Portage

awful

by ladyjanerose at Citysearch

If I could give less than one star I would. The worst gnocchi (hello - Italian?) I've ever eaten - an over salted frozen dinner from Safeway would have had more flavor. These little nuggets were so hard I could barely get them on my fork. The meal wasn't even worth the calories much less the crazy expensive bill that followed.

Mixed Bag

by truffleoil at Citysearch

My husband and I went to Portage for his birthday. For my appetizer I had the Diver scallop, morel, sweet corn-truffle salad which just didn't end up coming together very well. The chef had sprinkled herbs all over the salad which did not have the stems removed. It looked very earthy but the problem was that it also tasted very earthy. It seemed to be a bit of a theme at the restaurant as the same thing was present on my husband's appetizer. I am all for fresh farmers market produce and fresh herbs but not at the expensive of taste and texture. The stems should have been removed, the corn and the scallops were slightly over cooked.

For my main course I had a salmon special which was very good. The salmon was cooked perfectly and it was served with a Risotto that had summer vegetables in it. It was flavorful, pretty and good. My husband had the halibut and I believe he also enjoyed his main course.

For dessert we had a chocolate cake and a Vanilla-caramel pots de creme. The desserts were amazing but I was sad because I had called in the afternoon and asked if they could put a candle in my husbands dessert. They said they would and promised to write a note next to my reservation but then forgot to follow through.

We will go back and try it again.

Fine food not so good atmosphere

by kt1121 at Citysearch

The table was wobbling and right next to the kitchen. The kitchen door was a curtain and the staff was easily heard discussing their personal life. The squash salad was great except the goat cheese was forgotten and the lentil dish was fine but a little dry. Overall i wouldn't go back.

excellent food

by poway at Citysearch

i don't know why this place isn't packed every night, the food is spectacular. i've seen this chef do things with beets i didn't know was possible. awesome.

Love this place!

by armben at Citysearch

There aren't enough small bistro's like this in Seattle. We recently moved back from New York where the small French bistro was practically a dime a dozen, but here Portage really stands out as a must-eat. We loved the service, the ambience was so warm and intimate, and the food was perfect. I had the chicken (yeah, just chicken!) and my wife had the scallops. Everything we ate beforehand (foie gras, duck) was amazing and the wine recommendation was spot on. We went on a Friday night and got a reservation for 9pm and it was definitely worth it. We watched 2 or 3 couples come by afterwards and wait for a few minutes even then. I'm sure you could walk in most nights, though. WE WILL BE BACK!