Noble Rot

How broken hearted was I to log into Unilocal today. to start back on some bookmarks I had saved. and see the word CLOSED across the title of this one…
Even tho I am in California now. I still think of my experience at Noble…
It was one of those date nights… you want to try something new. so you start searching on Unilocal for reviews… enough of my friends had reviewed the place so I thought… Ok…lets go…
Off we went… Arrived to a beautiful location. warm tones really brought out the wine drinker in me… the staff was friendly… had plenty of suggestions and well… I honestly dont remember much else…
All I do remember. is how much wine I had. and how I left feeling like it was all worth it.
I wish I had posted my review sooner… I am glad I keep notes on each of these things… but yes… broken hearted to see that word CLOSED posted up there…

Noble Rot has moved to the old Rocket location. I like the ambiance here. Nicely laid out and great view of downtown Portland.
The food approach here is «a small number of dishes, well prepared» and they generally succeed. There is enough assortment for anyone to find something they will like if you are willing to be a little adventurous. You can still get a pear sidecar which Rocket did so well.
We had the Salt and Pepper Sole appetizer which was on special and very good with a tangy sauce.
I had the broiled sirloin which was nicely cooked to my specification but unfortunately was quite tough. Still flavorful though so I can’t really complain.
My wife had the Mac and Cheese which was good but not exceptional.
The «Peanut Butter and Jelly» desert was excellent. A bread pudding with blueberry sauce and topped with peanut butter ice cream — delicious!
For first-​timers, there is parking on-​street or in the CODA lot around the corner.

Decent place. Somehow, they manage to make what’s basically a wine bar much more inviting to someone like me, who does not consider himself a connoisseur.
Lighting just right.
Service friendly.
The food is good, but since we’re talkin’ about being on the edge of fancy with this place, we’re also talkin’ pricey. I might eat here if I were on a first date with a pretty girl. But I wouldn’t walk over and grab dinner here on a Wednesday night unless I was looking to walk around one Jackson lighter and hungry.
No vegan options on the menu, the girlfriend would like me to note.
A great place to go at the end of an early night or at the very beginning of what will be a late night.

We’ve been to Noble Rot a couple times, and the food is generally good, but not amazing. Prices are also pretty reasonable. The service and wine flights however, are much more iffy.
My husband ordered an $ 18 flight of 3 reds from a single French winemaker. All of them were thin and too young, and one of them would probably not have improved with age. When this was mentioned to one of the servers, he responded with a lecture indicating that my husband probably didn’t know what to expect, but also stated himself that the wines were meant for aging (they were all from 2006, incidentally).
Though the server spent 5 minutes condescending to us, he made no offer to bring something else or remedy the situation or even offer an apology.
While it is entirely reasonable for a restaurant not to take back a bottle of wine simply because someone does not like it, it seems rather stingy to offer an expensive flight of wines that your own staff indicate may be too young to drink, and not to offer an alternative when someone truly does not like them. It isn’t as if the wine was opened for our table, at most they’d have been sacrificing 6 or 8 ounces of it.
So while Noble Rot is generally a decent place for a bite and a glass of wine, I’m giving them two stars for attitude and stinginess.

If you’re ballsy enough to name your restaurant after a «benevolent form of a grey fungus» and assume that you“ll still garner loads of loyal diners, than hats off to you, I say. And I said it over and over throughout my meal.
A garage-​turned cozy wine bar, Noble Rot pulls off fine dining with a casual wine bar twist (the twist being no pretension and fair prices).
Some dining notes: yes to the cheese plate. While I initially scoffed at the lack of options and extras… I’m a sucker for a date or four… by my second bite I was convinced that I was getting a steal for $ 12. Both entrees were lick-​your-​plate good, and this is definitely a «save room for dessert» establishment. My one regret was not sitting in the main dining room. While I did not feel ignored by any means, the back dining room seemed to be an afterthought to the bustling atmosphere of the main dining room.
A refreshingly approachable menu and wine list mixed with an atmosphere so romantic that you could fall in love with a box of cereal, Noble Rot practically earned its stars even before a bite was consumed. Licking the plates certainly sealed the deal.

