Matador North Portland — Restaurant in Portland

I go to many of the locations very often for lunch, impromptu meetings and happy hour hangouts. Matador really has some of the most consistent experiences that Ive had in most of the PNW. This one is the closest to me. I usually never have a bad experience at Matador...at any location. The food is always consistently tasty, and the service is normally amazing. There is a manager at this location who is just always a delight to see. He's pleasent, kind, and welcoming. I usually see him when I visit this location. Definitely worth trying...everything is good...to me. Excellent tequila and some mezcal options.

Today was the first time I've ever felt slighted in anyway at Matador. Today, I went in for a bite. The bartender, i think Devon, seemed okay until her friends came in. Once her friends came in she stayed at that end of the bar communicating with them and serving them diligently. I don't mind the friendship drop pass/friend love bombing but it was the lack of attention the remaining people at the bar, including myself, received. She couldnt be mindful of people even trying to get her attention because of the loud conversation and how engulfed she was with her friends. I asked her for very little and she seemed bothered. I hope this will be a one time thing because they really do have amazing atmosphere, food, and...

I went in the night before the Christmas eve, when a lot of places are closed. I opted for Matador because I never have a bad experience there, but this was my first time visiting the north location.

They didn't disappoint.

The food was delicious, well made, and served quickly, as always. Matador restaurants have one of the most consistent kitchens in Portland and they always turn out quality food.

My server was friendly and outgoing, even though it was just before close on a night before a holiday. He was accommodating to dietary restrictions ad he even made us laugh. What else can you ask for?

The atmosphere, although not quite as cozy as the more closed-in, velvet-draped NW and Burnside locations, still met my expectations for a Matador. Warm, cozy, dark (in a good way) and with their signature fire pit. The North location has a glass front wall that's more exposed than other Matadors. Maybe they'll add some of their signature red velvet soon.

All in all, each Matador location I've been to is a solid pick, with delicious food, a great happy hour, and an intimate atmosphere perfect for a date night or post-party wind-down. The North location is...

We went here for Mother’s Day and birthday celebration. Food was prompt and very good. Our server Troy however was not very personable. Made us feel like we were an annoyance. We had to ask for refills every time and he told us that it would be 20 mins for dessert before we even asked to see a dessert menu. Then when we paid I our bill he didn’t ask us how things were or to have a good night or anything. He just left abruptly. We asked for a copy of the receipt. When he came back he said “oh I noticed you didn’t give me a tip”, did I do something wrong?” We told him that we did tip the 18% button and it was $8.82. He said “oh it must have just been a mistake and it didn’t click right” and then he walked away. We looked again at our receipt and it wasn’t even ours! So not only did he rudely state that we didn’t tip him, but he was accusing the wrong table of not tipping him. We had to ask for our actual receipt which did show the tip and just said “ oh sorry it was there I was looking at the wrong receipt” and just walked away. Unfortunate because we really like coming here and commented that this location was so much nicer...