38 Central

I ate here alone while on a business trip. The food was very good. I had the black cod and it really was perfect. The bread they bring before the meal is dry and unappealing and the service was good but not great. Oh and their smoked salmon chowder as the star of the meal! I would go again.

Nearly a five-​star based on how they bring gastronomy to a community in need of creative edible treats. Surprisingly Portland-​esque.
Another bonus and nod to the service was when we arrived they were severely shorthanded due to a recent winter storm. The owner ended up serving a table of ten and with a little wait delivered all satisfying and impressive meals to my fellow co-​workers. That’s a challenging success hard to achieve.
Delicious, still hot, and many distracting menu options. It was hard to decide.
Lunch Meal:
Duck Confit, Smoked, Plum BBQ Sauce Quesadilla

After a 4 hour plus drive from Portland en route to San Jose, we were famished and needed some sustenance and good night sleep for the final and long leg home. 38 Central popped up on the Unilocal app and after a quick call, reservations were made (it was a weekend after all).
We get there around 8:30 pm and just in time too since we were warned on the phone that the kitchen will close at 9 pm. Totally understandable but people still showed up just after 9 anyway.
Butter leaf salad: Salad is salad but the difference here is the freshness of the locally sourced ingredients. Lettuce was crisp and tasted like it came right off the farm. Roasted grapes added some smoky sweetness.
We share the chicken dish (can’t recall the name) that was roasted and coated with a barbecue sauce. The sauce overwhelms the chicken so a bit less of the sauce would make it better. Roasted vegetables were nicely done. The chicken also came with tomato bisque soup that was creamy and tomatoey as it should be.
Last was the chocolate beet cake that came free with a Unilocal check in (don’t forget!). Nicely rich and moist with deep chocolaty taste. Heck, it’s free!
Glass of merlot was from a local winery and was also very good. Nothing fancy but just good solid wine for the price.

My wife and I went here tonight for our 7^th anniversary. The owner was serving us (we were there right at 5pm when they opened… hey, we had a kid at home to get back to…) and he was wonderful.
We got the Crispy Skin Chicken and the Fish and Chips. They were both delicious. We also had the «make your own s’mores» which was a wonderful treat and a fun way to end a delicious dinner.
We just left the restaurant an hour or so ago, but I’ve already recommended it to a bunch of friends. I will definitely come back — a great place!
They also offer a 10% off your meal Foursquare discount for 1^st time visitors, and more specials for repeat visitors! So, make sure to check in when you get there!

Food was fantastic! Service was great but I was serviced at the bar by the owner. The daily fish special of Dungeness Crab stuffed lobster tail was just insane for the price ($ 30) and the salmon soup of the day was like nothing I’ve had before. Great local Oregon wines available and a quality selection of Bourbon. Must eat location in Medford, OR!

I didn’t try the food but was quite turned off by the staff. I came in without reservations and asked if a table was available. The owner/​manager (a male) barked that it was a 20min wait for a table. I didn’t believe it, so on my way out I asked the female hostess the wait time, and she said a «few a minutes.» Something doesn’t add up here.
This owner/​manager shouldn’t be in the service industry. He was far too crude.

Stopped here for dinner based on Unilocal reviews. We were on our way to Ashland from Edmonds Wa. It is a quaint place with a full bar as you walk in and a nice restaurant in the rear half of the building. We were seated right away. The server was prompt and we asked for some time to peruse the menus. When he returned we ordered dinner and drinks. My wife had a pan fried salmon dish with a glass a Pinot noir. I ordered the Mac and Cheese entrée with a martini up. I needed some comfort from having driven the last couple hours in the snow. My wife loved, loved, loved her salmon and wine. My Mac and cheese was just ok, not that special. Even the martini tasted weak. Maybe it was me from the drive. I’m giving 38 Four Stars ’cause my wife would give it five and I would give it three. We’ll probably be back again on one of our trips up and down Interstate 5.

I found 38 Central via Unilocal.I ordered the filet, it came with salad, mashed potatoes and a green bean/​carrot medley. Everything was very good. The filet was well cooked and very tasty. The server was very friendly and attenttive. I then ordered the Malt Crème Brulee. Again, it was very good.
I was initially going to give 38 Central 4 stars, but as I was writing this review, I realized there was nothing I did not like about the entire experience, which is a very good thing.
My only comment would be that 38 Central is $$$, not $$. But worth it.

