Portico Restaurant - RichmondLove the atmosphere and especiallyLove the atmosphere and especially the outdoor patio dining. So ready to be outside and enjoy your wonderful menu !!!5/12/2013 12:00:00 AMAmazing dinner!Had a group of 13 at Portico for dinner last Friday, all of whom had never eaten there excluding myself, and the whole experience was perfect. We were able to sit outside on their gorgeous patio, service was excellent, and food was phenomenal. Three members of our party called me the next day specifically to say how much they enjoyed Portico and will be recommending it to anyone in the Richmond area.5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat mealWonderful food, great service. Just wish the weather had been nice, so we could eat outside. Everything we ordered was delicious, and generous portions. The only negative - the noise level inside, hard to have a conversation. The outdoor area was beautiful, with the stone fireplace and lovely gardens.5/7/2013 12:00:00 AMwonderfulWE had a wonderful evening for outdoor dining this past Sunday. It was a cool evening but the heatlamps , fireplace and luscious blankets made it absolutely delightful.5/5/2013 12:00:00 AMVery enjoyable, even with the bumpsOf my wife and myself, I think I got the better end of the deal. Cocktails were lovely by the fireplace. We started with calamari which was nicely done and a large portion. I had veal which I really enjoyed and done to perfection. My wife had the steak which was an odd cut of meat that made it difficult apparently for the kitchen to do it medium rare. She was not happy with the well done parts. And when will chefs ever learn that berry sauce on cheesecake is so passe. And when it is ordered plain with no berries at all, it means just the cheesecake on the plate. We did determine though that with their style of cheesecake, if they insisted on a sauce, maple would have worked.5/5/2013 12:00:00 AMSaturday evening was our firstSaturday evening was our first visit to Portico. We arrived 15 minutes early for our reservation. The host greeted us, told us that they weren't ready for us...and that was it...no directions/guidance as in "...you can get a drink at the bar and sit by fire on the patio..." or " Please enjoy the patio and I'll have someone take your drink order..." or "......."
As we wandered around aimlessly, not knowing the layout, the owner guided us to the bar, placed our drink order and directed us to the area by the fireplace on the patio.
The food was delicious...service great...noise level too high for my taste.5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMDine in a garden!Best parts of Portico: Valet greeting - fast and friendly; host at the door friendly and efficient; seated outside within minutes; pleasant place to sit out by the fire in the garden; friendly greeting by knowledgeable waiter; drinks served quickly; wine and food selection very good and tasty. Especially like that the soup and entrees were served piping hot!
Room for imporvement: Noise level in main dinning room is deafening. Without garden seating, I wouldn't go there.
Once meal served, didn't see waiter much, especially for clearing and coffee/dessert/bill. There is a knack to being observant yet not hoveriing.5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMThe bestPortico is one of our favorite restaurants. The salad the other night was probably the best I have ever had.... It was a chopped salad to die for!4/30/2013 12:00:00 AMNAPAPortico is s great place. Since we discover it we try to go as often as possible. Dinning on the courtyard takes us back to our trip to Napa Valley. On top of been a beautiful restaurant with great service the cuisine is superb.4/29/2013 12:00:00 AMWe have lived here for 8 yearsWe have lived here for 8 years and this is the BEST italian food in Richmond. The homemade Gnocchi is to die for! The desserts are amazing and the service is top notch! I cannot reccomend this place enough.4/26/2013 12:00:00 AMPortico weeknightsWide variety on the menu, something for everyone. Great atmosphere with well maintained property and landscape. Beautiful gardens!4/22/2013 12:00:00 AMThis was our first visit.This was our first visit. Initial service was a little slow, but later everything was fine. Menu is not huge, but large enough with some creative meals and some standards. You will have a good evening here.4/14/2013 12:00:00 AMWe enjoyed dinner on the patio,We enjoyed dinner on the patio, which is a lovely spot. The only challenge was lighting. There were a few tea light candles on the table -- nothing else. It was difficult to read the menu and to see our food. I had mussels as an appetizer and extracting the "meat" from the black mussel shells was quite a challenge! But, the meal was delicious and it was a wonderful choice for our 6 month anniversary dinner.