Caldera Public House

Wonderful atmosphere delicious food. Kevin and Becky great job.....We look forward to going back when weather warms up for the outdoor seating. Hopefully, we can go back even before summer....\r Just a comment to another review about going into Caldera at 10:30 when closing is at 11. People this is rude if you just went in for a drink fine but to have dinner how inconsiderate. Employees have worked an 8 hour shift by then they are ready to go home. Unless you can eat your meal in 30 minutes then fine. Otherwise it's just rude. more

I love neighborhood pubs, and this one is especially inviting with it's cozy booths, beautiful architecture, soft lighting and warm wood tones. My salad was delicious--the ingredients fresh and the added grilled shrimp were plump and flavorful. We sat at the bar and our food and drink arrived quickly. BUT!!!!! The bartender who served us did NOT reflect the warmth and invitation of the food and atmosphere. Yes, we arrived at 10:00 pm and Caldera closes at 1030. But 30 minutes ti' closing sounds like an open establishment to me. We were greeted with a look that said, ""oh sh--- customers."" And it didn't get better from there. My sweetheart and I made ourselves comfortable and tried to engage in pleasantries with our bartender--we weren't asking for entertainment, just expecting some common courtesy. It was all she could do to utter a monosyllabic response. She didn't know where her draft beer comes from, slammed things on the counter, and was clearly put out when we took her up on HER offer of a nightcap. At one point two other employees joined the bartender in changing the music which then went abruptly from loud to silent to loud again. Not the best for keeping the ambience. It was clear to me that this bartender is an employee, not a manager (if she is, owners need to reconsider that choice!) with little investment in customer service. Bartending is a service industry as well as a hospitality industry. This one needs some schooling on the hospitality portion of her job. We may give Caldera another shot, but not if that bartender is working. Food and drink are important, but when we are treating ourselves to a night out, bad service is a deal breaker. Cons: surly bartender more

Fantastic place to grab a burger, hang out in the beautiful outdoor patio, or relax upstairs. The waitresses are friendly and personable, and the menu offers a lot of low-cost options. They've recently started offering little buckets of fries or tots, too. Their daily specials never disappoint. Definitely one of my favorite places to eat in Portland! Pros: Outdoor patio area and new upstairs seating Cons: on-street parking more

What a wonderful neighborhood find! Had dinner there last week with a friend who lives a few blocks away and will definitely be going back. Our waitress was the sweetest and very helpful. Being a vegetarian she allowed me to order one of the burgers, sans the meat, and substitute egglplant. So nice. My only complaint -- the chocolate cake was a bit on the dry/stale side. I felt really comfortable and welcomed there. Like the outdoor seating. Pros: Welcoming bar staff, very helpful and friendly waitress more

We went there last night to meet up with some friends. The beer and outdoor seating is nice. They were out of some primary food items, but not a big deal except for the fact that it reduced the food choices by about 25%. The food I got (eggplant sandwich) was mediocre. \r \r I was mostly put off by their service and attitude. It's as if they were doing us a favor by serving us. Citysearch website says they are open until 10pm which apparently is an error. They close at 9pm on Sundays. Instead of telling us they were closing, they turned the lights off on us out on the deck at 915pm. If they had mentioned they were closing, we would have left. We thought their approach (turning the lights off on us) was rather rude. \r \r I might go back for a beer, but not for dinner and not for good service. What a disappointment. Pros: Beer choices, outdoor seating Cons: minimal food choices, minimal service more

Six of us have been getting together for dinner once a year for 19 years. We have all traveled many places in the world. Last evening we were delighted with the quality of the food and the ambience of Caldera. We appreciated the menu and would recommend it to young families as well as to older adults. The prices are also very reasonable and the servers were quite gracious. We're going back! Pros: We loved the historic building and its neighborhood draw. The servers were very kind. Cons: It's a little noisy, but that means people are having fun! more

I wanted to have a good time here as my foodie brother recommended the place but . . .\r \r Although the waitstaff was welcoming and quick to bring us the food we ordered, there were an obvious service flaw. Our waitress left her shift without notice to us and we were abandoned. I went to the bar and asked for an after-dinner drink and the person covering the bar handed me a menu and said to go sit down and decide.\r \r My food (which was a nice pork chop with a lovely salad) was satisfying as was my companion's but the evening was colored by almost 45 minutes of waiting for what should have been regular service. If it had happened at the start of the meal, we would have left. \r \r A woman at a table nearby seemed to be a regular and got prompt, attentive service. Pros: Nice building, cosy Cons: Distracted service edging on rude more

