Portage Bay Café

Wow, this place just jumped to the number one spot on our list of favorite breakfast places! The pepper bacon was so savory and the French toast/​pancakes were very fluffy. But the best part is the breakfast bar where you can add unlimited fruit/​condiments. The building itself is beautifully made and the atmosphere is lively and fun. Overall, great place for breakfast (but get there early, it got very busy after 9am).

I’ve been to other Portage Bay Cafes, and was not really impressed, but this was convenient to an appointment, and I had a gift card, so we tried again. At 9;30 am on Thursday there weren’t many people there. First I had to remind our waiter that we wanted water, then when our food came, he brought the wrong sausage, even though we had had an extensive conversation about just what it was. Might as well have skipped it, as it was a slice of very dry, tasteless pork loin. Even though I never order pancakes, I was tempted by the buckwheat pancakes, because i love the flavor of buckwheat. They arrived lukewarm, we had watched them sitting, and totally dry, with an odd flavor I couldn’t identify. I had to put not only the ginger butter that came with them (not much flavor), but a ton of whipped butter and maple syrup to make them edible. Luckily my husband like his red chile pork benedict, but the waiter never asked how anything was, even though I left half of all my food on my plate.
We had a gift card for $ 50, which, with a shared fruit plate and 2 coffees, came to $ 40, so that was it for the gift card.

Love this place! Great outdoor seating, delicious food, and even a berry bar to top off your pancakes and French toast! Yum!

First time visit to this new Portage Bay Café. My biggest recommendation would be to make a reservation online. This place gets busy, and often times you will encounter a long wait. Weekends — a guaranteed wait. We were seated within 3 minutes of our reservation.
This location is very modern with one big open room. There is outdoor seating available with heaters above and heat towers for when it’s chilly out. This would be a great option if you are looking for a little less noise.
We were seated at the bar and had great service. The head chef would even occasionally come by to ask how everything was. Several reviews noted poor customer service, but I can see that customer service has been a large focus here.
Food and drinks were delicious. We love that the ingredients are all very fresh and local. We got Bananas Foster French toast. Not for everyone though, as it is sugary. These were cooked to perfection and one of the best BF french toast I’ve had. We also got the Migas with the potatoes. Very delicious and you can opt to add meat. For drinks, we couldn’t pass up their weekend special of Sangria Mimosas. This should be added to their regular menu, they were very good.

Had a reservation but the hostess, hailey?, kept seating other people who came after us and made us wait for more than 20 minutes. We walked out.

First time here for lunch on a Monday, not busy but customer service was non-​existent. My husband and I both ordered the burger. Don’t bother, tasteless on a stale bun. Salad was brown around the edges and cherry tomatoes on the verge of being spoiled. Cute place but really awful experience. Won’t be going back.

I love that PB takes reservations now. We were seated six minutes after our reservation and arrived five minutes before, so an 11 minute wait isn’t bad at all on a Saturday afternoon.
The new location is lovely, despite parking being a challenge. Lots of Windows in their usual style, so everything is super bright and airy with high ceilings.
Our service was ok. There are a lot of people bustling around to help bus tables and such.
The food really leaves a lot to be desired. The eggs were really rubbery and reminded me of the folded egg at McDonalds– powdered, maybe? Overcooked? Unacceptable when eggs are almost the only thing you serve. The potatoes were great, but the large chunks make it hard to eat them and cutting them is impossible since they are so well roasted. It becomes more of a smash job. The toast is thick and hearty, and the table jam is good but they set your slice on top of the egg, which leaves one side soggy. The bacon I asked to be done crispy ended up half burnt half limp. The pork loin was good. SO didn’t seem super psyched about the Reuben Benedict, which where the hollandaise was described to be «essentially 1,000 island.»
Really underwhelmed. They don’t serve booze, so another black mark toward them. The rosé and sake Bloody Mary were ok, but if I am paying $ 8 for a drink I expect there to be hard alcohol in them, so adjust prices or GTFO.

The food is fresh and delicious! I love the breakfast and really need to go for the lunch menu sometime because that menu looks amazing as well! Only issue is that the restaurant was cold, I wish I had worn a sweater!!!

The crêpes and pancakes are full with flavor and very light and fluffy. It is very family friendly and I would go back anytime

Come here for the fruit bar! Waffle or pancake with unlimited fruit toppings! I would give this place 5 stars if it wasn’t for the tiny spoons provided to scoop the fruit. Be patient and stack on the berries one by one. Complete your fruit mountain with a couple slices of bacon and enjoy!

Was there a few Sunday’s ago and although the service was a bit chaotic, they seemed to be short staffed, the hostess and our waitress were very friendly and making the best of the situation.
The food was great and reasonably priced for Seattle. It was a nice experience and we will definitely be back.

