of this restaurant and we will ensure you have the best experience possible» service; this was the latter and it was very pleasant.
The food was very very good quality, and I think relative to other Swiss/​German food this would rate 5 stars. However, I learned that for personal preference this isn’t my favorite category of food thus 4.5 stars.
Terrific restaurant, would definitely return.

This place is absolutely amazing! We had dinner there and everything was booked, so make reservations. We didn’t have any reservations but the lady at the front desk accomodated us anyway with the condition to clear the table in one hour, which we definitely agreed upon, since I was in the mood for goulash! I had the french onion soup, absolutely a must, it was so tasty! I also had the goulash with spaetzle, they were amazing; spaetzle were homemade, you could taste them! My husband had one of the day’s specials, a marinated pork in sauce with spaetzel, and my brother had the special as well, a rockfish topped with banana… I am not sure what was in it but it was delicious!!! The owner is apparently Swiss, so trust his cooking skills, he’s truly an artist!

Defintely my favorite restaurant in Portland. Always take my friends and family here and they love it. Food is a tad bit spendier but certainly worth it, highly recommend the emince zurichoise, good portion sizes, and the staff is always so friendly and hospitable. I have always had a positive experience going here! Worth checking out.

Saturday night, they were full and we didn’t have reservations but they accommodate us with a small table by the kitchen. we didn’t mind at all.
Even tho we only ate 1 hour before and we were still half full at time of stepping into Swiss Hibiscus, we still thoroughly enjoyed their delicious entrees.
Tammy and her wait staff are very attentive to customers. Her business partner, Jenny, the chef puts out excellent dishes.
We had the escargots, the goulash and paprika schnitzel… highly recommendable.

This is a great little place just off of NE Alberta. Reservations are an absolute must since there is very limited seating. We came for dinner on a Thursday night and were happy to find out they also serve lunch. Throughout our dining experience, the service was impeccable.
The food was very well prepared and flavorful. We ordered the appetizer rösti topped with Gruyère and ham. It was just as good as any rösti I had while in Switzerland. Perfect texture and taste! Both of us had the special Rahmschnitzel with mushroom sauce and salad. He chose potato salat and I had spätzle on the side. The pork was tender, but the sauce was ever the slightest too thick for my liking. The salad and side items were dynamite.
While the beer and wine list is small, I was very pleased with the Swiss white I chose and the man was equally pleased with the bottled Pilsner he had. I had ice cream with house made chocolate sauce for dessert and that was fantastic!
So why the 4 stars you ask?
— Music was awful and a touch loud for conversation. Please spare us the accordion.
— Lack of liquor is tragic. If they aren’t going to offer cocktails, they should broaden their beer and wine list.
All in all, I like the place and plan to go back the next time I need a rösti or fondue fix.

Checked this place out on a friday evening. We wanted to start with soups, appetizers and then proceed to entrees. Our soups and appetizers took a little over an hour. We were served bread and water, it was never refilled. Probably caught them on a bad day.

Absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to go back and work my way through the menu. The food was incredible, fresh and authentic and the service was so personal. I believe we were served by the owner, and she was so wonderful and helped up pair sides to main dishes, along with what starters would go best with our selected meals. It’s a very small restaurant, but I personally enjoy that. You could really tell the staff wanted to make your experience the best and made you feel so welcome. Prices were great and portions were generous as well. I will definitely be back and am looking forward to trying something different next time!

Having been raised in Switzerland it was natural that I needed to try this place.
The service and personnel are outstanding and personal. I don’t think I have eaten at a place more friendly and more personable.
The manager and her mother in law were making sure we were well taken care off our water glass never got more than a quarter empty.
We got there during a rush and were the last to get our order in. The food took a bit longer but we were kept aware of the slight delay. We had bread with the great dipping sauces. The salad or as we say in Switzerland, Salat, was great and very authentic. The Emincé Zurichoise or Züri Gschnetzlets was good and the Spätzli were truly amazing.
The Swiss apple pie (Weien) was good but the lilikoi (passion fruit; from the mother in laws garden) was simply delightful.
I think the Hawai’ian heritage on top of the Swiss heritage makes this a super aloha Swiss place.
Thank you for a memorable dinner.