I’m going ahead with five stars for Noble Rot. It would have been a five stars without any caveat if our original waiter had not gone off-​shift mid-​meal. He was wonderful, but his replacement was bizarre.
The replacement didn’t come around to see if we wanted dessert after our dinner plates were cleared. He just sort of flitted about the restaurant with his arms folded and his eyes off into space. So we gave up on dessert and curtly flagged him down to get our check.
He seemed sheepish about ignoring us, suddenly walked to over to the bar and then brought back to our table another party’s check where somebody had written «Neutral Milk Hotel is Gey» (sic) across the bottom.
I didn’t know who/​what the heck «Neutral Milk Hotel» is, and he wanted to be sure that we weren’t offended by the waitstaff’s joking about the comment. Well, we hadn’t heard anything and accepted his profuse apology. Subsequent research at home revealed that Neutral Milk Hotel is an indie band that had it’s heyday in the early 90’s. The restaurant must have been playing their music (maybe that was the angst-​riddled grungish music we heard).
But let’s talk about the food. Awesome. The menu is compact featuring only a few dishes.
We started out with the garbonzo bean soup. This was exquisitely good. It seemed to have been drizzled with an oil that had been steeped for a long time in some delicious seasonings.
We also ordered the pork and the chicken. Both were heaven. In particular, my chickend had this delightfully tangy mustard sauce and came with some veggies that were interspersed with these nice little bits of pork.
Both dishes seemed delicately prepared with loving attention.
As a plus, they had beer (including a very good pilsner) in addition to all their wines.

Perhaps the most overrated place in Portland.
I had high expectations for this restaurant after having heard wonderful reviews from co-​workers. Sadly, this place failed to live up to my expectations as it disppointed in almost every possible aspect.
Service – When we arrived, we were greeted with a heaping portion of pretension by our waiter. He corrected my pronunciation of the wine and scoffed at another member of our party when they inquired if an entrée was large enough to share (to whit, «This isn’t Applebees»). While he was adept at condescension, he had a hard time paying attention the ’”service” aspect of his position.
Atmosphere – Given the prices at Noble Rot, I’d imagine there’s enough money to spend on a ceiling fan or air conditioner. Any dining experience is going to suffer when the meal is served in a sweltering environment. Our party couldn’t wait to leave.
Cuisine – It’s been mentioned elsewhere on this page that the portions are small and the prices are high and while this is true, it wouldn’t be a detriment if the food were excellent. I’ve been to plenty of restaurants where each expensive, albeit totally worthwhile, bite was tantamount to eye-​rolling ecstasy – this is not that sort of place. The food is by and large mediocre with some standouts. We really enjoyed the olives and cheese plate, however the rest of our meal was totally unremarkable.
Beer and Wine – I very rarely drink, so I’ll have to defer to other members of my party’s experience. The quality of the beer was highly regarded and wine menu is extensive. This was the only positive feedback I heard at the end of the evening.
In conclusion, if you’re going to bill yourselves as a fine dining experience and charge accordingly, you might concentrate on the more gracious aspects of the trade, primarily not putting down customers when they’re paying upwards of $ 300 for what amounts to tapas and beer. Likewise, create and deliver a menu that justifies prices and the discomfort of your dining room.
Edit: And lest the restaurant think that it’s properly catering to «true» connoisseurs and only disappointing the hoi polloi, Noble Rot managed to alienate a chef and a number of self-​proclaimed foodies in our party.
I would not recommend this establishment nor will I ever return.

A nice try, but the delivery was luke-​warm. I had a first date there, and we shared a flight of Pinots, some apps, and 2 entrees.
The famous onion tart was not amazing as some reviews had said. The dinners were small for the price, and I felt not a good value.
I’m not cheap, or unwilling to shell out for great, chef cuisine. This place did not live up to the hype, and I won’t be going back.

