Rialto Pool Room — Restaurant in Portland

Wow, what a change from the golden days! I used to come to Rialto in the early 2000s and was excited to see it is still going. I have many good memories of playing pool and hanging out in a friendly environment. However, after making a special effort to take my girlfriend here I don't think I'll come back again. We were initially denied entry to the venue for lack of identification despite being in our late 50s and clearly not anywhere near 21 years of age. The rather unfriendly bouncer cited Oregon law as the basis for us needing to show ID, which is not actually the case (don't let any bar tell you otherwise! See Oregon statute: OAR 845-006-0335). ID is not actually required unless you look under 26 and bars must only exercise 'reasonable judment' when letting people into their venues. It's just lazy to ask everybody for ID and I think it's counterproductive given the dire state of the hospitality industry. If they want to pull this stunt as a house policy they should just say so and not fob it off as a law. I had to run back to my hotel to grab my license and run back again for the privelege of entry. Ok, that rant over but there's more. The overall vibe of Rialto was just dark and heavy. The bartenders had zero personality, like nothing to offer in terms of being welcoming and the music was super loud heavy rap/hip hop - which I don't dislike but it just went on too long. It was on for the whole hour we were playing pool. Also, it astounds me that a tip is suggested when buying drinks or playing pool when the staff don't do anything remotely resembling good service. For instance, when the pool table became free one of the bartenders came around with the balls but the only two tables next to the pool table were completely covered in the mess that the previous customers had left. It's just common sense to clear these and make them ready for the next paying customer. We had to clear one of the tables ourselves just to make room for our drinks and food. As far as I could see, the bartenders were camped out behind the bar and not doing any kind of clearing at all since there were several tables in a similar state. We decided to cut our losses and leave early, which is a shame since we had planned to stay longer, spend more money and generally have a good time. The second star is for the Beyond Burger, which was good, but we can get...

This year they really hit the ableist nail on the head. One of our party has a visible disability and another had an injured knee. When their smoking area seats filled, one of our party sat down(against wall, directly next to our seat, not in walkway). After she started texting while smoking they came over and decided her sitting meant she was belligerenty drunk. She immediately stood up and let them know she was fully cognizant and just needed to sit for her leg but they would ONLY speak to the abled bodied male in our group. As someone who works in this industry, I completely understand not wanting passed out individuals outside or in the bar but no one in our group was even close to anything like that. We were all chatting lively while our ground sitting friend played on her phone. They told us to either leave or call a ride if we're going to be sitting outside. We informed them our ride was 10mins away(showed them the uber was on the way,as they requested)and thats why we had come outside to smoke from inside their establishment. They then said "oh well nevermind you still have to leave." We spent the next 10mins with 2/3 of our group in excruciating pain in front of the bar instead of comfortably in our seat because apparently you can only have issues with your body if your drunk. Couldn't possibly be from our very obvious physical issues. The fact they would only speak to the male in our group while speaking about our other group member showed me all I needed to know. They even told him he was fine to stay but the girl with the bad knee needed to go. Mistakes happen but they continued to push it. Wouldn't recommend coming here if you're disabled because they will treat you like you're stupid and drunk and will only speak to your abled bodied companion. Even when we'd let them know and they could clearly see we had people with (permanent)physical issues, they just said it makes them look bad. Glad to know having disabled patrons is a "bad look for our bar" Apparently we're only acceptable when we're inside spending money but the second we step outside to have a seat and wait for a ride, we're no longer valid in...

The Rialto is more than just a pool room it's also a sports bar. There is also a separate gambling room where Off Track Betting and live poker are available. If you choose to play poker be forewarned that the play is fast, for me at least it is very difficult to keep track of things like the small and big blinds, what the beds are and neither how much is in the pot. The chips are just flying in. I haven't attempted to join a game yet because I don't want to slow down the play, as I am the slower and more deliberate player. They have an area that I haven't been into yet call the Jack London Bar where they have live bands and other acts that vary each night. The cover charge for these bands can be anywhere from $5 to as much as $30 depending on how popular and well known the bands are. The staff at the bar and the servers in the dining area are very friendly, helpful and courteous. It is no chore at all to want to tip the servers more then the average I often leave 30 to 40% sometimes even more. The menu is limited but everything on it is delicious. There are multiple televisions around the pool room and dining area that played mostly Sports. Just ask your server or one of the other staff if they will change the TV channel in your area to a different Channel or sport and they are more than happy to do so. I would recommend this place to anyone over 21. There is also a place that is part of the Rialto called Arthur's Diner that is accessible from the pool room but is separate enough that minors are allowed. I believe from opening to closing although it might only be until 9:00 or so. Arthur's is where they make the food that is served in the Rialto proper. The Rialto has a little something for almost everyone....