Portage

Portage was a rare beacon of light on Labour Day in the fact that they were actually open. I was lucky enough to hang out with my local Unilocal friend Liz O and her boyfriend Rick and they k indly picked me up and drove me over to the trendy neighbourhood of Queen Anne where Portage is located
The staff were wonderful. As there was a slight delay in the kitchen, they kindly plied us with drinks. Taking the time to find out our particular likes and dislikes, the friendly barman sorted us out with a nice combination of alcoholic and non alcoholic cocktails. I believe Liz described her drinks as being the best 3 drinks of her life. Mine were also outstanding
The food was also solid. Great drinks and great service all added up to a 5 star experience

Located in the quaint little Queen Anne neighborhood is this hidden gem of a restaurant. You wouldn’t even think to glance because this restaurant barely fits 30 patrons at max (to be honest, i didn’t really count the number of seats in the restaurant but it seems like no more than 30 can fit).
The first time around I came for an interview dinner. I was thoroughly impressed with this restaurant because they serve some things seasonally. The first time I went was in the summer time. I had the opportunity to try an assortment of appetizers and they were all perfectly portioned. You won’t expect to see this restaurant serve large portions. Expect the normal sized portion.
I had the diver scallops first time around and also fried potatoes. I have a tendency to never turn down potatoes and ones that look like hashbrown :) Hashbrowns for dinner!
Second time i came for restaurant week. The fish was really good. Their desserts were amazing! i had this apple tart and friends had a crème brûlée in which we all shared. They only make enough to serve for the night so I had to call dibs on my apple tart. Towards the end of the night, the apple tarts were out. If you ordered after 8pm no apple tart for you :(
Overall, great restaurant. Not a place that you can go to regularly because it can get pretty pricey. Definitely check this place out if you are around in the neighborhood!

Small plates for a lot of money.
The food wasn’t delicious either.
Small and a little cramped on the inside. I might return to just see if it was a bad night but wouldn’t feel too bad if that didn’t happen, especially since it is pricey.

Unfortunately, we were underwhelmed by portage.
The Food: My girlfriend ordered the steak and the waitress didn’t care to ask how she takes it, but we made sure she knew she wanted it medium. It came out medium rare. It wasn’t easy to tell with all the sauce they tossed on it, and we didn’t want to request a new one given that closing time was approaching (more on that below). My salmon was cooked perfectly, if a little too rich. I had to seek out the flavor of the steelhead.
The Service: We waited over one hour for our two entrees. This is simply unacceptable. The waitress tried to get us to buy wine and appetizers to pass the time. We weren’t interested in either so we sat at an empty table for 40 minutes until she brought some bread «so we don’t starve.» Thanks for that! We would have rather had our meals at a reasonable time — 1 hour is not reasonable. To be fair, the waitress said that they cook to order — but then again — what restaurant doesn’t? Something is wrong if it is taking a 20 table restaurant this long to turn out their entrees.
Overall: The food isn’t worth the wait and the experience isn’t particularly memorable.

What a charming spot! Portage seats no more than about 25 people (I’m estimating). Reservations were made here only because other restaurants in the area were closed for Labor Day, but Portage decided to keep their restaurant open on this holiday — how grateful for this I am!
The drinks were meticulously prepared and ended up being the top 3 drinks of my lifetime… I realize this isn’t going to help you as you’re reading this but I can’t remember the name of it! Either way, I tried two different ones and they both rocked!
I went a different route with the food this time. My usual steak was replaced with a vegetarian dish — also one that I can’t remember the dang name of (this was last month!). I was really looking forward to a pasta dish that I had seen on the menu, but unfortunately it wasn’t on the menu that night. Still, the vegetarian dish had great presentation and had the substance I needed to feel like I didn’t make a mistake foregoing steak.
Happy to come back here again.

