Scotch Lodge — Restaurant in Portland

Wow the experience I had last Sunday on the 9th was something I have never experienced in any establishment in Portland. I have never had to write a bad review but with what I had to go through, it is much needed to let everyone know. We chose this place because of all the good reviews and since my husband birthday and he is a whiskey lover, we decided to give it a try but it did not turn out how we thought it would be.

I first called the restaurant beforehand to ask if they take reservations since I was celebrating my husband’s birthday which meant we were gonna have a large party, and they had told me they did not and it was on a first come, first serve. When we first arrived I informed the server of our large party coming and he accommodated with having us seated in our own corner and a part of the bar. Everything was fine at first and the server seemed to be happy as well until the end when we received our final bill. Our final bill totaled out to be $1286 including the server 20% tip . When our final bill came and we were ready to pay he told us that the bill is not finalized yet because someone from our party just order more drinks at the bar. He then proceeded to grab the bill from my friend’s hand who was still holding it and crumbled it right in front of us and left. We were shocked because we did understand he was the only one of two server on the floor that night, but his frustrations, irritations, and his attitude should of not been shown clearly in front of us. Continuing on, after he had crumble the bill he said to all of us that “You people should stop ordering food if you wanted the bill”. In what term term did he mean “You People”? I did not want to bring race into this part but out of everyone inside the lounge, we were the only people who was not white. As he continuing voicing out his frustration while also raising his tone and voice, my friend stepped in and ask why he was being so mouthy, and I asked what was the attitude coming from and asked for a manager. When the manager came it it was super questionable because of his attire and he gave no such introduction towards us and immediately started defending the server angrily. I voiced my concerns about the server giving us attitude and asked if he thought we wouldn’t be able to pay the tab. He then said “I wouldn’t have served you if i knew you didn’t have money” I was in shock and disbelief because this is not professional at all, especially from a manager. If this establishment did not accommodate large parties PLEASE advertise it!

I felt this review was necessary to voice how it is so crazy that discrimination and racial profiling also has to play in with it as well, living in Portland for half of my life NEVER have I experience something like this at any establishment. I felt like the owner/staff/establishment was making blant lies to justified or excuse their inability to provide good service and hide their racism that resides amongst their establishment. I and we as in my friends, families, colleagues, coworkers, and assoicates will never step in Scotch Lounge again! I will continue to copy and paste this review and post it on any websites available. No business should treat their guest in any way like they did to us and I will...

What a super cool place. You do not know where or what your are walking into because there is no sign. We circled the block before attempting to open a door for what we thought may be the place. Upon entering, you see a few steps and assume you should just follow the hallway. The path is lined with old school gadgets, like fire burning furnace. At the end of the hallway, you finally see a glimmer of life and are relieved, that after all you may be at the correct place. This place is very punctual and adheres to their reservations, and the host makes that very clear. Even as guests who had reservations, we couldn’t get a drink at the bar. We had to place the order with the host, who brought us our drinks while we waited in the hallway. The interior is so stunning. The decor and set up is very tasteful done. It has a speakeasy vibe with an absolutely beautiful bar. The staff is entirely males. The restaurant felt very private and exclusive. For drinks we had their Four Grain Old Fashioned, which was made to perfection. If you like whiskey, there's a huge menu of almost every whiskey you can imagine at reasonable price as well. The menu is not vast, thinks small plates, but what they offered is made well. We had their bread and butter. It was your basic small vague served with butter. Their arancini was very good. It’s served with an avocado cream. We also ordered their tomato salad, which was absolutely amazing. It was balanced well in terms of flavor and the pepitas were a pleasant touch. Our server Dan, was very attentive and was able to offer us options, given our dietary restrictions (we are vegetarian).

We wished we were staying closer to the restaurant so we could go back. When making a reservation, you can choose table seating or bar seating. table seating is in the middle of the small area and provides better view of the restaurant. there are two bar seating available - one facing the bar, which is the best, the other faces an open kitchen, which is the least appealing seats as your back is towards the...

I was really surprised and put off by the rude staff here. I visited this place because the Meetup group I was attending listed this place as the designated meeting spot.

To secure a table and grab a bite to eat, my friend and I arrived an hour early. However, I was not aware that reservations were required at this establishment. When we approached the host, he asked if we had a reservation. I responded with a no, and he informed us that he needed to consult with “the expert” to check for available seats. After a short conversation between the host and his female colleague , I assumed she would inform us of availability, but instead, she asked if she could assist us. This caught me by surprise, as I thought they had just discussed our seating arrangements. I said that there were two people in our party, to which she asked if we had a reservation. I explained my lack of knowledge regarding the reservation requirement, and she said that they do not accommodate many walk-ins and reservations are necessary. She offered to put us on the waitlist, and I agreed, mentioning that there would be a total of three of us. She informed me that the wait would be approximately an hour and a half. Understanding the situation, I accepted the wait time and mentioned that we were attending a Meetup group here. However, she seemed unaware of the event, which I presumed was due to a lack of communication between the meetup group and the establishment. I asked if we could sit at the bar and get a drink while we waited but that was reserved seating as well.

Since it was going to be such a long wait, my friend and I decided to go to Bar Casa Vale, located right behind Scotch Lodge. Despite the apparent need for reservations there as well, the staff was much kinder and they were able to seat us immediately. We had a great experience at Bar Casa Vale, with excellent drinks, food, and friendly staff.

Oh and the Meetup group ended up changing the location to Doug Fir down the street which was much larger and had a great patio to accommodate a...