We were so happy when Caldera opened in our neighborhood. Very friendly staff, comfortable atmosphere, and a lovely back garden for warm evenings. The food is OK comfort fare, but they have not changed the menu since they opened! Please, Caldera, I beg you to offer seasonal menus -- keep a few favorites if you must -- but your neighbors will not keep coming back for the same 10 entrees. We appreciate the small selection of non-alcoholic drinks (a yummy French sparkling apple cider that they'll bring in a cute ice bucket if you ask). Pros: Pretty garden, friendly staff, comfortable ambience Cons: Same menu for the last 3 years more

...I agree, the service friendly but it is also VERY slow. It took 45 minutes for us to get our food and my poor fiance was still pretty hungry after he ate his hamburger and the very few chips they put on his plate. I loved the beef stroganoff, though the meat might be considered too tough by others. Nice dessert menu! \r \r The restaurant itself is charming and very fun to visit. There is a very comfortable atmosphere at Caldera Public House. \r \r Pros: taste, price, location, ambiance, friendly service Cons: slow service, small portions more

A beautifully restored little house on Stark St. on the side of Mt. Tabor, the Caldera is a sweet and intimate little pub with fantastic, hard-to-find beers that are worth making a special trip for. (Our favorite on a recent trip was the Slow Train Porter from Portland's Amnesia Brewing Co.) The warm wood and dim, golden lighting make this a terrifically cozy place for hanging out and getting warm in the winter. Caldera also has a wonderfully secluded little patio for when the weather is warm. HOWEVER! The food here is shockingly underwhelming, even bad. Other reviewers have noted this, and we can't believe it is still the case. While money and care were clearly spent on the decor and the beer selection, it seems nothing at all was spent on the kitchen. On our recent trip, we were served unbelievably messy, yet only lukewarm, poor boy sandwiches and burgers with half-melted cheese kind of falling completely out of the sandwich and ingredients flying everywhere. It's absolutely shocking - to have done such wonderful things with the location, yet to have done absolutely nothing worth remembering with the food. I mean, most people cook dinner at home better than this. Here's hoping they fix the situation, soon. Otherwise, I'm just not going to go back, not even for the fantastic beer. Pros: Awesome beer and ambience Cons: They really and truly can't cook more

The two owners clearly care deeply for this business. They are incredibly nice people and serve up some delicious meals in a very nice atmosphere. They fixed up the back deck and when it's warm outside its a wonderful place to relax.\r \r The beef stroganoff is one of the best in town.\r \r Reasonable prices, good food, nice folk. Pros: Nice atmosphere, very nice owners, good food Cons: Somewhat limited menu, mostly comfort foods. more

I get restaurant-owner magazines and year after year it's clear that the most important things to diners, in order, are service, ambience, cost, reputation, and then quality of food. I'm a foodie so to me, the list should read quality of food, service, cost, ambience, and then reputation (aka ""is the place considered hip?"")\r \r That said, Caldera is just killer amazing in ambience & service, but 2 of the things that are important to me, the cost and quality of the food, is where they fail pretty badly. I'm surprised the price is listed as ""$"" when it's easily ""$$-$$$"", 4 of us spent over $120 with a bottle of wine and some appetizers. Both were worth it.\r \r But the main courses are just expensive and sub-par to horrid. There was nothing we ordered that we didn't agree we'd cook for ourselves at home 10x better. I had read a review here saying ""I ordered the cheese stuffed pasta (manicotti) that was reminiscent of the foil pouch meals of my Jenny Craig days. It was clearly frozen and warmed enough to take off the ice, but the middle was still cold.""\r \r I made the mistake of mentioning this to the server, who told me it was her favorite dish and she'd read the same review and didn't agree. What came out was something not even as good as Jenny Craig. It was cold, more pasta than filling, flavorless, bland bland bland, esp. the sauce, which was like watered-down tomato paste from a can. I ate the damned thing and pretended to like it as not to offend. My friends ordered other dishes, and all were disappointing, esp. the beef stroganoff, with meat too tough to chew and overcooked pasta. Yuck.\r \r To end on a positive note, the decor is super cool and arty and different, the staff are extremely nice, and they have an excellent selection of beer and wine, albeit again on the high side of prices. I'll go back for a drink in a second. But I'd never eat there again, none of the 4 meals were worth $10+ each. Pros: Amazing Service and Ambience, Great Selection of Beer & Wine Cons: Main Courses are Awful & TV Dinner-ish, prices are $$-$$$, not $. more