What a lucky find! I waited a little too long to book a restaurant for our anniversary dinner, which fell smack in the middle of restaurant week this year, so our initial cut at the obvious nicer restaurants was a miserable exercise in reservation rejection.
But Unilocal led me to this cozy little bistro that I wasn’t aware existed, and it now has the honor of joining Erik’s five star club.
It is small, maybe eight or ten tables, and I can’t imagine they’d bother trying to manage more than two seatings a night given the casual pace of a multi-​course meal. The service was attentive and personable, and descriptions of the various French inspired menu options were down to earth, steering clear of fancy gastronomic buzzwords.
We were dining with some close friends and sampled an array of cocktails, wine, and dishes over the course of the evening, with only one disappointment in the bunch (the gnocchi, which was reportedly a little chewy). The portions were expectedly bistro-​size, but hardly scant. The pan seared fois gras was outstanding, and my lamb was done perfectly, although my wife claims her beef was the better entrée.
While Portage may not have the flash or brand recognition of some of the other nicer restaurants in town, I found the food to be on par but the intimate neighborhood experience really set it apart from many of the initial list we’d sought out. We’ll definitely be back!

wow, we felt bad. we came here on a sunny evening for dinner and were the only people in the restaurant. sad.
we grabbed a window seat to people watch, while we had a cocktail or two. we split some oysters, which is always a good start to an evening. she loved the cold strawberry rhubarb soup, which had some heat at the finish. sweet, with a kick in the shin finish.
they turned a special into a starter for us… scallops over an english pea risotto. outstanding! i almost wish i cancelled my previous entrée to order more. this was the fave of the night. her fennel encrusted ahi was a little too anisey for us and my duck breast was just okay, maybe even a little flat.
staff was super friendly and we were glad she helped us with the scallop dish.

This is my and my girlfriend’s favorite restaurant in seattle. The tasting menu is a great value, the foi gras is some of the best ive had.
everything on the menu is wonderful, i love the dining room, so small and cozy. Our favorite server is rocky, who is such a great conversationalist and a cool person. The staff is very warm and we’ve never had a bad experience and we’ve been here 8– 10 times in the past year.

Portage will now forever hold a place in my heart. I recently proposed to my girlfriend there, and what a perfect choice it was.
We chose to go with the four course chef’s tasting menu. Now this is a very reasonably priced, yet completely filling, four course tasting menu. Each dish was divine. I had the vegetarian tasting menu (thanks Portage for thinking of us veggies!). It began with a seasonal beet salad, followed by the most amazing mushroom gnocchi I have ever had. And I am not a big mushroom fan, but Portage knows how to cook a mushroom. It then moved on to a lentil and root vegetable dish that was so rich, I had a hard time believing they were lentils. And finally, we ended with a chocolate ganache and the best pear tart I have ever had. Definitely worth the visit, and the perfect place for a proposal!

Cute restaurant, great food.
We didn’t do the chef’s tasting menu that night, since we were sure we wouldn’t be able to finish a 4 course meal. We ordered the foie gras (melty perfection, lightly seared for taste), the oysters (sweet/​fresh), the duck breast (well seasoned to be eaten medium rare), and the special — venison (surprisingly not gamey!)
Overall the food was great and service good. I would come back again.

Portage is a fine restaurant. This is a good dinner. It’s a small place with a small menu, and while I like to hit the tasting menu, two of my pals wanted to hit the regular menu and I followed them — happily.
This isn’t a kitchen that needs a nuanced or parsed review — this is a first-​rate restaurant and you should eat here. It’s a fine meal, and a fine experience.

We went for New Years Eve — so we had a splendid prix fixe meal. There were options for each course. We also went for the wine pairings — which were delightful but short pours in my humble opinion.
We were greeted with a refreshing Jalliance ‘sparkler’ — a nice way to start the evening. Then we had an amuse bouche of a date filled with truffle and goat cheese. It was a bit sweet but the truffle/​cheese stuffing help reduce the sweetness.
We started with a seafood veloute (with prawn mussel and scallop!). It was delicious and warming on this cold evening. Rich without seeming heavy.
We also tried the roasted quail with lardon — yum but small. Scientists need to perfect the hybridization of the MEGA-​QUAIL.
Then we had a basil gelee with pickled shallot and a garnish of parmesan. Interesting. I almost felt like I was on Top Chef. If there was foam I would have thought it was elBulli (look it up, ha ha).
Next up we both had the wagyu beef short rib duet, my beef was a little tough — the marbling on wagyu usually portends tenderness, but mine bordered on chewy — strange! The braised beef underneath was tender and scrumptious, oh my so good.
For dessert we tried both the chocolate marquis and the Sangria panna cotta with cinnamon shortbread.
All the wine pairings were excellent and I certainly wasn’t overfed. Our server Rocky was helpful and attentive
Pluses: some great dishes
we never felt rushed
Minuses: small portions /​short pours
it gets loud in there!
expensive
I would go back to Portage for another special occasion.

