Portland Craft

Honestly I wanted to like this place but the food was lacklustre at best. I ordered the tuna sliders and the buns were cold and hard, I had to remove the bottoms so I could eat it and there just wasn’t enough on the plate to be called a full meal. I remained hungry so ordered chicken wings and they were not hot just like warm, my friend had the hockey and waffles which were amazing and saved things and got this restaurant 2 stars but I won’t be back anytime soon. Sadly disappointed :(

Really horrible service. Waitress is Claire– super rude right from when we came in, also waited 15 min for her to bring us forks for the poutine. And rolled her eyes when we requested to send back the poutine because it was then ice cold. Not coming back

Such a cool concept! My husband loves Portland beers, so it was awesome to go to place with so much selection. We were there on a quiet night during the middle of the week so there wasn’t much atmosphere, but we were just looking for a relaxing night so it was perfect! The burger was so delicious and the fries were great too! I would definitely go back a second time.

From reading their clearly bought reviews on Unilocal,I was naïve enough to suggest this to my friends. And now my friends no longer ask me for suggestions. I dislike the name, the layout, and even the dimly lit tacky «night club theme».
Also I heard their food is frozen… which explains the grocery store aftertaste.

Cool hangout spot!
I was there one afternoon with some friends. First thing I noticed was that this place has no happy hour menu, a little disappointed. however they have super awesome service and amazing interior décor! Most of the beers are local, which is pretty cool. I had the whisky tasting flight, and discovered a few whiskies that I can enjoy just on its own. Yes I would recommend this place to people.

Tried this place out about a month and a half ago with my boyfriend. All in all it was a really fun night.
Food/​Drink:
* «Put a Bird on It» chicken and waffles are EXTREMELY good and I would go back just for them. Pretty decent portions given it’s a hipster-​y part of Vancouver, and the syrup was really nice. Gravy was nothing special but overall the dish was 4.5÷5 and I have high standards for chicken and waffles.
* BF got a burger that he said was decent but not special, prob a 3/​5, however…
* Burger came with fries and a FANTASTIC roasted garlic aoili, mega delicious, only problem is they don’t give you much and charge for extras
* Beer selection was great, although tbh I can’t remember what we had — a stout and… he had something?
* They do a really fun bourbon sampler, any 4 for around $ 13 I think? Reconfirmed my love for Four Roses and you can choose any ones they have
Service/​Ambiance:
* Ambiance in three words: loud, dark, pub-​y. Okay, that last one isn’t a «real word» but I think you all know what I mean. You have to yell to hear someone across from you. Don’t go in trying to have deep conversation or catch up with any long lost friends.
* Service was decent but not special, a little slow/​forgetful at times and our food did take a while to come out but they were pretty busy so no biggie

Dropped by with a friend for a night of beers and just to chill. Yes, love the place regardless even if it not filled with Unilocal Elites and the Open Bar. It is still a great place to hang out and just have beers.
We placed ourselves at the bar, since we don’t want to wait for a table, and the bar is perfectly fine to just chat and have beers. The bartender, Yuki, was awesome all night. He was attentive, and amazingly cheerful when we needed. My water was always filled, and endless beers for the night.
We might have had a beer per hour, and Yuki was willingly to show us which beer was awesome. He let us have a taste of different beers to try them out for the night for free and we had pints of beer all night.
For sure will come back with some friends, but really, I am more of a bar person as I like to just sit there and just talk with friends and have some beers.

The music here is so loud you can’t hear each other at your table (or large long shared table through the middle of the restaurant, it is a tree. A big beautiful tree table, so you share). Actually it isn’t just the music, it is also the high ceilings, two levels of seating with cement, metal, & hard surfaces. There is no sound absorbing going on, it is a giant room of bouncing sounds. It is dark. So dark you have to read your menu by candlelight. If you ask for tea get an extra candle, the mug is black, it is so dark in this place in some seats that you honestly can’t see liquid in the black mug before you. Don’t pour hot tea on yourself/​table.
The seating girl is full of herself to a point of comedy. She was in one form or another, rude to someone in the group each time I’ve been to this restaurant.
The rest of the waitstaff consists of friendly and attentive servers –walking plates of food up and down sharp steep stairs (kitchen is upstairs, main dining room downstairs, balcony seating along ledge of kitchen floor… don’t wear a skirt unless you want to put on a show ;)).
I’ve enjoyed the food each time I’ve been there, but all my other senses were not happy so I don’t think I’d go back unless it changed a bit.
Have had:
Beet Salad — yummmm.
Burger — a bit dry but original and had a great salad with it. Loved the dressing, licked fork.
Poutine — sooooo good. Gravy could be more hot to melt curds, but heck it was amazegravy.
Steak, mushroom BBQ Pizza — Awesome
IF I owned this place I would do the following things to improve it:
1. Turn down the music.
2. Buy light coloured mugs for hot beverages in the dark.
3. Add some pillows and fabric. You absolutely need to start absorbing sound. Use neutrals and cotton canvases and linen without stepping away from the modern look you like.
4. Attitude adjustment for miss seating-​nazi, or let her go. She’s bad for brand.
5. Most importantly:
Invest in a current motorized dumbwaiter. Your wait staff is carrying plates of food up and down stairs in the dark, a lot. Someone is going to get hurt on those stairs. My bet is on waitstaff because it’s a numbers game.

