Hostel Cafe — Restaurant in Portland

I live close by & have been coming here for many years & have always had great service & good food.

In the last 8 months, I have been managing life-threatening health issues & was recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease. The severity of my autoimmune disease now prevents me from eating at restaurants that are not dedicated gluten-free, but I missed this place so much since getting sick, I insisted that my friend who was visiting town meet me here for lunch today.

I came in with a salad I packed from home & some cookies from Trader Joe’s down the street, while my friend ordered two entrees (one for herself, & one to bring back to her husband). Because I love(d) this place so much, I wanted to be sure to personally support them just as I always had despite my new health limitations, so I ordered a large matcha & grabbed a bag of gluten-free chips as well. When we came back to our table, there was a sign saying “Reserved” & we were asked not-so-courteously to move by the owner (?). The only available seats now were outside, so we grabbed all of our things & settled into a table out there. A few minutes later, the owner (?) came over to our table & asked that we move AGAIN because they needed to “leaf blow”. Then she asked about my “outside food” despite seeing that we were clearly paying patrons. Embarrassed, I tried to explain my condition to her but was not met with any empathy. She said she would offer to let us sit somewhere else but it was for hostel guests only. So we were practically kicked-out as there was nowhere else for us to sit. I have never had anything like this happen to me before, it was so awkward & unkind. My friend was forced to box up her meal before she was finished & the bag of chips I bought from them turned out to be past their ‘best by’ date so I had to toss them! What a bizarre experience. I will not be coming back,...

a group of buddies and I recently frequented this cafe for our brunch spot. some of us ordered lunch, others brought their own food & ordered coffee/dessert. leading up the event that solidified us never going again, the staff would give us dirty looks as we entered or left, one even made a snarky comment when we walked out the door. nonetheless, we made the mistake of going again because they had ample seating in the back for our group of 8. the last time we came I stood in line for the longest time while the manager was on the phone, neither her or the other staff even acknowledged me. I'm not a sensitive person but I did feel uncomfortable as some of the staff just stood watching me as I waited. Anyways, no big deal. fast forward to when the manager brought some of our orders. she introduced herself and told us they didn't allow people to bring in their own food (we looked around and several people had Tupperware lunches with their coffees. it's a HOSTEL) but she said nothing to these individuals. she said she would let it slide that day, but that we needed to "clean up after ourselves." i mean excuse me?? I have never been told as an adult that I needed to clean up after myself... I could understand if we had ever made a mess, but we made sure to leave the place cleaner than we found it... (I mean seriously, we are all clean freaks, I even wiped the table with honest wipes once) the staff is obnoxious, and rude. you are better off going to the World Cup across the street, their customer service is...

I had previously had nothing but pleasant experiences here but today, for some reason, the person working came up to me and (1) asked if I was staying at the hostel (which is not a rule; clarified that you can still eat at the cafe if not staying there); (2) requested that if I’m going to be “using [their] wifi and taking up space at a table” that I buy something from the cafe. I told them I was planning to buy something after eating my wrap (which I was). The one valid point here is that I was eating outside food which is evidently not allowed (have also done this there before). But this I understand. I am a community healthcare worker and have come to this cafe several times in the past as a safe space to use the facilities, grab a bite to eat, and write my notes in between sessions. I buy something from the cafe every time I’m there. Let it be known that I was the only black-presenting person sitting in the space and the only one approached and spoken to in this way. This really rubbed me the wrong way, especially the unnecessary language around me staying at the hostel (which was irrelevant) and “taking up space”. I will unfortunately not be visiting or recommending this...