Portabella — Restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea

I was looking for a place near my stay at Monterey and was recommended this place by a friend. It took about a 10 minute drive from Portola Hotel in Monterey. We came around Saturday night evening and were surprised that it wasn't overly crowded. Granted it might have to do with the rainy weather in the area, but it worked out for us. Upon walking in, we were greeted by the host. It has a very homey and romantic vibe to it. Definitely a great place to catch up with friends and family or a cute date night spot. During the middle of the meal, they had someone playing the guitar and serenading the guests. The owner came and introduced himself to all the guests, which made the dining experience all more personable. Service was top notch and we never had to wait on the servers for anything. Also, a honorable mention is the pesto sauce that comes with the complimentary fresh bread. As soon as we dunked our bread in the sauce, we couldn't stop!! I'd love to come back here again to try their other delicious dishes.

|| L O C A T I O N / P A R K I N G || -Located on Ocean Avenue near Camel City Hall -Plenty of street parking. We came around 6 p.m. on a Saturday night and because everything around it was closed, it was pretty easy to find a spot. It might be different during the day when all the other stores are actually open.

|| F O O D / D R I N K S || Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio - You could tell how fresh the beef tenderloin was by the vibrant red color. I liked how there was enough arugula and cheese to go with each slice of beef tenderloin. If you want a light appetizer, this is a good one to go with so you don't ruin your appetite before your main dish.

Pasta Alla Carbonara Dinner - Honestly everything on the menu looked so good. I was debating between this one or the Mushroom Risotto because I love anything with mushrooms. Seeing how so many fellow Yelpers rated this dish highly, I decided to go with this choice. This dish honestly has everything I like: the mushroom, bacon, cheese and my favorite kind of pasta. The pasta was at al dente, the perfect amount of chewiness. It was such a rich and savory plate that I definitely couldn't finish it in one sitting (although I really wanted to). Even when you reheat it up the next day or so, it was still as good as when I had it in the restaurant.

Pan Seared Scallops - My friend got this dish and he told me it was pretty good. The scallops were tender and all the flavors meshed well together. There were no leftovers from this dish.

Hibiscus Gimlet - Contains Tito's Vodka, Housemade Hibiscus Syrup, Fresh Lime Juice. I like how they fill up your drink to the brim. I know this for a fact because I took a couple of sips and I managed to spill some on the table (I wasn't buzzed at that point!). The drink was pretty strong which I find pretty rare whenever I order any...

I’d love to say our experience at Portabella was a five star one. If I was rating the food, it might be. The bartender? 100%. The ambience? Well, that’s tricky. The place is charming inside. Tight? Yes. But cozy and inviting? Absolutely! Unless you’re talking about the bar. That’s uncomfortably tight. Impossible to set down your handbag without resting your feet on it. Also impossible not to jar your fellow bar-mates when you attempt to get off your stool. REALLY impossible to eat a meal there. Which is probably why my daughter and I were offered a seat there as there were “no tables available” by a gentleman that I have to assume was the owner. Interestingly enough, there were many tables available. It was puzzling, but we thought maybe there weren’t enough servers. My daughter wanted to leave, but I said let’s stay- it will be fun! Then we saw the bar. Definitely not the kind of bar people that can hold salads and entrees and drinks and desserts without a giant mess. The bartender was really friendly, and took our drink orders promptly. While he was preparing him, we decided we didn’t want to enjoy our dinner on about 30” of space. So when he served them, we told him we’d decided to enjoy drinks and appetizers there and take our entrees and desserts home because it was just too cramped. It was just a short walk and we knew we’d be more comfortable there. He was so kind, said he understood, and took our orders. When he came back a few minutes later, he said they actually had a table available. We thanked him and said we were going to stick to our plan. We were chatting and enjoying cocktails when the owner approached us, asking if we’d like to move to a table as one had become available. We politely declined again. As I said, there were several tables of multiple sizes available when we arrived. It seemed pretty unrealistic that so many parties would cancel at the last minute. Knowing we were taking our meals home, I doubt the bartender was trying to get rid of us. That leaves the gentleman who basically said “there’s no room at the Inn but the stable is available”. The meal we brought home was delicious, and if I were ever to visit again I’d order the bolognese, it was fantastic. My daughter loved her short ribs. And the pecan tart is not to be missed. But we won’t be returning. As we were gathering our things, my daughter said “We are never coming back here”. And I’m sorry to say, she is...

TERRIBLE SERVICE and EXTREMELY RUDE! By the way, We still pay 15% tips! My husband and I have lived in the U.S. for decades, and we recently brought our family—who traveled over 12 hours to visit California—to this restaurant, expecting a wonderful experience. Unfortunately, our visit was deeply disappointing due to poor service and unacceptable behavior.

From the start, the staff member with the shaved head was rude and disrespectful. He shouted at us from across the dining area to place our order in an environment that was already loud and chaotic. When we struggled to hear him, he taunted us and condescendingly spelled out words like “water,” as if we couldn’t understand.

The worst part came when we discovered a curly black hair hidden at the bottom of one of our dishes, tangled in the sauce. When we informed the staff, the same person dismissed our concern with, “What do you want me to do?” and claimed, “Everyone in the kitchen is bald—there’s no way it came from us.” His tone was accusatory and unprofessional, offering no solution or apology. When I suggested it could have been dropped during serving, he continued to argue and deflect responsibility, rather than address the issue respectfully.

To add to this, the overall service lacked the attentiveness we had experienced in our previous visits. No one came by to offer the usual touches, like shaving cheese or grinding pepper at the table, which we had enjoyed before. When I brought this up, he sarcastically dismissed it by saying, “You got your meal, so what’s the problem?”

The final incident was the most shocking. As we were leaving, he knocked over a glass of water that spilled onto a baby in our group. He didn’t apologize or try to help—he simply walked away. This level of indifference and lack of accountability is unacceptable.

We have visited this restaurant multiple times in the past and had positive experiences, but this visit was so upsetting that we will not be returning. I strongly recommend against bringing family or guests here, as the staff seemed to treat us poorly simply because we appeared to be a group...