My friend and I came here for SRW and it was pretty good. They pretty much assumed everyone was going there for SRW since they only had that menu on the table but the ala carte menu was still available if requested. Our first course was good. My friend got a trout scramble on top of toast while I got the beet salad. Then for the main course i got the pork marsala and my friend got like a beef stew. Both were good but nothing to rave about to my friends. Last was dessert. I got a chocolate cake and my friend got something else (lol, i can’t remember). the ambiance is nice and it is quite small (i think about 10 small tables total) but is it quite cute and snug inside.

Great deal for the money. A 4 course tasting menu for just over $ 50. Night I went I had a salad, scrambled egg with smoked trout over toast, braised pork shoulder, and finished with chocolate two ways (cake and terrine). Service was also good.
Not as fancy as Rovers but at half the price I am sure this will be one of my splurge favs.

Last night, we visited Portage for my second time (my boyfriend has been there many more times!) On my first visit, we did the tasting menu. Since it’s now been months since that visit, I don’t recall enough to comment specifically, other than it was absolutely delicious and I couldn’t wait to come back!
Well, obviously I did wait to come back, but luckily that second visit was last night. This time, we ordered food and wine a la carte. We started off with a couple of their new fall drinks: hot apple cider and hot buttered rum. Both were perfect to warm us up, since we haven’t fully transitioned in our minds to fall! For our appetizer, we split the pork belly and a glass of pinot noir, both of which were excellent. The pork belly was melt-​in-​your-​mouth and had yummy mushrooms, which were complimented well by the earthy pinot.
Next, for our main course, I had the lamb sirloin special (with what I think was sweet potato purée, and some other fall veggies), and my boyfriend had the scallops with potato risotto, then we switched halfway through to try both! Both were very good — the lamb was cooked perfectly for my tastes — and different flavors involved. We also added the rosti potato. My boyfriend loved it; it wasn’t my favorite. Wine notes: paired the Bonair Cab Franc with the lamb (had it before, new it would be great together & it was!) and the Savignon Bordeaux with the scallops (this was ok, sweeter & tarter than we expected… tasted more like a pinot grigio. still worked fine with the dish though)
I probably should have stopped there, but everything was so delicious and we were having such a good time that we continued on to dessert! I had the chocolate terrine with a glass of the brut rose. I was going to say that I think I’d come back just for this, but I know the reality is I’d find myself ordering the other yummy things on the menu too! Boyfriend had the crème brûlée — pumpkin flavor served in an actual pumpkin! not in a pumpkin shape… an *actual* mini pumpkin! So cute! (I’m a sucker for things like that)
Anyway, delightful time, wonderful service. Our server (I’m bad with names, but we’ve had him the other time we were there also & he’s great) was friendly and funny and professional and accommodating and just a joy — added to our already positive dining experience. Now I’ll just have to come back sooner next time!

Small, but intimate with appropriate décor.
Dinner included Butternut Squash Gnocchi, Rosti, and a special feature: Duck leg braised in duck fat with a sausage-​bean mash. Mouth wateringly delicious. The duck was crispy on the outside and juicy inside. The rosti is like a big plate of hash browns, but with more ingredients and flavor. Presentation — see pictures.
Being so small, there is always someone in sight you can flag down, so I thought service was great, and our server was knowledgeable about the menu and wine pairings (as he ought to be).

