Pine State Biscuits | Schuyler — Restaurant in Portland

Local fast casual breakfast chain, weighted heavily (literally) on the sandwich side of the menu. Pine State currently has a few locations around Portland, with more on the way, and this is the smallest. The kitchen does double as the company commissary so you can expect fresher food here. Also note: after 11, the dining area is shared with Sizzle pie.

The Reggie is the star of the Pine State menu: a hearty piece of fried chicken on a biscuit sandwich with cheese and gravy and bacon. You can also make it "deluxe" and add an egg for an extra charge. I find this unnecessary with chicken and bacon already present. There are additional variations on this sandwich, including one with house apple butter (yum!)

Main criticisms: This place is not built for dining in. I will state the same thing for all Pine State locations, especially on a weekend morning after 9. It gets stupid busy and there is very limited seating. This makes for a chaotic dining experience, because you order your food and then stand around hoping for a seat to open up before your food is ready. I suggest going during off hours (or just avoiding weekends) or taking your food for the road. It's already messy and travels pretty well!

Prices. This is mostly a problem for me because I've been eating here for several years. I remember the Reggie when it was eight bucks. As someone who works in the food industry, that's kind of my $$ ceiling for casual breakfast (especially if I need to come ready to fight for my seat.) Two years ago, when prices were bumped across the menu, shrimp 'n' grits (my other go to on the menu) went from $9 to $14 overnight. And so it goes, overnight, I stopped eating at Pine State.

While this place will not send you away hungry, I think there are better options for breakfast and for my dollars in Portland today. This place has become a food factory... For a few more dollars, I can have a great sit down brunch with table service. For the same price, I can go somewhere like Daily Feast or Byways Café or Kenny & Zuke's, still not walk away hungry, and, again, gain table service. I understand the concept of counter service, but once the menu hits a certain price, I'd rather be waited on. Maybe I'm just old fashioned...

I'm not a fan of writing bad reviews, but I feel it is my duty to let people (particularly people that are not from the area) know what they're in for. This place is wayyy overrated (similar to Voodoo), and have been resting on their laurels for quite some time. The portion sizes and quality have decreased significantly, yet the prices have gone up dramatically.

Yesterday, I decided to treat my lovely coworker on his last day of work. I ordered the shrimp and grits with bacon, cheese, and an over easy egg. I also got a corn dog for a special treat. He ordered the sausage biscuits and gravy. We've ordered from Pine State multiple times, and I was shocked to discover that the size of my grits container had been cut down by HALF. Attached is the size of the container and measley egg that $17.50 will get you. (I added the penny for reference.) They added 5 little shrimp, but that still doesn't constitute a $17.50 price tag. I have no idea what the strange, orange grease was, but it was so nauseating that I took the grits out and placed them in a separate bowl.

My friend got the sausage biscuits and gravy. The biscuits were not fresh, and the gravy was bland. It had a weird texture, and there was very minimal sausage. The off-gray color was not appealing to the eyes nor the palate.

The andouille corn dog was soggy on the outside, yet the sausage inside was way overdone. It was the weirdest corn dog that I've ever had; I didn't even finish it. However, the dipping sauce of honey and mustard did have a good flavor.

This is not the "down home cookin'" you're craving. I'm no foodie, but I know what good food is supposed to taste like. You want a no frills, hearty, delicious breakfast that won't break the bank? Try "Pig n' Pancake!" Sure, it's not trendy, nor is it fancy. However, I will assure you that you'll always be met with a smile, and your tummy will leave happy.

All in all, this experience was an utter disappointment, and I will not...

My husband and I were trying to get some food quickly before we headed out of town; so he placed a to go order and when we arrived to pick it up it was ready. I am in the third trimester of my pregnancy and was dealing with a lot of physical pain on top of being really hungry. When we arrived the dining room was mostly empty so we decided we wanted to eat there rather than being cramped in my car. The lady working the front counter was rude about this, glaring at my husband and then telling him it was okay for us to sit down in the dining room just for that day and if we came back another time we wouldn’t be able to do that again. We finished our meal (which was fine), and then I realized I need to open my Prenatal vitamin pack; I asked the lady at the counter if she had some scissors she could cut it with. She replied immediately: “No we don’t have scissors.” No interest in helping me or problem solving whatsoever. No willingness to even look. I then said, “I’m pregnant and I need to take these vitamins- is there maybe a sharp knife that can be used instead?” She again replied, “No, we don’t have anything like that.” Wtf… you’re telling me that nowhere in that whole restaurant is a knife? It was clear she was stressed out and just wanted all the customers to go away. The only reason this review has 2 stars is because the food was up to the standards we’re used to from Pine State. Customer service...