Caffe Pallino

The egg rancheros was delish but the vege grill was a little weak. Both dishes needed salt but I like adding my own anyways. The people watching was very pleasant. Overall it was a good experience…

Awful! I got the grilled cheese panini, and I can honestly say it was one of the worst things I’ve had at a restaurant. One thing I expect on a grilled cheese sandwich is cheese. Without cheese you just have grilled bread, which is exactly what they gave me. Two burnt pieces of grilled bread.

What is better than coffee while you study? Coffee + gelato + good food + studying! Actually, I wish I wasn’t studying.
Great environment: good customer service, clean, and a plentiful selection of drinks (some even including alcohol).
I enjoy the tuna melt with their addition of apples in the mix with that tasty melted cheese! Craving some right now, actually.
Parking can be ridiculous as they do not have their own lot and there are plenty of businesses to explore in the area. However, neighborhood parking is good on the Southside of the establishment rather than Northside (there’s more space).
My go-​to place for group projects, but I wish they were open later!

This place has everything you could think of to eat with an atmosphere & wifi perfect for getting some work done.
A myriad of options for breakfast, sandwiches, salads, gelato, cookies & all the coffee stuff. The counterperson had too much attitude, but the kitchen made up for it with their speed.
I had a breakfast bowl with cheesy grits, spinach, tomatoes & proscuitto, warming & comforting without being too heavy.
My companion got a cinnamon pecan pastry & said it looked better than it tasted; it was mostly unflavorful & slightly dry. He said the (female) counterperson was really nice to him, so conclude what you will.

As you all know, I’m not a coffee person. But I’ve had a few caffeinated drinks here and there. I was looking for a place to study since I was going to meet up with friends for dinner on «Restaurant Row» (you may know it as SE Division St) — Caffe Pallino seemed to fit the bill since it was close in proximity.
[décor]
Very modern. Lots of open space and light. Lots of seats and tables made out of wood or embossed white furniture.
[drank]
*CHAI TEA LATTE (8 ounce; ~$ 3 ***2 STARS**) — I don’t mind my chai tea lattes being sweet or slightly sweet. But what was unforgivable was that it was WATERED DOWN and pretty much the drink had 40% foam. After 4 – 5 sips, I finished my drink.
FYI =
–Parking on the street (SE Division) or nearby neighborhood streets
–Great for groups, for a date, or you need to study
–Desserts available: gelato, cakes, cookies, pastries and pies
–Breakfast and lunch available
–Buss your own table
–Accepts CC’s
–FREE WiFi
I wouldn’t mind coming back here to try the other drinks on their menu, or perhaps re-​challenge their chai tea latte. And maybe if I have room for dessert, I would check out their gelato and baked goodies. As for now, not too impressed with chai but decent venue to study or hang out.
Unilocal 2013 100+ Reviews Challenge (going for 200!) — Review #179

I really want to like this place but i cant, even after trying it multiple times.
Pros: It’s in a perfect location on Division and its very big, clean and nice inside.
Cons: the service is the worst. Last time I went in, I walked up to the counter to order and the girl acted like I was such an inconvenience to her– she actually had to stop texting for a minute to take my order.
I ordered a latte and a scone. The scone was good– the latte wasnt.
A cute place like this should have a great staff– it’s unfortunate that they don’t.

Really basic café.
Things I like:
–Gelato was decent
–BLT had aioli on it – yum!
–Side salad was delicious
–Wide variety of coffee drinks and lack of typical Portland coffee shop pretension – you can get syrup in your drink without scorn! Yay!
–Totally reasonable prices
Things I didn’t like:
–Not many gelato flavors
–Not many sandwich options
–Multi-​grain bread only on sandwiches
–Unfriendly service
I expected the panini to have more Italian-​inspired fillings, since they have an Italian name and serve gelato and pasta. I prefer the Press Club for panini, but I’ll probably be back for gelato.

Quiet café with free wifi that is great for getting your homework done. Espresso drinks are inconsistent depending on who is working, and the baked goods are nothing to write home about. Over all it’s decent coffee with a great atmospher.

Decent latte, good zucchini muffin (nice and fluffy), truly blah service. I wouldn’t go back on purpose, but I wouldn’t discount it either.

I haven’t tried any of their food, but I’ve tried some of their drinks and gelato, and they were pretty good. My favorite has got to be the matcha latte. The gelato I’ve tried (pink grapefruit), was light and refreshing.
Also, they have a nice big space with lots of seats, as well as free wifi. It’s a great place to hang out, bring your laptop, and have a great cup of coffee.