Had our pre-Valentine’s Day dinner here early on a Saturday night with the boy. I’d made reservations, and although I was a little bit late and I’m fairly sure they were booked solid for the night, we were still graciously accommodated.
The space is really lovely, cozy and inviting, small without being cramped. The service was fantastic, although our server was a little sell-​happy and we could have done without the pressure. I understand that some people appreciate being offered things they might not have thought of, but I prefer to ask for them myself. Still, a very minor annoyance in an otherwise brilliant night.
We started out with the pork belly appetizer. Braised to perfection with mushrooms, it was decadently glorious. I try to eat pork belly anywhere and everywhere I can, and this version of it was definitely top-​notch. For mains, the boy had the special — monkfish osso bucco with some sort of purée and blood oranges, and I had the scallops with risotto. The scallops were perfect — seared just enough to be a tiny bit crunchy around the edges, but otherwise flawlessly tender. I even loved the risotto, and I generally don’t care much for it. The monkfish was tasty as well, although a touch overcooked, and the blood oranges added a tangy sweetness that cut through the buttery flavor of the fish wonderfully.
I had been lucky enough to snag a Groupon, which was a huge help to us broke recent grads as the appetizer and two mains put us over $ 50. Certainly not cheap, but absolutely worth it for the quality. Portage is now at the top of my list for special occasion dining!

My boyfriend took me here on a special date and we had an 8 o’clock reservation for a Friday night. We got there at 8 on the dot, but unfortunately didn’t get a table until about 8:20. The food was good, the service commendable considering the circumstances, and the ambiance simple and romantic, but the fact that our «reservation» didn’t hold true really spoiled my night.
PROS:
1. Friendly host and waitress. I guess parties with reservations prior to ours arrived late (or were annoyingly taking their time leaving, hanging out even though their bill was paid and coffee finished), pushing our reservation back some. They were both apologetic. But still.
2. Romantic. Simple white linens, candles, dim lighting.
3. Decent food. I loved the flavor of my mushroom gnocchi, but my bf wasn’t impressed with his salmon + risotto dish.
CONS:
1. Reservation wasn’t honored and we had to wait awhile to get seated. I was starving.
2. Portions are on the small side.

We went here for Dine Out For Life. IT WAS DELICIOUS! We each got the tasting menu + wine pairings, which is my first time ever doing this because I’m a huge pansy. BUT I DID IT. AND I didn’t regret it! I actually can say that I liked everything that I had.
I had gnocchi, salmon, scallops, salad, dessert and a thousand glasses of wine. It was a really nice experience overall. I think my least favorite was the chocolate flour-​less cake dessert, it was too intense for me and I would have liked more caramel sauce on it.
I would definitely eat here again.

I had heard good things about this restaurant, and when I looked at the RW menu it looked pretty good so we decided to come here.
First, the menu wasn’t the same as what was posted online, … which I guess I shouldn’t count on, but unfortunately I had picked out at least 2 appetizers that I thought I wanted to try, and neither of them appeared on the menu. Okay that’s ok, so I pick the Split Pea soup for the appetizer, salmon for entrée, and Pear Tart for dessert.
I had high expectations for service from the reviews I read but I was pretty underwhelmed. The waiter decided to take all orders from one corner of a table of a 6, and I’m not really that hard of hearing but I felt strange shouting my order across to the other corner in a place with such a cozy setting. Also apparently he had wanted to take my order first before the guys, but since I didn’t hear him, instead of coming directly to me, he just decided to go around and take everyone else’s orders. Not a sign of good service.
The wine was going to be late because they were washing wine glasses. That was fine but the way the waiter announced it was a bit odd. Then he still didn’t get all the right wine glasses. And then of course, he messed up my order and gave me lamb instead of salmon. I had to wait 5 more minutes for the salmon while everyone else ate. Okay no problem I know mistakes are made but again, I had high expectations for the service. Maybe he got the order wrong b/​c he was on the other side and I had to shout my order across.
As for the food, the soup was good though nothing I can’t make myself, the salmon was delicious, and the pear dessert was just okay, it was too sweet and alcoholy for my taste.
Overall, I’ve found that with Restaurant Week, most of the food is acceptable and that what makes you want to come back is the service. That didn’t really happen in this case, so don’t think I’ll be coming back anytime soon.