I came here with 14 friends and had a wonderful dinner.
The wines are very reasonably priced and all of the wines that we ordered (we had 6 or 7 bottles for the table) were wines of character — they seem to do a very good job in picking wines for the list.
Now, the important stuff — the food.
I ordered one of the specials of the night — the beef cheeks. It was very good — braised like short ribs so it just fell apart like butter. I tasted from friends’ plates the bread pudding and the BBQ pork — both were good.
I would recommend anyone who wants a nice light meal with some fun, new wines to go to Noble Rot.

I have since dined many more times at Noble Rot. Several of them in the upstairs private dining room (which is really cool on a nice night) — and I can say that it has been really, really good each time.
The one thing that I have realized since then though is that I am a little annoyed by the wine and food portions. I always feel like I am getting less than I paid for…
Better for private dinner upstairs — and buy a bottle not a glass of wine.

Love the idea of this place.
Affordable flights of wine from all over the world, rotating out on regular basis. Cozy booths and a warm, pretty bar. A nice, accomodating wait staff.
But the execution isn’t quite what it could be. The food alternates between being too simple or too precious and the portions seem small for the price tag. Also, out of six pours, none of the wine I had really blew my mind… even after telling the waiter about my love of bold, peppery reds.
I’d go again, but wouldn’t rush back nor make this place a regular weekly stop.

My first time at the Noble Rot, per a friend’s suggestion, and I honestly felt like, «This is not what I was expecting, but everything I wanted!»
The list of «Best I’ve Ever Had» grew log rhythmically here for the following 3 items had in one sitting:
1) Australian Shiraz by Nine Stones. Bought a bottle, it was so good. Smoky, crisp, perfect balance. I want to drink it every day and I just might!
2) Mac n cheese. I have a long list of good mac n cheese plates in Portland, but this one topped them all: creamy, fondue-​like cheesiness (tasted some ricotta in there, too) with giant rotini (I mean, one piece per fork-​full), topped with crumbly goodness and baked in a ramaken. This is cheese heaven!
3) BBQ Pork. Is it a tenderloin? Is it a rib? I don’t know and I don’t care. It’s so tender, you put your fork in it and it just sticks to it, without hardly lifting your arm. Once it’s in your mouth, it literally melts. So good!
The butter lettuce Noble Salad was fantastic, too, but beware: this salad is a large portion and is better when split between two people. All other portions seem properly sized for one person.
Service was casual, friendly, and on point. We were not rushed, yet neither left to wait for anything. Prices were reasonable, especially for the high quality. Vibe was cool and casual. Some cyclists came in for a flight, totally sweaty and whatnot, and they fit right in. Good music playing, too. We’ll be back soon, since we didn’t get around to dessert… gotta try that goat cheese cheesecake with huckleberry sauce!

Flights of wine… what a wonderful thing!
The ones at Noble Rot are very reasonably priced, and my pours were generous. I like being able to try a few, then pick my favorite for a full glass.
The staff here are SO NICE, and if you sit at the bar, you can watch your food being prepared. Our cheese plate was very good, and (unlike some PDX restaurants *cough-​Nostrana-​cough*) they give you nice big hunks.
I will definitely go back.

ooooh! so yummy.
This place has a great set up and cool bar. I like how you can watch them make the salads and prepare the food.
I got the endives salad and cream brulee. The salad was magnificent. There are large red beets in it. Probably the hardiest beets I’ve had in ages. The cream brulee was alright. I think the problem was that my wine didn’t taste good with it so it had a bit of a funny taste. that’s my fault though.
Staff was really nice and they’re all really good looking too! I’ll go back there for sure