We are always looking for places to go where our 2-year-old can't cause too much commotion. When it's sunny outside, the back patio at Caldera is a great place for us. Our kid is contained, they brought him crayons and a ""special"" water glass and he could babble and play without disrupting other diners. The hamburger is great and there is an interesting beer list. Try the bourbon brie cheese appetizer -- wow. Pros: Pretty, quiet, outdoor patio Cons: A little expensive, can get crowded more

You can't go wrong with this small neighborhood joint. It has great atmosphere (indoors and out), friendly staff, great food, an outrageous beer list of small brewers' creations, an exciting and very well-priced wine list (and I know wholesale) and did I say great food? Although the menu is small, there's something that will appeal to everyone -- from creative salads that would cost three times as much downtown to wonderful comfort-food-craving stroganoff. Everything on the menu is a real value. You would easily pay twice as much downtown and it would likely be half as good. It's a suitable spot for a quiet romantic dinner, or a weeknight break from the kitchen for families with well-behaved children (even young ones...they'll even serve toddler drinks in sippy cups.) Pros: food, value, atmosphere Cons: small size more

The service was awesome and the outdoor patio is scenic. I ordered the cheese stuffed pasta (manicotti) that was reminiscent of the foil pouch meals of my Jenny Craig days. It was clearly frozen and warmed enough to take off the ice, but the middle was still cold. Aside from the pre-prepared nature of many menu items, it's a cool place to hang out. A little more ""made-to-order"" approach would be more appropriate for the price charged for food. Pros: Outdoor Seating, Friendly Service, Neighborhood Charm Cons: Pre-prepared food more

Caldera is a wonderful little neighborhood restaurant, and we have enjoyed all of our many visits there. Kevin & Becky, and the rest of the folks there are great, and always make you feel welcome and well looked after. The food is great, and they have really good beers on tap (Hmmmmm Wild Samon) Not to mention the coctails! Don't miss the fantastic little garden. more

Themes to reviews: good interior, reasonably priced, portions vary and the service is hit and miss. I have eaten here 8 times with different groups (2-12) and the service has been consistently poor. Nice owners, good location and enjoyable patio, but I keep hoping that they will fix their mistakes. Theyve brought a steak knife for soup and a spoon for meat (really)! I've been there when they bring an empty water glass to the table and never fill it up. Waited 20 minutes for them to bring the initial drink (beer). This place is not big; they should be able to at least bring a drink within 5 minutes of ordering. I keep hoping that they will read some reviews and change the way they do business because if they don't, we will be writing reviews for the next restaurant that takes over this failed one. Pros: Atmosphere, Location , Patio Cons: Service Slow , Service Mistakes more

The place was really dark and the waiter had to give us little flashlights to read our menu, which I thought was really funny. The staff was friendly and the service was good. Water glasses were constantly refilled. The ambience is lovely but it could be a little lighter. The food portions could have been bigger. The chips were stale and flavorless. The value is decent. This is a nice place but nothing fantastic. Pros: Service, Water Cons: Parking, Source of light, Lack of selection more

It is in a great space, with a wonderful friendly atmosphere and a very cozy ambiance. The drinks were great and the beer (Pabst) was priced very well. The only problem was that we left still hungry and we are not what you would call ""big portion"" eaters. We had the Chicken sandwich and a Tabor Salad for our entrees. The bun was much larger than the piece of chicken and the salad was really short on all of the items described in the menu that made it sound so delicious in the first place. The Smore, well, was really just a smore, like you would make while camping. I think they need to work on being generous (reasonably generous, please do not think I am a pig) with their portions and also work on the presentation of their entrees. Pros: Interior space, outdoor dining, atmosphere Cons: , variety of menu, presentation of food more

I love Caldera. I live in the neighborhood and am so happy to have this little piece of heaven close to home. The prices are super reasonable, the food is outstanding and the service is fantastic. It's hard to cook dinner when Caldera is right up the street! Pros: food, service, atmosphere more