The place is full of aloha and the food is ono (delicious)! You gotta come check it out!
To start, we had toasted bread with sides of the house sauces. I especially liked the one with sriracha. So good.
I had leek-​potato soup and choucroute garni… a bed of perfect sauerkraut covered with different types of meats and sausages. Best meal I’ve had in a long time.
My wife had the paprika schnitzel with spaetzli. She loved hers as well.
Much mahalos to all the aunties running it too. They make you feel very welcome and part of their ohana.
Our daughter Lehua loved it as well. They made her feel very welcome. We will be going back very
soon!

Great food and outstanding hospitality. The wienerschnitzel is my favorite entrée and you can’t go wrong with either chicken or pork. However choosing spätzle or the rosti as a side is always a toss up. It’s all good! Dined here twice in one weekend visit to Portland. Can’t miss it!

The salad dressing at this place is addicting. BEWARE.
I was looking for something that we don’t have back home so I went with Swiss/​German :D Prior warning: This place is TINY and parking can be a pain, but it’s totally worth it.
We snagged a table near the back and ordered the salad appetizer plate, the lentil stew, and the paprika schnitzel. They bring you bread before your meal along with one side of salad dressing and one side of sriracha salad dressing. I know it sounds weird but it actually tasted pretty good. Then our salad plate arrived and I was BLOWN AWAY. I even ate the beets and I do NOT like beets; for some reason these were really yummy and didn’t taste super earthy. The plain salad was great, tossed in the signature salad dressing, the cucumbers reminded me of a light cucumber salad you get a Japanese restaurant, the potato salad was legit German potato salad, and the coleslaw was different but delicious. The only one I didn’t like was the one with sausage; the sauce was strange and I didn’t really care for it. But EVERYTHING else on that plate was demolished.
Entrees also come with a side salad and unfortunately at that point I was salad dressing-​ed out… We had eaten it with the bread and all the salad plates so this third time was a bit too much. However our waitress kindly brought our entrees out so we could dig into those and mix up the flavors.
I really enjoyed the lentil stew; there was no meat in it which I was looking forward to, and the side of spaetzle was really tasty! They had cooked it so it was a tiny bit crunchy on the outside but still soft on the inside.
Overall I’d definitely come back here because they have a great selection of items that you don’t typically see! Our server was super nice and attentive which made the experience very enjoyable: D

It’s was nice… A tiny bit pricey but they have to pay the rent for the area they are in so it’s understandable. The food is authentic and tasty I would recommend the Jaeger sauces.
The beer selection could be a bit better serving more European Swiss beers would be nice.
Had no problem with the dessert menu
Service was excellent

We went without a reservation, Debbie the owner was able to squeeze us in. Good was delicious, service excellent !

Truly a fine dining experience in a cozy setting. The staff, especially Tammy & Destiny were welcoming, informative & friendly. Top of the line in Portland for sure! We chose the Rosti Valaisanne as an appetizer, much to our deleight. The Emince Zurichoise & the Rahmschnitzel were our entrée choices & succulent! Topped off with the Swiss Pear Pie ala mode as a dessert we left extremely satisfied to say the least!

