Po' Shines Cafe De La Soul — Restaurant in Portland

Oh my goodness! I loved this place. This was our first visit to Po' Shines, and I enjoyed everything about it. We went for lunch. It was, maybe, half full of customers. We were greeted immediately and given menus and told to sit wherever to decide what we wanted and to order at the counter.

We had a variety of items- mac and cheese, hush puppies, fried okra, cornbread and blackened catfish. All of it was fantastic. A few highlights:

The cornbread was not overly sweet, not like a dessert cake, but really well-balanced. Really good.

The hush puppies were delicious, fried perfectly with small bites of jalapeño. Yummo.

The fried okra was fresh and crispy. It clearly was made fresh and hadn't been sitting around. Excellent.

The mac and cheese needs explanation based on other reviews. It is not the creamy kind. It is the kind I have made for years, it is cheesy and rich, but no gooey sauce. It was also piping hot when it was served. It was exactly what I like, and I enjoyed it immensely. Fantastic.

The blackened catfish was, literally, food of the gods. The generous portion was fresh, flavorful, moist and perfectly seasoned. The spice was exactly the right level and cooked exactly right. I didn't order it, and had entree envy for the rest of my meal. Sublime and memorable.

We wanted to, but didn't, get desserts, but they have our favorites- peach cobbler and sweet potato pie, so next time. We did each have a sweet tea. Appropriately sweetened with a hint of peach.

Service was exceptionally kind. The timing was slower than fast food, but some of these dishes are clearly made as they are ordered, which takes time. The work training mission of this café makes me even more patient for the occasional service hiccup. The dining room was comfortable and conducive to having a conversation, so we didn't really notice how much time passed. The only change I would make would be to have a little music in the dining room, instead of just in the kitchen.

Before we even left, I texted friends to tell them how much we enjoyed Po' Shines. We will absolutely be back. A platter of breakfast dishes went past our table. It looked great too. I eventually want to try everything on the menu.

We will be back, and we're bringing others with...

Let’s start with the good first the customer service with the young lady was beyond amazing. She was pleasant, kind, very sweet. The potato salad, yams, brisket, bbq ribs, catfish dipped in the tartar sauce and sweet potato pie to die for must have.

Now the unsettling stuff😥 there was a woman who worked there working with a homeless woman across from our table which was not an issue at all until when our food arrived we didn’t even get to eat yet she says can I have some chicken? The worker did nothing to stop the homeless lady from requesting our food she just sat there. Also, while I was trying to box our food the homeless woman came back up asking for more chicken. Again not one working tried to stop the lady or even apologize to us about what happened. Now I understand there a homeless everywhere and I didn’t mind giving away food. But I don’t think having the homeless in a restaurant while other are eatings is acceptable unless you plan on feeding them up and making sure their full.

Next, it did take a long time for our cook to come and when it did we were unaware we were on a time limit and were rushed to eat our food. There was a male cook I believe crowed our table. It’s one to thing to do a table touch but to stand at our table talking with long pauses was weird I personally said thank you many times to give the hint to please leave was not okay. Also if you are closing at a certain time please stop taking tables in a reasonable time since it takes a bit to make the food. Or tell the guest we can make your food but we close at this time.

Food review: the Mac and cheese was just noodles and cheese on top not a fan of it, the chicken was just too much breading no seasonings at all, the catfish had no seasoning but was great with tarter sauce. The peach coddler was soggy and had a small piece of mold on top it of it not a great presentation at all.

Overall if you make a few adjustments this place...

This was a great experience, and I'm going to be effusive in my compliments and hope that Google Reviews doesn't flag this as some phony, inside-job review.

I am embarrassed to say that in my 20+ years in North Portland, I have eaten Po'Shines food only once before. This second time last week reminded me what I'd been missing: Delicious food, lovingly made, well presented, in a calm environment, with great service, at fair prices.

Ruby greeted me on my entrance, and our rapport was instant. Outside the restaurant was a sign-board advertising a fried shrimp poboy with bacon. Sounded great, tasted better. The shrimp was fresh tasting without any of that rubberiness that often accompanies overcooked mollusks. The breading was crisp. Speaking of which, the poboy roll had a crispy crust that shot off shrapnel crumbs before settling into a chewy goodness. The sauce hinted of a remoulade--some New Orleans deliciousness something or other. The portion size was generous; my wife and I split the sandwich.

The sweet potato pie was appealingly creamy with that root-y flavor coming through. Why do people like pumpkin pie so much? THIS should be your go-to for any Thanksgiving or non-holiday, mid-week table. Delicious. We added some Reddi-Whip to it, which we keep on hand in our fridge door. Highly recommend going this route--both having Reddi-Whip on hand and adding it to this dessert.

Ruby surprised me by sneaking in our to-go bag a side of potato salad that I didn't order, but should have. I don't know what the spice mix in there was, but it had a grassy/herbal quality that made it unlike any other I've eaten before. Very good.

I highly recommend Po"Shines, and maybe I'll see you there, because "fo sho," we...