The Corner Room

Excellent service and food each and every time I visit. The owner gave my wife and I free prosciutto once, and was really nice to speak to. The service is top notch, and the food is all made in house. If you’re looking for a place to have a nice dinner, check out the Corner Room (or any of the Rooms). We will definitely return.

Overall a great experience! Highly recommend this place! Great food, amazing freshly made pasta and some of the friendliest staff in Maine! Highly recommend the meat/​cheese platter as well as the short run crêpe! Would def come back :-)

I’ve heard that this place has some of the best Italian food in Portland so of course I had to try it. We went during the Old Port Fest and were surprised that there was plenty of seating available. The hostess greeted us and set our table rather quickly. The menu was focused on brunch but they still had plenty of other options, including their house-​made signature pasta dishes.
We ordered the Porcini Mushroom Arancini Gemelli with Kale and Pumpkin Seed pesto. The Arancini (stuffed rice balls coated in bread crumbs and deep-​fried) were good, they had a nice crisp on outside and a risotto-​like center. The Gemelli (twist shape pasta) was really good as well and you could tell it was house-​made. The pesto was a unique combination but worked really well, a bit bitter, but overall great!
We didn’t have dessert but will definitely be back to try their french toast!

My boyfriend and I came here for dinner on ⁶⁄₁₂ after attending graduation at Merrill Auditorium. As usual, the food was excellent. We shared the fried squid, and also had the chicken parmigiano and the prosciutto and arugula pizza.
Service was terrible, despite the fact that the restaurant wasn’t nearly full. Our waitress didn’t bring us bread until we requested it, didn’t offer parmesan cheese, never served our second round of drinks, and ignored our table for at least 10 minutes after we were finished. Thankfully she realized her mistake and corrected it on the bill.
We love your food! Next time we hope you deliver on all aspects of the dining experience!

Disappointing.
The place has a great atmosphere, charming setup which makes it very promising. I’m sure it would be great to just have drinks. The food was really disappointing. The pasta did not taste homemade, even though it said so on the menu and the sauce was more oil than anything. The pizza… Not sure what that was. And for the food we had we definitely paid way too much.
The place has the basics (location, atmosphere, drinks). Now they just have to get the food part down…

Average at best. Went for an early dinner, with the place mostly empty. Hostess was very disinterested in seating a single diner.
Service was very slow and wait staff non-​attentive. 25 minutes for an app. No refill requests. No… anything really.
Food was okay, not bad but not great either.
Although just average, gave it two stars for being overpriced to boot.
This restaurant comes across as a place that’s trying to cash in on the «foodie» atmosphere. Problem is they don’t quite pull it off.
Movin’ on…

Went for lunch on a recommendation from a local shop keeper. Place had many tables open when we arrived, yet we were told there was a 10 minute wait. Not sure why. Ordered house special cinnamon sugar donut. Disappointed as there was way too much sugar and very little cinnamon. Very heavy as well.

Seriously good Italian food. Not crap american Italian, but Italian food. Simple pastas… expertly made. We split a penne pasta with homemade garlicky sausage. Also had a mussels appetizer. Best mussels I personally have had and the beer steamed mussels from Hopleaf in Chicago are my standard.
We sat by the prep area for the pizzas and appetizers and everything looked fantastic. Will definitely return.

We walked by during the day, I saw the menu and instantly knew I wanted to come back later for dinner. They serve fresh pasta! The food did not disappoint. We ordered two salads, garlic bread and he ordered the hangar steak and I ordered mushroom and papardelle. Everything was delicious! My papardelle was sooo good. I would definitely be coming back next time I’m in town.

How can you go wrong on a Friday Happy Hour!
$ 3 Wine!!! And a spread of bar food that can rival some meals on many restaurant menus!
We travel to Portland from Montréal every year and never miss a chance to come in for some drinks at the bar before dinner on a Friday night.
Love this place!