Delicious! I had a recommendation to go here from a family friend who had previously worked at the Chef’s parent’s restaurant in Hawaii and I’m so glad I followed through. I got to meet Jenny briefly, she was lovely and her food was so good!
The house bread and dipping sauce was yummy. The bread was hot and fresh while the dipping sauce had this tanginess that reminded me of pickled carrots and dakron in Vietnamese subs. The house salad featured the same amazing sauce.
The Swiss onion soup was a bowl of warm tastiness, similar but better than any bowl of French onion soup I can recall.
The best part of the meal was the emince zurichoise with rosti. In a town with some amazing restaurants featuring excellent hash browns, this rosti may be a challenger for the best. And the pork was melt in your mouth comfort food.
We’re looking forward to taking our in-​laws here when they’re in town! I can’t wait for more of that emince. :)

We weren’t expecting this degree of deliciousness when our friend took us to this restaurant. In the last couple years we have been trying out some of Unilocal highly rated restaurants and somehow missed this place. Not many of those places really impressed us enough to become repeat customers, unlike Swiss Hibiscus. The food was cooked amazingly. It was like comfort food at a five star level. The salad dressing they make and sell is out of this world good. They sell it at New Seasons and a few other local stores. My husband is a native to Switz. and can’t wait to come back for the quality authentic food they make. ((Me too!) We’ll be back soon!

Superb food and service. We had traveled to Europe earlier this year, and this tastes the same if not a bit better! We has the famous dish and onion soup, and a Wienerschnitzel. All of it was out of this world delicious! Recommend this to everyone. Make a reservation if you can, it fills up!

Recommend !!! Nice service overall they explain the dishes very cleared and detailed and the food was so outstanding. The soup the bread and the main dishes everything just too perfect to believe. But a little thing if you wanna eat in, the store is small expect to wait for seats, and their delicious dishes take times to be done, thus if you want a fast meal make a call and order take out. A must go in Portland, OR.

Ordered pork schnitzel, salad, and spaetzli. Hacker-​pschorr weisse. Schnitzel and bread + dipping sauce were divine. Salad was quite good. Spaetzli was serviceable. Cleaned my plate, service was great, and the valuable was incredible.

Small and not terribly convenient for parking but a find. Had a business dinner here, brought in a bottle of nice red wine as their wine list is pretty limited. The service was attentive but not overbearing, the food very tasty especially given the price. Only about 6 tables in the whole place.
Kind of like the feeling you get after finding a bottle of wine rated 90 for less than $ 15, this is well worth the trip.

Delicious. Everything we tried was fantastic. A wurst salad, rosti with cheese, and jägerschnitzel, all delicious. Our servers were super friendly and fun to talk to. Overall great dinner experience on a late Friday night.

The food was superb and the wait staff was very friendly. I will be coming here again.

Overall, a wonderful dining experience! The atmosphere is quiet and casual. The staff was very welcoming and friendly. Our waiter was Bryson and he was superb. My husband and I shared the escargot appetizer. For our main selections I had the chicken wienerschnitzel with spätzle and a side salad (the house dressing is unique and delicious!) and my husband had the goulash with rösti and a cup of the barley soup. The flavors were divine and we enjoyed every bite. Prices were reasonable. During our next visit to Portland, we will be sure to dine here again.

Super small restaurant with outdoor seating but definitely worth the wait if you don’t reserve (which I highly recommend you do on a Friday or Saturday night). The bread here is made fresh. The sauce they provide with the bread is delicious! The food itself is great too. Everything is great. Super friendly staff. Definitely should try it out at least one time.

This was very good and friendly place to have dinner they were welcoming attentive and honest .
The food was outstanding in taste and the serving did not leave me wanting for more .
The server was honest on the bill returning to me a over payment on my check. I will return on my next visit to Portland

My friend asked me to have a restaurant in mind soon as I picked her up from the airport. She goes out to eat often, so felt I’d better choose well. Lucky us! Found Swiss Hibiscus right off Alberta on 14^th, via Unilocal.
Little place for sure, but felt so airy and nice… We enjoyed the escargo for appetizer, then split the Weinerschnitzel. Really? Weinerschnitzel? Well, why not… and it was incredible!
Their complimentary bread was delicious like it was fresh baked and the 2 dips offered with it were like salad dressings, but a perfect dip sauce… couldn’t get enough!
The hostess who seated us was gracious and the young fellow who waited on our table made us feel so special, like we were the only table in the restaurant — and we weren’t, it was full. After tasting their food and experiencing old world service, you’ll see why. Definitely make a reservation. I’m going back ASAP!