I’ve been to numerous Portage Bay locations and was excited for one to open in my neighborhood. I’ve been there 3 times now.
tl;dr: Solid food, service needs some work.
Service: 2 stars. They accept reservations though they don’t seem to mean much. Plan on waiting 15 — 30 minutes after your reservation time.
Ambiance: 3 stars. The place is LOUD.
Food: 4 stars. Good, solid brunch options and rotating specials.
Value: 3 stars. For the price I would expect better service.

I’ve been a huge PBC fan for years and their Roosevelt location was one of my first Unilocal reviews. But this location was a big let down. I don’t ask for much but if you’re spending close to $ 40 on a meal that you can make at home, this was disappointing. Frankly I was embarrassed I took my out-​of-​state friend here. So here we go…
Space: 4 stars.
Very open and spacious but of course that means acoustics makes it loud.
Food: 1 star.
I love love their Swedish pancakes. However the ones served were tasteless and gummy. Sad-​Sad-​Sad. My friend’s french toast was dry. It was horrible.
Customer Service: non existent.
Our server … oh what server? Maybe he said 5 words to us the entire time and gave us our check. Some effort would of been nice. I’ve had better experience at a drive-​thru. *sigh.
Management needs to make some changes to be up to par with their other locations.
Will not recommend.

First time in Seattle and the first meal in Seattle was a big one. Fresh off the plane, I met up with my friend who flew into Seattle an hour after I did. We gathered our bags and was in search of breakfast. Neither of us ate much on the flight, so our bodies were ready for nourishment.
We headed to Portage Bay for some brunch. There was a bit of a wait upon arrival, but we went to a nearby coffee shop to pass the time. Once we checked back in, we were seated right away. As we settled into our seats, we looked through the menu and eggs benedict caught our attention. Looks like that’s what we’re having!
My friend got the Wild Mushroom Benedict — Mikuni Wild Harvest mushroom cream sauce over two soft poached organic Stiebrs Farm eggs, steamed organic spaghetti squash and topped with a green onion garnish.
I saw crab cakes and I was in! Dungeness crab cakes with lemon & dijon, two poached Stiebrs Farm eggs, fresh Hollandaise and tarragon garnish. I loved that it was lump crab meat and not a bunch of fillers, so you definitely get that bang for your buck.
I would definitely order this again, but I think I would opt for the salad, or add an additional $ 2 for fruit. Those potatoes were heavy! The only thing to note is the variance of each piece because some were well-​done while others were under-​cooked. It didn’t bother me too much, but I would have preferred to have them cooked through with some well-​done, crisp bites.
Both dishes were extremely heavy (served atop Portage Bay’s organic, house-​made, yukon gold english muffins) and as the food coma settled in, it took a toll on our bodies. The first meal was a knockout, as in, we went back to where we were staying and took naps. Lol.
At least it was filling! If I were to come back, I think I’ll just do the french toast + fruit bar. Great place, very clean and bright, but I think I went a little hard n heavy for my first meal in Seattle.

The atmosphere is cute, it’s a little on the loud side due to the floor plan. But I love the open kitchen and the bar along the side, you get to watch the chef prepare your meals!
Unfortunately, I wasn’t impressed with my meal. I had corned beef hash and the vegetables were still too firm and like warm. The poached eggs and vegetables were not seasoned.
The staff were friendly but a little slow. I came alone to the restaurant at 8:30am but I didn’t leave until 9:45am! It was too long for service for one.

I hosted a birthday brunch here on Sunday, October 18, 12:30pm (want to make sure whoever was working here and helping us at this time gets credit!). I know this place just opened and is working out the kinks, but I have to say, they did an amazing job with such a large group. I had to make two reservations of 8, and at first they weren’t sure if they were going to be able to seat all all together. Disappointing, but understandable because it was a large group in a kinda small venue, but luckily they were able to pull all the tables in the back corner together.
Our server (I wish I knew her name because she was absolutely amazing) quickly took our drink orders, food orders. She was SO fast and efficient, but still super friendly. We didn’t feel rushed at all. I was so surprised (and still am) how quickly everyone’s food came out and all at the same time! Major props for that. And finally when it came time to split the bill, our waitress offered to split everyone’s bill because she could, as long as we didn’t mind waiting a bit for the machine to work. She was amazing!
Now for the food review:
I ordered the breakfast sandwich, which has buttered toast, arugula, scrambled egg, and my favorites: prosciutto and fig jam. The saltiness of the prosciutto is enhanced with the sweetness of the fig jam. I also love their option of the side salad or potatoes. I ordered the salad and I always love the dressing they use – some sort of gingery, citrusy, oil based dressing. My friend ordered the Migas (it’s huge!!) and I loved it. It’s kinda like a breakfast quesadilla and I would definitely recommend it with the pulled pork. As for my sister, I love how our server accommodated her by offering the side of french toast, rather than the full on entrée order because she couldn’t finish it, which still comes with the trip to the fruit bar. My only complaint is that the mimosas ($ 28/​pitcher) are kinda weak here. I thought I got straight OJ and was about to offer it to my pregnant sister.
Other than that last bit, I have nothing but good things to say from my experience at Portage Bay. I really appreciate the way they accommodated my large group and their efficiency at getting our orders and our food out so quickly without compromising on quality. So glad for this non-​vegan addition to the Roosevelt area!