Although I gave this restaurant a 5 star review back in ’13 I will tell you that last night the better half and I stopped in here for date night and were pleasantly surprised with the fact that is was restaurant week throughout the Portland area.
So, this review is based on the menu items and the restaurant week menu items that we had.
Started off ordering a St. Pauline’s non-​alcoholic beer for the wife and a Bissell Brothers tasty beverage. For appetizers we dove into the fresh board of bread with dipping oils and then noshed on some bruschetta that was covered in mushroom tapenade and smothered with a bubbly hot cheese and lathered in fresh garlic and was TO DIE FOR (This was from the restaurant week menu) We also got an order of the fried calamari that was light, delicious and refreshing sprinkled with some friend peppers that my wife could not get enough of. (Regular menu item)
We then opened our gullets for some pretty amazing dishes with my wife rocking the fresh margarita (sp) flat bread pizza that she LOVED covered in garlic and basil and not smothered in cheese or sauce Napolitano style. (Regular menu) and I dove head first in a chicken cacciatore that sat on a tasty bed of polenta with a not too overpowering balsamic glaze and was light and refreshing although the chicken was a thigh rather than a breast for that tasty flavor but may not sit well with people who only partake in the white meat chicken variety. (Restaurant week menu).
After all of this we still saved just enough room for a restaurant week menu dessert and this is the only part of the meal that fell short for us. It was a bourbon walnut cake and we were so looking forward to a moist and decadent cake and it was more like a walnut biscuit that was super dry and had a bourbon glaze that was drizzled over the top but the dryness of the cake-​biscuit took any moisture out of the plate so we were fighting each other for any of the glaze.
The waitress was outstanding working the crowd, and if you have been to the corner room you know how crowded it can become, she was attentive and friendly and outgoing with us on our date night.
As I stated before in 2013 this place is the bees knees and it has not changed for the worse in 3 years and is still one of our favorite places to go to for some Italian fare with some lighter alternatives and an ambiance that is fun and authentic.

Amazing, I had the fettuccine bolognese. I work in restaurants and this was one of the best pasta dishes I’ve had in my life. Five stars. Good job guys, and Caite and Molly were so inviting and polite

This was my first time at the corner room and I got the spaghetti and meatballs. The spaghetti was fresh and paired with a strong flavorful sauce and tender meatballs throughout the dish made it the best spaghetti and meatballs I’ve ever had.
If you get a chance to try it, I suggest you do so.
The bread was the freshest focaccia I’ve ever had that I didn’t even know the crust was supposed to be soft and supple. Their bread is freshly made every day.
As for the service, nothing but exceptional service. Very nice, polite, follow-​ups, water/​bread replenishment without waiting long at all. Everything was quick and smooth as ever.
Overall a 5 star experience making me feel great.

I’ve been to the corner room before… but my first review. First, I’m a fan of all the rooms and have given four stars to each… but not without subtle areas of improvement to each.
I’m a bar dining guy… so, as with many Portland fine dining places… you can sit at the bar, engage with the bartender, and people sitting to your left and right, and enjoy… which is my preference.
The corner room has a nice, amply portioned, build your own charcuterie platter… which is my go to for splitting a great appetizer. Six or seven selections of salumi, and equal varieties of artisan cheeses. Great portions, great selections… we had di Parma prosciutto, coppa, and sapresetta salami, with three goat, and bufalla motz cheeses. Very good quality and value. Nit pic… you needed to ask for thin toast wedges and grain mustard, and fruit jams… that should accompany any $ 25 charcuterie plate… simple add.
I had a small plate pappardelle pasta with wild mushrooms in a cream sauce. Delicious… perfect el dente noodles with oyster and other wild mushrooms in a delicate savory sauce. Perfect rustic Italian fine dining…
The wines by the glass were very good value… I had two $ 12 Nebbiolo and Chiantis… they were both excellent.
The cannoli and coffee for dessert was excellent also.
Very solid meal… not overpriced… nice menu… plenty of good food at fair prices for your money… the eight small and large portion pasta dishes all looked great.
4 stars… solid dining…

My boyfriend and I had an amazing dinner here on New Year’s Day. We hadn’t really made any dinner plans and were kind of wandering around when we decided to check if we could sit down at the Corner Room. They didn’t have any tables for over an hour (not surprising), but the host was super nice and recommended that we sit at the bar instead.
I started with a cocktail and my boyfriend had a beer — they had two Bissel Bro beers on tap, one that I had never had before. I ordered some of their homemade pasta — Garganelli. It was unreal — perfectly cooked and deliciously creamy, with squash purée, brussel sprouts, and prosciutto. It was also HUGE, and I ordered the small portion. I had more than enough for the next day.
The ambiance was warm and friendly, much like the Grill Room. Definitely a fan of their restaurants, and would definitely come back for the homemade pasta.