This is our first time visiting this restaurant and we’re thrilled by the service quality rendered by Ginni, our waitress.
Foods:
We ordered Pork Chop, two Racks of Ribs, Fish & Chips. They were not overly salty but the tastes were well crafted and they looked and tasted like true efforts were put into them. I am pretty impressed. Freshness dominates the entrees all the way to salads and coleslaw.
Environment:
We were seated on the 2^nd floor, I think they were getting ready to shutdown the first floor. Ambience was just right. Booth seats are a little deep but comfortable,
Service:
We were served by Ginni and I must underscore the fact she was one of the best waitresses I have ever met. She truly made our visit comfortable and her attentiveness made us felt spoiled. The way she placed the entrees was light and careful. I love such attention to details in serving — quite rare these days. She’s also very keen in listening to our needs and provided everything we asked for. If I own a restaurant, this is the kind of employee I’d «kill» to hire. In short, Ginni is the perfect waitress.
If you are traveling through Medford, be sure to stop by, it will be worth your time. Bravo, 38 Central and Ginni!

I want to give 38 Central a great review, but I just can’t bring myself to do so. It’s a cozy place with tasty, reasonably priced (for fine dining) food. Compared to local Medford offerings, it’s your best bet for a fine dining experience. So, 5 star dining by Medford standards.
All that said, compared to the standard it sets for itself – with it’s classic décor and fine dining menu – the food is neither exceptional nor memorable.
It may just be my personal preference but the taste of main ingredients, at least in the handful of dishes I’ve had, is disguised under too rich or too complex sauces. The food is cooked perfectly, it just tastes… well, like food.
Still, I’ll keep going to 38 above all other Medford options. The owner also seems like a good guy and I’m happy to support his business and the Medford economy.

3.5 stars.
The first night I came to 38, they were shutting the kitchen down early so I only got a quick feel for the place. It was nice. Despite being only twenty minutes from closing, the service was excellent and I didn’t feel at all rushed. I sat at the bar area and was very well attended to by an incredibly friendly bartender. He had my order turned in before the kitchen closed and had it out to me in no time. I got a salad and flat bread, but they were both good. I often find myself craving salads when I am away on business trips, and the one here was one of the better ones I’ve had in Medford. The shrimp and pesto flat bread had a good, thin crust and tasty pesto. Why it is on the appetizer list, I don’t know. It was the size of the plate and was definitely meal sized with an appetizer price.
I visited again with a coworker and had a full dinner. I had the mini Beef Wellington and it was way too rare for me; I had to send it back to the kitchen. It was still a little too rare for me, even after a second go with the stove; but I should have been more specific when ordering since it is a dish that should be fairly rare. The rest of the food was good. They have a nice wine list. The service was attentive, but a little slow at times. My coworker enjoyed his food. The price for a full dinner for two was not cheap; but seemed fairly reasonable for the food.
This establishment is on my shortlist for restaurants in the Medford area.

This place is totally overrated. I went with a friend for our birthday celebrations as we’d heard positive things about this place and were excited to try it for a special lunch celebration. Big mistake.
First, the ambiance leaves a lot to be desired. It’s obvious they are aiming for «warehouse industrial minimalist» loft space, and that’s admirable they are trying so hard to look like a big city hipster joint; too bad they are in Medford. Ultimately, the design fails as it’s too sparse, the curtains are cheesy, and the art is too small for the huge walls they hang on. Also, this place is drafty and cold temp-​wise, which i guess gels well with its intended ambiance? Experience Taroko in Ashland to see a more successful «industrial» design scheme that doesn’t feel so cold.
Service was barely noticeable.
Second: the menu. WTF. Menus consist of xeroxed pages affixed to a silver clipboard. Wow, edgy, huh? More like pretentious, obvious, and annoying. Right off the bat, my dining partner and I were put off by the menus. Then, try reading them! Poorly spaced, bizarre boldface, unclear item descriptions. I have never been more confused reading a menu in my life. I was not happy during this process, more like pissed off and put out. The one thing that was clear? The prices, and boy are they outrageously inflated for what you get.
Food? What a disappointment for the inexplicable prices. We started with the pork belly and apple slaw appetizer. The pork belly was burned; I’m not talking lightly, I’m saying it was charred to a black crisp– inedible, terrible-​tasting, RUINED. We mentioned it to the waiter who did not offer to comp us, but instead offered to bring out one «piece» of pork belly that wasn’t burned. It came with 4 pieces. Gee, thanks for offering one morsel correctly cooked instead of replacing the whole dish or comping us for it. The slaw was amazing. It’s a pity the main protein was destroyed THEN served, ruining the entire dish.
I got the lunch special: salad, sandwich of the day, and dessert. The salad was fine, a generic house salad with double mustard vinaigrette. The sandwich was deviled egg on ciabatta. It was underwhelming and a total disappointment. Squeeze Inn, Deli Down, Downtown Market, Buttercloud all have one thing in common: they make an infinitely better sandwich than 38 Central. The dessert was pot de crème. It tasted like it should.
My dining partner asked for the dessert menu– all desserts are $ 8. Really? For a tiny pot de crème? What a joke. I can go to Downtown Market or Buttercloud and get the biggest cupcake ever made for $ 4 and walk away feeling it was money well-​spent on a large portion. 38 Central insults the diner in exactly this way– it pretends its better, classier and hipper than it actually is.
Bottom line: don’t drink the Kool-​Aid– go somewhere else!

