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8115 SE Stark St., Portland, OR 97203
503 445 6284
The stars are alive with the sound of muuuussic! This places sounds like such a magical place…the name, The Observatory, makes me think of musical theatre school or something….probably because it rhymes with Conservatory. Eh, whatever, this places is music to my ears!
I first was skeptical because I bought, “Two great restaurants next to each other on Stark St. out by 82nd Ave? Really?” I thought wrong. Believe it baby!
What we ordered: Apple and Beet Salad, Maple Pork Chop with a sweet potato cake, Baby Back Ribs with Polenta.
How we ordered it: Everything we ordered as is.
What we received:
Salad
Maple pork chop
Baby back ribs
Cost: Beet and Apple Salad – $9, Maple Pork Chop – $12, Baby Back Ribs – $12
Quality: I really think The Observatory is on board with the rest of the restaurants in Portland; serving meat from local farms ‘n all. I’d be surprised if they weren’t. All the meat tasted like the Hoity Toity Restaurants we have gone to in the past. The meat was not at all dry and the pork chop was made perfectly! They even had a side of chimmichurri sauce available, our favorite!
Quantity: These portions were just awesome! Theses entrees were hearty and comforting. Each entree alone is enough for one large man. We would have been fine without the salad, though the salad was also amazing.
MEAT-O-METER says!
What a pleasant surprise! The price for these entrees are what blew us away! With the quality of the food and the portion sizes, we thought the average dish price would be between $18-$24 at least!
The Observatory’s Happy Hour is also pretty great. Their HH chicken pate is legit and it’s only $5. The portion size is huge…(Pay no attention to the bread and cracker next to the pate! 
Hmmm. now that i look at the pic, the pate doesn’t look that big…maybe I should explain that the Meat-O-Meter has big hands…) It’s a log….
Chicken Pate
Geez, if you haven’t made it out to this area of Portland to eat, I think you are missing out. Granted though that there is some Red-Light-District-Like activity out on 82nd, this area is developing really well and is pretty happening. With the Country Cat nearby and a great Meditarranean restaurant next door this area, called the Montavilla neighborhood, is worth the trek. The sound of music is awaiting you!
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thank you SO much for reviewing this place… we have recently discovered it and LOVE it… the cheese plaste is stellar and includes a good amount of meat… a rarity in portland, in my experience. the shrimp is GOOD…and they make AMAZING cocktails. a $7 “grown up root beer float” puts me down for the count…in a good way!
Comment by molli August 31, 2012 @ 4:43 pm