I was expecting this place to be very busy, but it was empty. I hope that’s just because it was January 2^nd because this is a nice little spot.
The lack of people made it easy for us to set up shop on the nice white sofa, with working wifi, outlet, and drinks + desserts. We stayed for a few hours and had:
— Coconut Macaroon
— Mexican hot chocolate
— Dragon Fly Cha + chocolate
— Peanut butter/​chocolate + raspberry gelato
Gelato was great, friend loved the macaroon.
Lots of tables… again was surprised it was so empty.
They serve food until 2PM or so — it was strange to see a stovetop on one side of the room!

My only reservation in leaving a review here is that I’m afraid this place will be overrun with people. How many places can you get breakfast in Portland with no waiting? And good (not Stumptown) coffee? Everything I’ve tried here is stellar. The place is spotless, and the food is divine. Kudos to the owner. This is my favorite breakfast spot in town. But that still doesn’t mention the delicious ice cream.
One snag: getting refills on coffee can be a logistical problem.

This coffee shop is super cute! Its got a modern, sleek design to it. The food is really good and the coffee is just as great! I keep it standard with my vanilla latte each time I come here, but it satisfies me every time! The service is hit or miss, sometimes I get super friendly service, other times just acknowledgement of my order. It doesn’t really bother me too much though because I appreciate everything else.
During college I use to come here and study all the time! Now I come to get some reading done while enjoying my daily caffeine fix.

We weren’t sure what to expect from this place on the Sunday that we stopped in. We stopped by the front counter and placed our order. In my case I had a sandwich which had been previously prepared so it was ready instantly as well as my bottle of water.
We selected a place and set down. It had quite a few tables and chairs and since it was a nice day there were people sitting outside. They said something about free Wi-​FI but I guess you have to ask for a password or something of that nature.
Most things are self serve there. Any extras that go with your meal like silverware, water, napkins, etc., are up at the front of the room for self serve. They expect you to bus your own table as well.
All in all a cute place, a lot of small groups and people with their little ones on this day.
Nice place.

It’s just so nice to sit in a café that isn’t a Starbucks. It’s a REAL café! They have coffee and so much more. It’s also a place that makes you want to sit and relax.
The staff are always helpful and the baked goods are the best I’ve seen in a café. For me, I stop there for the gelato. We had crazy-​good gelato today: Hazelnut Latte
I just love this place.

Delicious Oregon strawberry gelato! That’s what I’m giving the 4 stars for.
The service was, shall we say, as cool as the gelato. Which is not to say that the counter woman was cool to talk to, but rather, aloof and businesslike. Maybe she was having a bad day, but having done customer service work like this in the past, she really could have been a little friendlier.

I had a superb brunch breakfast sandwich experience here. They have some communal tables which aren’t really my favorite, but I must admit that I broke down over time, and didn’t mind knowing what the people next to me were going to do next weekend after I worked my way through a delicious spanish coffee. Service is a little amateur, but sweet, and ultimately they just take the stuff from the kitchen to your table, so there are less chances to become frustrated…
All in all, a great brunch experience if you want a superbly cooked egg, or other treats without a Broder-​like wait…

Coffee Calculus:
Umbria coffee + full bar + gelato + wifi + paninis + pastic molded white chairs = yay
(Ok, so that’s just basic arithmetic, but Unilocal won’t let me use advanced math symbols in reviews.)

A coffee shop with sandwiches and booze. When I say booze, I mean liquor.
Wow. Did I miss anything? Well they have Coke and the whiteboard listed a daily pasta special.
I got a turkey sandwich. It was fancier than that, of course. But it was a pretty dang good turkey sandwich, on some kind of crusty bread, long bread like a hoagie, but not. Who cares it was good. I recommend.
Drawback? Smooth jazz. Ew.

I’ve added Café Pallino to my morning coffee circuit.
The flavor of the house coffee has an appealing bite and blackness. I dispensed with the java jacket this morning — because, silly me — who would think I needed to wear mittens in April! The piping hot coffee cup substituted nicely, however.
It’s the full meal deal here. Besides coffee, you have breakfast items, brunch (with an emphasis on pasta dishes) and quite a few flavors of gelato. Sometime I’ll have to do a taste comparison of their gelato with Tart down the street.
Comfortable with modern décor and clean lines. And of course, Café Pallino has those ubiquitous community tables which are de rigueur in PDX!
Overall, me likes the place.