The server was the only one on shift during lunch time, but he had great knowledge about the specials and products the restaurant offered.
We picked two of the daily specials as our meal choices and a friend got the 38 burger with bacon. We shared everything and was delighted in how tasty everything was.
We all left satisfied and full. The food was excellent and would visit again. The lunch specials were amazing and had something for everyone.

Outstanding. The service was top notch, and the food was wonderful. Our waiter must have been the owner. He was very knowledgable about their sources, ingredients, etc, and obviously took greatride in their establishment.
We went there with the intent of having just a few small plates since we had had a big lunch a Bambu. OK. We were overwhelmed by the menu. It all sounded so good! So we got the flatbread, mussels, beef wellington, and ceasar salad. Talk about overordering! Wow. But, we packed it all away, incredibly.
The bread they serve is wonderful. Obviously homemade, artisan style, with BODY… multigrain, crisp, chewy crust, moist interior, a few seeds throughout. Outstanding, and so much better than the insipid white baguette at other places.
The flatbread is paper thin, super crispy, really a pizzetta. Spread with super flavorful pesto, thick tomato slices, and sprinkled with cheese. Awesome, and my husband’s favorite dish of the evening.
The beef wellington were impressive. I was expecting a true appetizer size, and with filet thought we might get some cute bite sized morsels. Not so! Two generous, crispy, light puff pastry-​wrapped filets, cooked perfectly with flavorful mushroom duxelles and a hint of foie gras. Yum. Definitely split this appetizer!
The Caesar salad was very good too. Pretty much a whole romaine heart (you cut), with lots of homemade super creamy dressing (a little too much for me, but my guy thought it was perfect), and made to order buttery croutons.
The mussels are a star menu item. Wow! A pound of shellfish, stuffed with hand chopped garlic and chorizo, in an incredible sauce, with more of that tasty multigrain bread to sop up the juices (a must, so yummy!).
I was too full for dessert, which was disappointing. Those sounded great too, albeit a bit heavy (it is winter, though, so understandable).
Menu sounded fairly kid friendly (ours would have gone for the mac and cheese and flatbread if they had tagged along, along with a few other items).
Good value for the huge amount of food we received. We will be back!

I found 38 Central on Unilocal and thought it would be a great place to try because of all the great reviews. The food was pretty good. Though I was kind of bothered that it wasnt uniform. My husband and I both had salads to start our meals and while they were suppose to be the same, they were quite different. while he had a cucumber in his i had an onion on mine. My husband and I ordered both ordered the filet, and that was absolutely amazing. The smashed potatoes tasted as though they use coarse salt or even kosher salt, which made it amazing. The same problem i had in the salad course followed through dinner. The size portions of smashed potatoes were noticeably different, and the vegetable side was not the same on our plates.
I felt a bit neglected at times by the staff, but overall the experience was pretty good.

We were passing through over the holidays and wanted a good restaurant without having to backtrack to Ashland. It appears this is the ONLY foodie place in Medford, so that we were thankful for. The space is beautiful, contemporary and hip. We opted to sit at the bar because it was on the early side and the dining room felt a little too open and empty. Our server Jennifer was excellent and made a perfect martini. Nice wine list with fair prices. The food was excellent — we had mussels, farmer’s salad, seared tuna and the mac & cheese — memorable! There seemed to be some food inventory issues with no brussels sprouts or blue cheese for the salad — pretty common ingredients. The couple next to us at the bar wanted more of the wine they were drinking, but none was available chilled — seems like management could use some tightening up on these things.
A 2^nd note to management (having managed fine dining for a # of years) — your front of house should be tidy & neat. The host stand served as someone’s personal desk with all kinds of papers, bills, staplers strewn all over — looked really sloppy and took away from the elegant feel. The bar was also very cluttered with all kinds of bottles and displays on top of bar and the work area by register was a mess. May sound irrelevant but it reflects poor management and when you are charging what you do, everything should be polished, polished — people want the whole experience!

