Colosso
1932 NE Broadway St Portland, OR 97232Phone: (503) 288.3333
Located in: Northeast Portland
BarFly's Review of Colosso
An enchanting blend of old-world elegance and hipster chic, Colosso has long been known for note-perfect cocktails (everything from Pimm's Cup to Sazerac) as much as the candle-lit, art-strewn, helplessly-romantic decor, and the tapas kitchen ranks among the region's best. Equally appropriate for happy-hour mingling, apres-cinema boozefests, or, in one of the semi-enclosed booths, a memorable encounter.
$2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close daily, all day Sunday.
| Colosso's Happy Hours | |
|---|---|
| Monday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Tuesday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Wednesday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Thursday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Friday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Saturday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine 5-7pm & 11:30-close |
| Sunday | $2-6 menu, $5.50-6 specialty cocktails, $3 drafts, $4 select wine all day |
The most insanely slow, snottiest service in town. Note to staff: ordering dressing on the side of a salad is not a "special request" worthy of attitude.
Personally, tapas are generally a delicious Spanish appetizer that you can share with friends. We were hungry, so we decided to order about $50 worth of Tapas and tried almost all of them. Here is the laundry list of what was wrong:
Everything too salty Everything had too much oil dripping from it Chicken undercooked Rice was dry Bread was burnt Shrimp/Sausage burnt or overcooked Service was slow (45 minutes)
The ONLY thing they seemed to get right were the mushrooms.
We were shocked at how HORRIBLE each dish was. I didn’t know you could ruin so many plates of food at one time.
Ok. Seriously. I had a really bad experience at this place and I tried one more time, regretfully. Coming from an ex-restaurant industry standpoint, they are completely understaffed, chaotic, unapologetic for terrible service. The blond girl was the only server and she was so in the weeds it was ridiculous. She had 20 tables so I don't blame her too much. They have no structure to serve well. It was the bartender and her and they were terrible. He talked so loud it was embarrassing. And everyone was coming up to the bar to get menus, wonder where their food was, order drinks, trying to pay..and let me tell you, everyone was really pissed off. The owner of this place needs to do something. Hire more staff, close sections of the restaurant if you can't wait on that many tables, put a manager on, do something! The food and atmosphere are so great there, I would hate to never go back. But I might not.
The food and drinks are good here, but the fact that I waited 30 minutes to even be spoken to was ridiculous. I literally sat at a table for 30 minutes last saturday night. No one said hello or gave us menus. Finally we just got up and left. That place is lame and I will never go back.
I live close, so I may be biased, but Colosso has always been a good standby for introducing new friends to town. The food and drinks are always fantastic, and we love the boudoir-like atmosphere. Sometimes the service can be a little snotty, but this is P-Town!
Great bargains between 5-7 p.m. Relaxing vibe, low lights, house bloody mary a spicy meal. Recommended if you have time to meander.
It took forever to get a table, but it was worth the wait. We enjoyed several of the fun Meow Meows and Crisis Panties before heading to our table to sample all the goodies. I would recommend this place, but not if you are in a hurry. Very relaxed, dark, moody place to hang and get your buzz on.
The peppery pomegranate cocktail is indescribably delicious, and the pourers are pretty. Horns up, indeed!
Nice dark, dark place with good food and hottie staff. The tapas are great and cheap. Decent strong drinks with lots of interesting house specialties. (Stay away from the house Manhattan though. The funky-ass mascarated bing cherries they use are nasty.) Nice date bar and nice sidewalk seating in summer. The primary caveat to this joint is that it's packed with pretentious yuppie scum most nights, so beware.
The drinks & food are delicious, and they frequently show wonderful art from local artists. You can't go wrong with this place.