Eat Oyster Bar

Probably 3.5 stars. Tried this for a Sunday lunch this past weekend with a friend. It's less of an oyster bar and more of a Creole/Cajun inspired place, that does some passable to very good dishes in that style. I had something called Hangtown Fry, which was lightly fried oysters with scrambled eggs and bacon, and my friend had shrimp and grits. Both were very good, although the beignets we finished up with were no better than average. They have an impressive back bar and a poor beer selection by Portland standards. They also serve a "build your own" Bloody Mary with a condiment bar where you can dump in any of a couple of dozen pickled vegetables. Interesting idea, but if I'm ordering a Bloody Mary on a Sunday morning, I don't want to have to do all that work, if you take my meaning. There was an above average trio playing solid New Orleans jazz, although most of the clientele looked like they'd be more comfortable with Techno.

My husband & I went to Eat last night. Our first impression was how cold the lower part of the restaurant was that you walk into (and where about 1/2 the tables are). The only table in the upper part was covered in flies (likely due to the sticky stuff on the table that hadn't been wiped off), so we shooed them away & had to sit there. I ordered the special, "fresh" smoked salmon & shrimp jambalaya ($15) and my hubby got a cat fish po'boy. My jambalaya was the worst thing ever - I never complain but I was forced to, I just couldn't bring myself to pay for this horrible dish. The jambalaya had zero sauce, it was just rice & scallions. The smoked salmon was not fresh & it was incredibly fatty (never seen this in my life!). I bit into several pieces and had to spit them out. The shrimp were so old & hard they almost crumbled. I felt insulted they were passing this off for $15 when it was obvious it was left over ingredients they needed to just get rid of. Even had my hubby try i... Read more

We dashed in here for some lunch and to get out of the rain. The bf had a Oyster Po'Boy, and I had a Cat Fish Po'Boy...both super good!...We swapped half way though so we could try both. The fries were tasty as well. The beer was ice cold and real good, but really don't dig the tiny little glasses...like maybe use pint size glasses.

I am visiting from out town and my God Father suggested it. We loved every bit of it! Fried oysters, okra, gumbo, frog legs, the red beans and rice, you name it and it was GREAT! I think about it everyday and will surely go back several times before I go back to GA. Try it for yourself and form your own review. I'm with the other reviewer, "Popeye's?" Get a life, the place is new, not perfect, but REALLY GOOD!

I've been to EaT several times, and I've been consistently impressed. The food was well prepared, the servers were personable, and the drinks were great. Any restaurant with a giant list of whiskey is okay in my book - and their sazerac is amazingly delicious. Their menu is somewhat on the small side - po'boys, etoufee, and jambalaya are delicious but I would have liked some green stuff that wasn't deep fried. Their list of sides were good, too - deepfried okra and housemade sausage were perfectly made. Overall, I'm very glad this place opened - the best deal on oysters in town, and they will likely get even better as they're open longer ( I think they only opened a few months ago?). I might have to go try the frog legs tonight - I'm feeling adventurous.

I had good service, and have been there several times. They make the best gin fizz around and the Shrimp Etoufee is awesome, and don't miss the fried Okra, despite what other reviewers have said. You can't get fresher oysters anywhere in town, and the prices can't be beat for the quality and variety of oysters. I'll eat there again for sure.

The restaurant has a fun atmosphere, but that can only get you so far. I found the servers to be the worst ever. They did not know what was on the menu and took over 20 minutes to bring our drinks even though the place was dead. We waited for 30 minutes for our check only to find out the server left for the night. As for the food, it was cold and lacked the flavors that you tend to get when dining in a New Orleans style restaurant. The po' boy sandwich had more sauce on it than shrimp. It must have been sitting for a while as well because the bun was awful soggy. The fried pickles were extra cold and salty. I do have to say the black eyed peas were good, but very bland. We did not get a chance to try the oysters because our first try at this restaurant was to eat the cooked food that wouldn't get us sick. I don't trust this place with handling raw oysters.

I dont usually write reviews but when I noticed the several poor ratings... I had to say something. My husband and I have gone to EaT a handful of times and usually brings friends/family. It is becoming a steadfast place when we want to go out and dont want to spend a lot of money. The atmosphere is simple... it is unpretentious and just plain cool. We think the menu is awesome. If you really enjoy oysters, they can not be beat. We love the oysters rockefeller although we wish they had more baked oyster options. I also love the po boy's... the roast beef is sooo good. Sometimes I get the Et toufle, also delicious. The sides are interesting and different, frog legs, fried pickles, fried okra... we have tried them all and cant say a bad thing. Gin fizz's.. also delicious. I will have to agree with another review that the service is lacking. The times we have been there, we have to wait a bit for our drinks, etc.. They seem to be understaffed. With that being said, we are a bit lenient as... Read more

I took my in-laws here after reading a really good review in the Star and several other places. We tried some of the reccomendations and the results were scary: fried pickles were salty to the point of being inedible. Oil pooled in the bottom of the Denny's-style bowl. My SUPER LOW KEY family actually spoke up to say that they didn't like them, and the server just shrugged and left them on the table. I will admit that she was well-versed on the menu terms, but that's really the only thing nice we could say. We had to beg for service, including drink refills and check (I had to pretend to go to the bathroom and actually ask her to come to the table). I ordered a Po-boy--tasteless-beyond-the-salt and uninspired. My family all ordered jambalaya, which, for 12 dollars, was a laughable portion for a grown man (and, oddly, not tomatoey, or, like anything I ever associated with Jambalaya, for that matter). And, to boot, we sat at the "bottom" of the restaurant so we froze the whole ... Read more

There was nothing about this restaurant that was good; from the drinks to the food to the wait staff, there is nothing positive I can say about this restaurant. The shrimp po-boy came with exactly 5 shrimp and the portion size was very small. The jambalaya was "mushy" and when I complained to the wait staff she did not acknowledge my complaint and simply stated, "That is the way it is supposed to be". Having had jambalaya at other local restaurants and none of them being of "paste" consistency I disagreed; I did not eat any of my dinner that night. There are other "Southern" fare inspired restaurants in the Portland area that are more authentic and worth trying out. I was excited about trying a new Southern inspired restaurant, but unfortunately, I will not be returning to EaT.

What a wonderful addition to Portland. I have been to EaT several times and have tried almost everything on the menu. I have no complaints. They have many different kinds of fresh oysters and ice cold beer. You couldn't ask for anything more. Cocktails and atmosphere are great. Sandwiches are fantasic and you can't pass on the frog legs. It is a must for anyone looking for a cool new place.

You can tell that the owners of this restaurant are inexperienced... have you ever heard of a restaurant that doesn't have coffee? The converted industrial building makes and interesting atmosphere for a restaurant, but it's cold inside. The server's suggestion when I asked for something warm to drink on that very cold day was "well, I could bring you soup". Riiiiiiiiight. The food was also very salty. They would have to change quite a few things about the service to entice me back in.