David, the restauranteur, is a Napa-​native who has transplanted to Southern Oregon and created an oasis in downtown Medford. He is innovative in the menu items with a focus on seasonal, local and sustainable ingredients. I went on the «lighter» side tonight with the Golden Beet Salad with Pan Seared Goat Cheese, Toasted Almonds and Orange Vinaigrette. But, the last time I was there I indulged with the Duck Confit Quesadilla and Alaskan Halibut. All were out of this world. The small plates and wine pairings are a steal at $ 8-​$ 12. The wine list is thoughtfully put together with small producers as well as tried and true favorites to create a list that showcases anything from local Vermentino to a value Spanish Tempranillo.
You won’t find a better dining experience in Medford.

I’ve been quite fortunate to travel this great country and beyond… dining in some of the best places and some of the well…“not so much”. Walking into 38 on Central takes me back to some of the best places I’ve been. Folks often say, it’s Medford. I say yah… so what? David Graham’s passion for the art of gastronomy is clear. His love of people and their experience in his restaurant is «crystal clear». From the moment you walk in you just know its going to be a memorable experience.
38’s menu features local flavors (e.g. Rogue Creamery Cheeses) and many of our local wines despite David’s Napa roots. I love to start with the Quesadilla w/​Duck Carnitas (fried) w/​Plum Sauce. Its sweet, succulant, and has enough flavor to intimidate most of the Mexican restaurants in town. Another favorite appetizer of mine are his Flat Breads. Especially the Pesto, Bacon, Tomato.
As far as their soups. David told me some years ago that he didn’t beleive in «Soup DuJour» (Soup of the Day). He believed in Soup of Yesterday. He makes his soup and lets the flavors «marry» for one day before serving.
Their salads are fresh and vibrant. I love the Chopped Salad.
For the main course, I love their steaks. They are perfectly cooked. Their «all grown up Mac’n’Cheese» is a sophistocated throw back to your childhood comforts.
Desserts rotate from time to time… but will not dissapoint.
They do accept reservations. But, if you do have to wait… Sit at .the coolest/​most sophistociated «bar» in town and enjoy some of the best drinks in town, often featuring local organic spirits!
Please check out 38 and support the great restaurant and the heart of downtown Medford.

I have been coming to Southern oregon for work for quite some time now and I never knew this place was here! I looked on Unilocal for a decent place to have dinner tonight and settled on 38 Central, thinking– «at least I can get a decent drink there. It is probably a mediocre steakhouse, but whatever…». I could not have been more wrong!
From the moment I walked in I felt at home! David, the owner, was on crutches– yet still waited on me hand and foot the entire time like I was his best friend. The food was… astonishingly good. And just for checking in I got a free appetizer.
I started with a bourbon and ginger which he made with homemade ginger ale. Thank God I got a decent drink, right?! I hate that sickeningly sweet crap you usually get.
Besides the free appetizer, I ordered the special salad, which was butter lettuce with citrus and avocado; and the crab cakes appetizer as a meal. The salad was fresh and good, but probably the least exciting item of the meal. The crab cakes were absolutely delicious– lumpy with crisp veggies and crispy panko yumminess on the outside. They were served with a small amount of spinach and delicious roasted corn that set off the crab with a delicious smokey-​ness.
For my wine with dinner David let me try 3 different whites. I settled on one called Pomelo, from Cali. Grapefruits are one of my favorite fruits after all.
Finding this restaurant was a stroke of luck. David is passionate about the food he serves and after all his years in the industry, still cares about what really matters– the customer. So many chef/​owners lose sight of one simple fact– make the food taste good and make the customer feel at home. I think Medford is extremely lucky to have a place like this. I hope you will give it a try if you are in the area.
Oh, and 5 stars is very rare for me AND I never write reviews this quickly after the meal. I had to run back to my hotel and write this immediately while it was still fresh in my mind.

I travel a lot and I eat at lot of different places. 38 central is a great restaurant if you’re in mood to sit down and eat great meal. This is actually one of my favorite fine dining restaurants in Medford. They have a rather small menu, something I actually enjoy. The owner and the chef comes out and talks to you. Tuesday nights are ‘bring your own wine’ days.
Things I like about this place:
–Great today’s soup of yesterday
–Cold soups are killer
–Duck confit quesedilla
–Burger
–Scallops with kinoa
–fresh seafood
–filet
All in all an awesome place to eat.