Castagna in Portland - Lots of pictures but not much of a review

Bored of going to hipster brunch and the well known strip club Acropolis for steak, I was curious about Portland’s fine dining scene so our group stroll down from our home base, Beaverton, to Castagna on this particular trip.

Naturally, we went for the chef’s tasting menu which consisted of a series of amuse-bouche and 14 courses on this night. Shockingly, the price tag was much lower than what I’m used to paying in LA, Las Vegas, or SF. At $155 per person sans sales tax, it’s a relative steal for a tasting menu of this length.

Sadly, I have to say that this meal was underwhelming. I have no memory of anything from this meal even though I have the pictures and menu in front of me. I did remember that all courses were cooked to perfection and plating, though simplistic, was nicely done. However, the only flavor I recalled from this night was the burnt beet course which was an acid assault on my palate.

*Please note that this meal was from almost 2 years ago.

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The only flavor that I recall…overly acidic marinated burnt beet

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You take a nice photo, that’s for sure.
Bummer about the meal being less than memorable.

I can generally remember what I had quite well but not this time! :rofl:

My 3 other dining companions agreed that this was a “meh” experience in the grand scheme of the fine dining world.

Here’s a review from almost a year ago that liked it a lot more than you did.

Two years is an awfully long time ago, whether it was great or awful. Just my two cents :slight_smile:

Definitely. On the other hand, I’m looking forward to trying Le Pigeon in Portland since I’ve heard good things about that place.

I have a good friend who was a neighbor in SF for many years. She’s one of the best home cooks I’ve ever known and also a discriminating ‘fine diner.’ She’s in Portland this weekend and just posted on FB about this place. Her recommendations are always good for me…although her budget is generally larger than mine :slight_smile:

https://www.acenapdx.com/

Looked pretty though

Though???