My lady bought me dinner here on my birthday (I know she reads these; I love you, baby!).
Man, what an experience. The joint is confused… It’s a modified garage (not that modified) with an upscale menu. The bar is crowded with wine-​snots or those cleverly passing for them. The kitchen is fairly compacted, but not obnoxious. The dishwasher is actually at the END of the bar in full view, but it doesn’t seem to detract from the place.
The wait-​staff was awesome, and helped me pair up my meal perfectly. The duck was a PERFECT seared rare, the sauce not too sweet (though I would have preferred the spaetzle to be seared, more like gnocchi, less like dumplings). The serving size was just enough to fill you up but leave that echo of wanting.
Even the dessert was good. Huge brownie with homemade ice-​cream? I am so there.
The place does have a few draw-​backs. Namely in size. It is a bit drafty too. And while the staff is awesome, they aren’t overly attentive. I wish there was a comparable place in Seattle, but if I was living in Portland, we’d go there at least twice a month. Likely more.

PLUS: great flavors, onion tart good, black cod was good but that is basically what was on the plate, would have been nice if it came with a lot of veggies, or mashed potatoes or something… good pinot noir wine flight
Minus: small menu, I left hungry still and woke up really hungry.

While visiting Portland I had a friend take me here. What a great choice. It’s definitely off the beaten path, tucked away on a side street, but these are usually the best places. It has a great cozy, neighborhood feel. Everything I had here was great and since it was a Tuesday night we pretty much had the waiter to ourselves. He had some great knowledge on the wines and made us feel right at home.
For food I started out splitting the cheese plate and the onion tart (which I recommend), then moved on to the goat cheese stuffed artichokes for the main course. don’t forget to throw in some wine here as they have some great flights and excellent selection of bottle. I’ll definitely make it back over there next time I visit.

I’ve been to Noble Rot multiple times and always fall back in love with this little wine shop/​restaurant. Not the easiest to find, but _​definitely_​worth it when you do.
Obviously, they have a nice, approachable wine selection (house pinot noir for $ 5 is a steal) and the food is amazing.
Large well-​balanced salads, delicious fish dishes and an onion tart that leaves you wanting more. Friendly staff is the topper on the whole experience.

When my fiancé and I get hungry we get growly, fiesty, and occasioanally cast spurious remarks under our breaths at each other. We had attempted Kens Artisan Pizza at 5:30 — packed with a line, so we doubled back and hit this place up. I believe the best choice had then been made.
We were seated super quick in the back. The lights from the Christmas tree twinkled down upon our ravenous mouths as we were greeted by our friendly waiter who was quick and informative with the order getting.
We got the cheese plate starter (and had to pay for the bread?!) but the cheese was a varied and tasty selection. For the main course I had the Hanger steak with polenta, so good! The steak was medium rare, the polenta with au jus was creamy and the bread sucked it up wonderfully. My significant other, who I was liking more and had become more attractive ordered the lamb special. I don’t usually like lamb (think Lisa Simpson) but good night, that lamb was delish. Cooked in such a way that it was butterflied, sautee’d, re-​rolled in it’s fat, and roasted.
A decent selection of wine, and PNWy special desserts to tempt your palate. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the stark hunger, but this place was a definate 5 stars. The portions were a bit on the small side, but the price reflects that. I can see it getting busy in primetime, but a wait is worth it.
Ahh, so friendly to a pair of jackals.

Located toward the South end of the popular NE/​SE28th Ave strip, Noble Rot is a nice small place to have a glass of wine and eat a variety of tasty small plate meals. The wine selection is very nice and can be a bit pricey by the glass, but they do sell by the bottle some retail selection toward the back of the restaurant. There was a corkage fee of $ 7 so this leads me to believe that you can bring your own bottle, but that was not confirmed.
There is outdoor seating on the sidewalk, but mind the birds over head. We were sitting and the couple next to us moved their chairs a bit do to «bombs» from above. I had to laugh because over head were a few crows and all I could think of was the Windex commercial where the crows were messing with the guy. Sometimes I wonder if birds don’t do thing on purpose.
But back on course — Of the few times I’ve been there the food and wine have always been consistent and very tasty. The staff is very friendly and helpful. whether it is a romantic date or dinner of one, I recommend it.