After seating ourselves and being ignored by the 3 staff there yesterday (busy chatting away, then bussing tables, like HELLO!!! not so much as a sideways glance), we upped and left after 5 minutes. The place was totally dead (5:30pm)… whoever managers or owns this place needs a lesson on S-​E-​R-​V-​I-​C-​E. Do yourself a favor and go anywhere else.

Portland beers available here. The theme of the place works.
The beer list is pretty sizable with over 20 beers available on tap. Flights are available.
The food here is also pretty good. The organic chicken wings come in 4 varieties. The BBQ and root beer flavours were probably the best ones. And the wings were sizable and tasty. $ 11 for about a 1lb plate. Not cheap, but actually not too bad compared to other places in terms of cost.
What holds this place back… I think the cost per pint is a little higher than other places. I understand that beers vary in price and you’re getting beer from outside the country, but I feel some beers are way too high and some re-​evaluation might be needed. The place is also loud and cramped. I’ll excuse the crampedness and file it under its charm… but ya, this place gets really loud. I want to hear my date.
The bar is solid and its ‘gimmick’ of serving mostly US west coast beers is a great idea.

Great relaxed neighborhood bar where you can be sure to have a perfect beer at anytime. Staff is friendly and let’s you taste what ever you would like.
Beer are from the west coast, not just Portland!

I’ve never been disappointed by Portland Craft. Yeah they have some steep competition (ahem Alibi Room & St Augustine’s), but they always have at least 6 beers on tap that I’ve never had before and favour those from the famed Portland/​Seattle/​NorCal triangle of beer love. I’m all over it.
So the only thing that would really separate them from the rest would be their food. Let’s just say they’re trying, and succeeding most of the time. It’s not the absolute best, definitely not the worst, generally good and they have a few stand-​out dishes (the pickle plate is a must-​have on originality only). The servers are really knowledgeable so just ask them what they like. They won’t steer you wrong.
4 stars based primarily on beer list and service, with supporting factors being atmosphere, crowd and location. The pickled apples get an honourable mention!

finally hit up the Portland craft on main street… always wanted to try it, plus they had a new menu roll out as well. We orders the chicken and waffles (chicken was moist but just lacking some seasoning… but Omg the waffles was delicious! Soft and light in the inside and still have a little crunch on the outside.. And man it melts in your mouth! Definitely will go back for the waffles!. then we had the pork belly and man that is the winner of the night! the belly was cooked just right. melt in ur mouth and the seasoning was perfect! And the side of burssel sprouts absolutely complements the belly! It’s a must try! The tuna sliders and the beef burger were good as well, but I feel like they are missing something to give them the extra pop in your mouth! But over all will go back since it’s just the start of their new menu! :)

We can pickle that!
Put a bird on it!
What all this mean?!
PORTLANDIA TV show.
It’s a TV show about the beautiful city of Portland.
So…
As my 3 fav things to eat in da world…
Is reunited in the meal ”Put a bird on it”…
Fried chicken, waffle and oh heaven Maple sirup…
It was a huge hit…
Sooooo good… Gravy+maple sirup mix=heaven.
Of course I gobble up some fried pickle as well ;)…
When I’m going there it’s always on Sunday around 4pm ish.
The place is never too full…
But reservation are highly recommended.
Cacao to cacao.
This place is a big hit.
I love the city Portland so much… This is wonderful!

I love Portland, but Portland Craft is an absolute disappointment.
The service was great, but they need a lot of help on their food. I figure since their menu was so small, the dishes should be close to perfection. Nope, I couldn’t even finish my burger. It was dry and not well seasoned. I appreciate the beet purée on top to try and create something unique, but it didn’t do anything for the patty.
I had a bite of the mac n cheese and it was so average I can’t even remember to put it into words. I didn’t give this place a 1 star because I believe the staff were all friendly and at least tried to provide an enjoyable experience. The food was still edible even though I didn’t finish my plate.