Being a breakfast food fanatic, I’ve been a long time fan of Portage Bay and frequent the U District one… but it’s always so crowded! I made a reservation for 10:30 on a Saturday for this new location and was a little annoyed that there was a big line to the host, but when we got to the front, we were seated immediately! Props to this location for not making those who have a reservation wait for a minimum of 10 – 15 minutes even AFTER everyone arrives (*ahem* U District).
Same menu as the other Portage Bay locations and as always, full breakfast bar. I always expect fast and good service at Portage Bay and they delivered. My only complaint is that the smoked salmon eggs benedict was too salty. Like waay too salty.

I LOVE PORTAGE BAY!
I’d been to the SLU location many times before, but a new one opened up in my neck of the woods and I wasn’t going to miss it! We went at about 10:30am on a Sunday and there was a 20 min wait. Most of the people at the table ordered the bananas foster french toast (including myself), and then went up to the breakfast bar to make our meal complete. The breakfast bar has tons of cut up fruits and the biggest bowl of whip cream you’ve ever seen! It’s wonderful. The bananas foster french toast is to die for!
I love it here, take out of towners often, and definitely plan to return again!

My friends and I love portage bay and were so excited that it opened up in our neighborhood but this location does not have their act together. It took about 10 minutes to get water, over 20 minutes to get our drinks, our food came before our drinks and the server got my order wrong. When I realized and got her attention, she didn’t offer to send it back and fix it but rather to get the meat I originally ordered on the side. Still waiting for that side… Truly disappointed in the poor service we experienced today.

WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER. My friends and I came here on a Sunday afternoon for brunch and were so excited to hear that this location opened up recently. While the food is always on point, the same cannot be said for the service. After about 20 minutes, our server (Hailey) did not bring out waters or the drinks that we ordered. We ended up getting the food before we got our drinks. Not to mention she would disappear for minutes at a time, no where to be found in the restaurant. In addition, when I asked her for syrup at the table versus going to the breakfast bar each time I want syrup, she said no it was at the breakfast bar, but hello!!! I’m not going to douse my pancakes in syrup all at once! A few minutes later she brought me a syrup container that was empty, she didn’t have the sense to actually fill it with syrup for me…
Overall, I’ll always be a fan of Portage Bay Café’s food, but they really need to up their customer service and not hire bozo’s!

It’s pretty much the same as the one in the U District. They always have exceptional service even when busy. This one also has outside seating which is covered. It’s smaller but way more open feeling. Lots of light.
The only difference is that the coffee was way too strong. I like strong coffee but it was undrinkable. Small kink as they become fully operational.
They also don’t have a dedicated parking lot. I went there on a weekday so I found street parking right in front. Not sure what the weekend would be like.

Amazing food and an equally amazing group of people working there. The food is top notch. Fresh and delicious. Be sure to try the smoked salmon benedict.

Brand new location of Portage bay in the Roosevelt area. Parking is a bummer here… however the food was delightfully fresh and wholesome. Got their Joe’s scramble (14 $ — apple chicken sausage, spinach, Beecher’s cheddar, mushrooms) and smoked salmon benedict (16 $ — 2 poached eggs, smoked alaskan sockeye, hollandaise). The apple chicken sausages in the scramble tasted strangely like pork sausages, I honestly could not taste the difference! Despite that, the eggs, spinach and mushrooms were cooked to a perfect done-​but-​still-​tender state, while topped generously with cheese. The salmon in the benedict is absolutely wild-​caught. You’ll taste the difference from farmed salmon and the darker color tone. The potatoes that came with both dishes were slightly overcooked and kind of bland.
Portions are on the larger side, though reasonable considering the price. Their delicious strawberry jam is house-​made and not as sweet as store bought brands. Wish I could purchase this! Definitely a solid place for brunch with something for everyone.

Beautiful open space! Love that I can get a smaller size of the French toast– I find the portions here way way too big. Good for splitting but it has discouraged me from dining alone at other PBC locations in the past.
The space will be very loud when full. Not good for those with diminished hearing.
Found street parking on Weedin Place — though this is near the 48 and 66 bus routes.
As always, like the commitment to fresh, local ingredients and supporting local farms. The prices reflect this but I know/​hope this is all passed along to the growers of our food.
Thanks for coming to Roosevelt, Portage Bay Café!