Swiss Hibiscus is über amazing… I want to add more syllables to amazing… That’s how great it is. The staff was attentive and genuinely seemed enjoy to being there.
The restaurant square footage is on the slight side, but that just makes it cozier and romantic: Make a reservation.
Oh… And their house made chocolate sauce? Well… I’d stab you in the face for it.

First the bad stuff… the chairs are hard on the butts. We saw one guy, who must have been a regular, bring his own seat cushion. That was my only complaint. Everything else was great! Cute little place. BTW make reservations, the place fills up fast. Good fast service. Oh… and it is quiet enough to have a conversation! They bring out some hot soft bread with two «dipping sauces». The sauces are actually their salad dressing with and without hot sauce. Sounds odd… but it was delicious! we got and shared the soup, a green salad, goulash, rostti, spatzle, tarragon chicken. I loved the salad, rostti, and goulash. the others were very good as well. we will definitely be back to this place.

Why oh why had I not heard of this restaurant before I did I have no idea! I’ve been in Portland for 3 years and never heard of this place until recently. This place, by far, is one of the best places I’ve had here in Portland!
It’s located just around the corner on Alberta street so unless you know it’s there, it’s hidden from plain sight. We called ahead an made reservations because the first time we tried to get it there was a 2 hour wait, and rightfully so. The restaurant isn’t too big and they have indoor and outdoor seating. We went on a beautiful night. With most outdoor seating areas, I feel like you get forgotten, but not here. We always had our waiter or someone coming by to check in on, refill our glasses, check the food, etc. the service was above and beyond most place I’ve been!
The menu is a little bit pricier, but not outrageous. For two of us with no appetizer, drinks, or dessert we spent around $ 35-​$ 40. It was well worth it. They start you out with a bowl of bread with their signature sauce. Their sauce is seriously out of this world! Words escape me when trying to describe it because it is just that good! I don’t know if that’s a standard sauce in Switzerland or just theirs, but really it doesn’t matter. They hit the nail on the head! I can’t pronounce or spell any of the menu items, but I had the thinly sliced pork with another amazing brown sauce (not quite a gravy) with their bacon hash browns, essentially. This food was sent straight from heaven! I savored every single bite. Thinking about it now has me drooling all over again.
If you’re looking for some of the best food and service in Portland, you absolutely must try Swiss Hibiscus! It will be the #1 place I recommend from here on out.

This is a great stop, coming from a foodie.
It is tucked away just off Alberta St.
I had the salmon with boiled potatoes. The spaetzli is a good side also. Pair with a nice wine offered in house, or in my case, fresh lemonade.

Wowowowow… this place does so many things right.
First of all, everyone loves hash browns. Its a fact of life. But besides diner/​ihop places, very few serve it for dinner — no idea why not. This place goes Above and Beyond the Call of Duty (ABCD) and not only serves hash browns, but offers vegan varieties and they taste delicious. Super bonus awesome points.
Second of all, being Swiss is amazingly unique and interesting. I love ethnic food and go out of my way to try international cuisines, but never had the opportunity to try swiss past the cheese. This stuff is great! Hearty pork and savory cream sauces, nothing too salty or oily. Can even taste the sweet sometimes… possibly the Hawaiin influences? OMG that martin dipping sauce (& the srachi kick) is sooo fabulous with their warm bread chunks.
Third of all, the place has personality. Its got a history of how it came to be, a family trade thats traveled across generations and around the world. The waitresses dress in cute outfits and even the bathroom is equipped with hairspray for just in case moments. So friendly too!
I ordered a tender pork & cream sauce with vegan hash browns (no idea what the official names are), bf ordered pork slices & mushroom cream sauce with regular hash browns. Amazing.
Not sure what else to say except that we love this place!!!