Domaine Serene Wine Lounge Lake Oswego — Restaurant in Lake Oswego

It was our 12th anniversary and with 2 young boys, my wife and I rarely get out anymore. Pressure and expectations were high. We've been to the winery in Dayton, however neither of us had been to the restaurant in Lake Oswego. We both knew it was a gamble.

Parking was a little tricky in the area at 6PM on Saturday night, but we eventually found a spot. Upon walking in we were greeted promptly by a friendly hostess who showed us our table. Our waiter was friendly, attentive, but not helicoptering. Wife ordered the Old Fashion while I requested a Manhattan. It was a perfect, textbook Manhattan but I told him I prefer Black Manhattans when I can get them. He said he would check to see if he had Amaro, which he did, and came right back offering to make my next one. Meanwhile, my wife’s Old Fashion was a little sweet – which means she loved it! However, because I mentioned that I thought it was a little sweet, he made her a 2nd one! The waiter was over-the-top trying to ensure we were satisfied. Our experience was already exceeding expectations. To be honest, my wife and I were looking at each other stunned after the better part of two years enduring lack-luster service and performance during These Times of Covid.

We ordered a salad and oysters to start. Both were delicious and finished in their entirety. We enjoyed our time drinking cocktails, reflecting on 12 years of marriage, and not even concerned with our main courses.

Before the main courses were delivered, the manager, Kevin, came to our table and sincerely apologized saying they had somehow messed them up (I forget what was wrong with them). Before we could say anything, he said our main courses would be free!? I told Kevin he didn’t have to do that. We were having a great time and hadn’t even noticed our they were taking long. But he insisted.

The main courses came to our table in less than ten minutes. It was not a long wait.

This was some of the best tasting and satisfying cuisine I’ve had anywhere in the world. My dish was rather simple: Wagyu steak frites with truffle fries. The steak was cooked medium rare with crispy light layer of char. Truffle fries may be impossible to screw up, however, from the first bite I knew these were the best form of them I had ever had. We ate every last one.

My wife was the real winner when she ordered the Pan-Seared Chicken. This dish featured potatoes dauphinoise, haricots verts and a shiitake bacon crème sauce that was criminal. The chicken was seared to a scientific perfection I’ve never experienced. It’s that rare combination of time and temperature where the skin gets crisp, but the meat remains inexplicably moist, and you’re left pondering: Is steak superior?

I’ve had experiences like this where every bite/sip of your meal is heaven. It’s usually with French cooking and as it turns out, that’s what the chef of Domaine Serene specializes in.

We paid our check and were about to leave and try one more place when we decided… why would leave that place? Where else would we go that night that would be better than this? We ordered another round of cocktails and talked to Kevin a little longer and finally told him it was our 12th anniversary and were so thankful that he and his team at Domaine Serene gave us a perfect night with perfect food and drink.

I tend to be overly critical but for both me and my wife to be floored like that on such a special night with such high expectations, it’s really saying something. I can’t recommend Domaine Serene in Lake...

The wine lounge itself is nice with a romantic vibe to it. Definitely overpriced in comparison to other wine lounges/wineries I’ve been to. However, the overpriced wine is not my complaint here. My friend and I went one Thursday evening and got two of the wine flights($40 each). When we were ready for our check, the host said that the credit card machines were down and he’d need to write down our credit card information to input it once the machines were back up and running. My friend and I were extremely hesitant(didn’t have enough cash), but the host said he promised our information was in good hands. We wrote down the card information and he confirmed our total would be $80 for the two flights. He also had us write down our phone number because he said he would call to confirm the amount before charging it(we never received that phone call). We gave him a cash tip so that we would could confirm the $80 charge only would show up as just that on our credit card. A couple days go by and we checked our bank account to find that the charge was not $80, it was $94. My friend immediately called the wine lounge to speak with the manager and let them know of the discrepancy. The manager told my friend that they tacked on the tip since the machines were down. I was honestly so shocked to hear this. My friend told the manager that we specially gave a cash tip so that they charge would be $80(which was confirmed by the host before we left). The manager completely brushed off my friend until he finally said they needed to refund him the $14. He relented and gave a refund in that amount. I followed up with an email to domaine serene because I was so upset that this happened. I’ve worked in hospitality for many years and have been in a similar situation with cardholder information and would never dream of using it to add on an extra tip! For full transparency, this is the email I wrote: “ It’s extremely disappointing that the person who helped us charged an additional tip to our card without our knowledge. We confirmed the total as $80, gave our card information and paid a tip with cash. To be told that a gratuity was tacked on without our knowledge, which is not your practice to do even if your credit card machines are working, is not only in poor taste it is illegal. I hope you do not just brush this incident off with the employee like you did over the phone when we had to call for this erroneous extra charge.” I received an automated message saying I would receive a reply within 48 hours, but after almost a week passing by and giving them a chance to actually address the situation, I decided I would write a review in case this happens/happened to someone else. They wouldn’t tack on a charge when the credit card machines are working, so why would they act like it’s ok to do it when they are not working?? Extremely...

A friend and I visited this location a couple of days ago. This was our second time visiting - the first time was just for 1 glass as we stopped by before dinner at another establishment. We chose to visit again to be able to spend more time at this wine lounge and really get the whole experience. My friend and I weren't familiar with the wines on the menu so we asked our wine expert for a recommendation. She proceeded to recommend two different options explaining the notes and differences in taste between the two. We had a taste of each and made a decision. During our stay we had five glasses total. When the bill came, we were in complete and utter shock. The total for the five glasses of wine was $245 - each glass came out to be $49. In our experiences at various wineries in the area, the wine experts at these establishments typically offer clear pricing information and recommend a bottle when guests plan to have more than one glass. Especially because after our visit, we learned through our own research that a bottle of the wine we chose to drink that evening was $185. Much less than what we spent for glasses. There was an extreme lack of transparency and felt as though profit was prioritized over ensuring a positive customer experience. To make matters worse, we sent an email to this location and received no response whatsoever. The customer service is extremely disheartening and speaks volumes to how they run their business. I would advise that the wine experts learn how to be transparent and honest with guests, especially when they have made it very clear that they are new to visiting the winery. We are so disappointed and will not be visiting Domaine Serene, at any...