I take back anything good that I said before. This place is a stupid joke and should have no right to associate itself with Portland! It is completely UN-​clever. Guess what? Chicken and waffles is not a new idea. It’s not cool. It’s not cute. It’s not kitschy anymore. It’s just stupid cultural appropriation and hipster douche-​baggery.
Quit profiting off of a city that you don’t know anything about!
I’ll add that one reason I’m so mad at this place is that a couple of months ago my partner and I stopped by for a beer. As he was sitting down in one of the high chairs, he severely cut his thumb on a sharp nail (or something) that cut him because the seat cushion was completely loose. He was in real pain and the blood from the cut was quite profuse. We were pretty much the only people there and at first everyone working there pretended that nothing was happening. When I asked if they had a bandaid for him, they slowly and with no concern said they’d have to go look. While the hostess was off looking for a band-​aid, one of the other workers came by and said «do you want another chair?» NO. How about someone asking if he’s ok? Jesus Christ! Are you hoping for a lawsuit people?
The hostess came back with one dirty, crumpled old band-​aid. At that point we just walked out. The people working there were not concerned at all, didn’t apologize or ask what happened, even though their chair caused an accident. I think you are supposed to have a first-​aid kit if you are a restaurant (food for thought).

Service still sucks. One person in our group actually got reprimanded for momentarily standing beside the table and not sitting in his seat.
And the food has gone downhill.
Bland chicken wings, bland coleslaw, bland mac n cheese with no crunchy oven baked topping. Catered food at best.
I’ve given this place many chances and it just keeps letting me down.
With many options in the general area that can put out some proper quality food with craft beer and an honest smile, I won’t be coming back.

Third time’s a charm eh? Sure was for me.
I had reserved the entire top floor of this restaurant on December 13, 2014. In spite of the fact that a large portion of my party showed up 20 – 30 minutes late, the management staff were kind, courteous and understanding. I highly appreciated this.
On top of splitting bills, their generosity and beer advice — the food was outstanding. I finally got a chance to try the friend chicken and waffles and man-​oh-​man, this is a must have! The chicken batter was phenomenal! Amazing balance of spice and crunch, I can’t say enough about it. Everyone who goes to this restaurant has to try this dish.
I highly recommend this restaurant. For me, it has the top notch beer selection that I seek in a great bar mixed in with the flair of great meals that we often find in our gastropubs.

Being a fan of craft beer, and seeing all the lineups and hype in months past, I was excited to try this place out. One word: meh.
Parking is available along Main, as well as the side streets.
The inside is lively, just like any place out in Yaletown. Very cool Sasquatch theme throughout the restaurant. Tables are definitely on the cramped side — people kept smacking into me as they walked by.
Maybe they’re gunning for the west coast style beer here, but many of the beers on the menu could be purchased at the local liquor store. At $ 10 a flight, I really had trouble justifying my purchases. The food was a bit on the pricey side as well — my friends and I decided to eat elsewhere. The beer selection could also be a bit better. Only some 20 or so brews available for the flights.
My single biggest complaint though? The music was so damn loud, my friends and I couldn’t hear each other. I wanted a nice place to chat, and instead we got a nightclub. I would not recommend this place if you’re trying to get to know somebody.
Not sure if I’ll be back, to be honest.

[Put a Bird on It]
Quality beer selection & Fried Chicken and Waffle. Need i say more? I’m a big beer fan and the selection at Portland Craft is excellent. There’s a huge chalkboard of all the available beers (each with a hops rating) which is constantly being updated with new ones. If you can’t make up your mind, there’s a great beer sampler option. Many of the beers here won’t be found at your local BC liquor store which is one of the reasons I keep coming back.
The food quality is also very good. My favorite is the fried chicken and waffle — a harmony of sweet and savory. It also comes with a side of gravy and syrup and a slice of watermelon to finish. Yum. I’ve also tried the mac and cheese and it too is excellent. The selection of food is limited to maybe 15 items but it’s never usually a problem — I’m here more for the beer and atmosphere than the food.
The ambiance is something I’ve always loved at Portland craft. The high ceilings and décor give it that modern loft type of feel without being too pretentious. The crowd is usually pretty laid back with a bit of a hipster vibe. The big communal table in the middle is functional and versatile but for more intimate encounters, it doesn’t really work. The restaurant itself is located in a quieter area of main street with plenty of free street parking around.
The beer keeps me coming back for more but it’s nice to have good food and ambiance as well.
4.5 stars.