I came to the Corner Room for Sunday brunch and was impressed. Due to the holiday season, the restaurant is filled with festive décor making the place cozy and full of holiday cheer. The staff was helpful when we called ahead to find out the the approximate wait time. We ordered the Duck Prosciutto Bruschetta as an appetizer, brioche french toast and the frittata. Since the duck bruschetta is a main dish, I was surprised by its small serving. The brioche french toast was something else– the orange hazelnut butter and maple syrup combination really hit the spot. Definitely not something you would find anywhere else. On the other hand, the frittata was average. I had to take away one star from my review since the wait between our appetizer and main dish was unexpectedly long. Gotta keep the dishes coming along! All in all, great service and good prices!

If I could brunch here every day of my life I would. Fantastic service, a colorful menu of options ranging from breakfast all the way through a hardy lunch fare, diverse drink options, oh and eggs Benedict with prosciutto. I’m a sucker for prosciutto. While not outrageously priced for Maine, it was more than I’m used to from the Midwest.
The place itself is cozy yet hip. Has a sort of Italian mom’s kitchen feel but without the overbearing mom watching you eat. The people who do this restaurant have others and I would really like to try them. That being said, it will be hard to top the food and ambiance of this location!

I visited this establishment as a +1 to a dinner event. The restaurant is a bit dim but we were near the windows while there was still sunlight so not too big of an issue. Open kitchens are always fun to watch but our view wasn’t really conducive to get the experience. Waiting for the lone restroom wasn’t ideal but I suppose when you’re in a small space something has to give.
If you’re fluent in knowledge regarding wine, they have a sizeable wine list I didn’t expect. Unfortunately, I lack the skills to know any difference other than red and white. The dinner menu was a bit pricey for a non-​working grad student ($ 15+), but they give you enough food for leftovers which makes it slightly more bearable. The spinach ricotta pizza I had was very good and I really enjoyed the flavor combination. My friend’s pasta was okay, but I feel that if I ordered that I would have been disappointed.
Service was very good during the whole experience. The exception being the waitress not being too thrilled about having to split our check 10 ways after bringing us a combined one. Lack of communication at its finest.
I would be willing to go back now and again for special occasions or to try them for happy hour or brunch.

REVIEW OF HAPPY HOUR ONLY!:
My girlfriend and I decided to check out The Corner Room because we heard such good things about their happy hour (4pm to 6pm Monday-​Friday in the bar area only). You cannot beat the drink specials during happy hour. They offer $ 3 glasses of white or rose wine which you really get about 1.5 servings of because they pour you a glass and then set down a cute little decanter of the wine next to your glass for a refill! You can also get $ 3 glasses of prosecco and $ 3 draft beers. I had two prosecco’s and a rose wine. Loving it! Now for the real winner. FREE FOOD! We munched on pepperoni pizza which was thick and doughy like I like it, they also had veggie pizza. They had two different types of salads, which were just okay. My favorite items were the fried polenta bites and diced up potatoes. Delicious!
I’m seriously tempted to come back everyday for this happy hour and fill up at dinner time. The bar area has limited seating, but we came early during happy hour so we were able to sit right down at the bar. My only issue and the reason for docking 1 star were the fruit flies! They were everywhere flying around us and flying around our wine glasses and food. We kept having to wave our hands in the air to try to push them away at no avail. Clean up the pest problem and 5 star happy hour hands down!

This was our first time here, it was a Sunday so we went with brunch. The hostesses were super nice greeting us at the door, there was a little wait so we opted for two spots at the bar where a very friendly bartender greeted us.
I was kinda underwhelmed with the number of brunch options *insert sad face here* We both ordered the eggs benedict, much to my surprise upon getting our meals there was no home fries or side of sorts?! I guess I should have read the description better, I just assumed something else would come with it aside from the typical eggs benny fixings. Anyway, after I got over the void that was left by ordering a brunch dish with no home fries (or any side at that matter) I dove into the eggs benedict. The prosciutto made the whole thing super rich with salt, it was a bit much for me. It didn’t leave me that full either, which made me long for home fries again.
I’ll probably skip on brunch here next time, $ 12 for two slices of bread, two eggs, some prosciutto, and sauce don’t sound that appealing to me again.