Marco’s Café and Espresso Bar — Restaurant in Portland

Oh my gosh these people running this place deserve a gold medal I am telling you. It is my 35th birthday today and so I made a reservation for my husband and my daughter and I to have a late brunch. They seated us right away even though there was a huge wait of walk-ins they had to shun to do so (dudes make a reservation literally anyone can sorryyyyyyy). They asked for our preference of table and they cleaned one and sat us politely and promptly. I'm actually here right now only posting the review so soon because I am watching four people literally run this restaurant effortlessly and even take the time to clean every single menu in between services. As a veteran of the service industry I am super impressed. I also just witnessed these two old Southwest gray hairs yell at this poor server for seating us prior to them and got to listen to her elegantly respond that we had a reservation. They were not pleased and they have asked for 10,000 ramekins of random sh"$ and complained about 10,000 things in the literal 14 minutes I've been sipping on my bloody Mary. Dear server I am sorry that so many [rich entitled d"'+hol3$] people in southwest Portland are the absolute worst. But eff em BC you are doing a great job and making my birthday super special so I love you and this bloody Mary is really great. Like...

The Good: The food is good. Staff is friendly. Ambiance is light and airy, with colorful, decorative umbrellas lining the ceiling. They have a full bar AND a coffee bar.

Gluten Free/Substitutions: They have Gluten Free options listed on the menu, including gluten free breads and hamburger buns for sandwiches, and some items can be made gluten free upon request. Staff is helpful in accommodating gluten free/customized meal requests. Be aware, there are up-charges for Gluten Free bread, substituting a salad in place of fries, adding avocado, etc.

Favorite Dishes: Bistro Burger with Avocado & Cheese (Paleo folks - ask for it on lettuce), Chicken Cobb Salad, Betty's BLT (Gluten Free bread available)

The Bad: They recently changed the menu and prices went up significantly. The happy hour menu and appetizer choices in general are minimal, with few gluten free choices. The restaurant gets packed and sometimes you have to wait a while for a table. The parking lot is small, so sometimes you must find street parking in already busy/crowded...

We were greeted kindly at the entrance, which gave a good first impression. Unfortunately, the service from our waiter was a bit dry—not rude, but definitely lacking warmth or enthusiasm.

As for the food, my partner ordered the corned beef hash. He found it quite plain and lacking flavor. While the poached eggs were cooked perfectly, the hollandaise sauce—an extra $3—was tasteless and didn’t add much to the dish.

I ordered the Marcos Burger, which was basically a plain patty between brioche buns, with a couple of thick tomato slices and a burger sauce that was maybe a 2 out of 5 in flavor. Cheese wasn’t included and cost an additional $2, which felt a bit disappointing for what was already a rather underwhelming and over price burger.

The highlight of our visit was definitely the drinks. I had the Café Brian, which was delicious and felt fancy—one of the better parts of the experience.

Overall, not a terrible visit, but not great either. Good drinks, okay food, and service that could be warmer. We probably...