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMHave a bit of sky as appetizer...Surprised by garden. Lovely if out on patio(s). If the evening is cool plan on a few minutes with drink in hand in front of beautiful outdoor fireplace. Sky. Trees. Flowers. Visit 1 hour before sunset and revel in beauty. Re the menu, think quality not quantity. Not a lot of choices. Checkout the exterior kitchen (pretty small and oh so quaint) and you know why the menu is short but delicious. Veal piccata - tender and tasty. Personal size pizza - took home extra. Veggie pizza. Nice crunchy texture with quartered mushrooms. Mandatory valet parking due to tiny parking lot but it's worth the few extra minutes waiting for the gals to bring your vehicle to you. Even in the crushed stone parking lot, the ambiance is soothing and full of beauty.4/12/2013 12:00:00 AMWe arrived on time for ourWe arrived on time for our 6.30 dinner reservation and was immediately escorted to an inside table. I refused the table saying I had requested outside seating- I was told an outside table cannot be reserved and its first come first serve regardless of one's reservation. We waited at the bar for an outside table. The wait was short and reasonable. OPEN TABLE should alert those making reservations that the outside seating is unavailable for reservations.
Otherwise, the food was very good and the service excellent. We'll surely go back.4/10/2013 12:00:00 AMPatio is the star plus great foodPortico is a fave for sure. We dined on the outdoor patio - a beautiful and relaxing setting. We shared a gorgeous Caprese appetizer. We ordered the salmon and the stuffed shrimp. Both were delicious, nicely presented, and accompanied by mashed potatoes and steamed veggies. The veggies were overcooked but flavorful. For dessert we ordered the cheesecake with raspberry sauce and the Italian crème brule. Both were quite good but the crème brule was the star. We then moved over to the seating area by the fireplace to enjoy the fire and listen to music. Portico could improve on the attentiveness of their serving staff. Be advised some cocktail prices can be high - $21.00 for 2 drinks.4/8/2013 12:00:00 AMMy husband and I thoroughlyMy husband and I thoroughly enjoy Portico! Love everything about the restaurant i.e. food, service and ambiance....the only thing I would suggest to enhance the experience even more is to place some area rugs in the table areas to cut down on the noise level.4/6/2013 12:00:00 AMM FosterI was a bit hesitant given some of the negative reviews I read online. However, they could not have been more wrong. We had an outstandig meal. It was moderately noisy, but it is a small place and you just have to expect it. We didn't mind a bit. The entire staff was welcoming and attentive. Our waiter, Antwan, was exceptional and really made the evening enjoyable and fun. Will most definitely be going back.4/5/2013 12:00:00 AMThey even provided valet parkingThey even provided valet parking on a rainy Easter Sunday! Excellent place!!3/31/2013 12:00:00 AMFood presentation was veryFood presentation was very good and taste was excellent. Very scenic and restful place to enjoy a good Neal and good conversation.3/29/2013 12:00:00 AMPortico is one of my favoritePortico is one of my favorite lunch and dinner spots - can not wait until the weather warms to sit outside, but eating inside is great too. It is a warm, friendly place with great food! The owner was so nice to offer the cooking technique for the brussel sprouts that my 7 year old LOVES.3/28/2013 12:00:00 AMGood food and service. ItGood food and service. It was quite noisy at the restaurant when we went on Thursday, 3/28.3/28/2013 12:00:00 AMLove the restaurant ---foodLove the restaurant ---food and service are always good to great but hate the fact my ears ring with the noise level for hours after each departure .3/27/2013 12:00:00 AMThis was our first time diningThis was our first time dining at Portico. We really enjoyed all aspects of the meal, except for the noise level. It was REALLY loud. We could barely hear each other just over our table. I think this has to do with the small space and the lack of carpet/rugs in the room. We were looking forward to a quiet meal (after leaving our five children home with a babysitter) and my husband joked at one point that he felt like we were right at home! :) That's the only complaint we have. The food was delicious. Our server was fair. We couldn't hear him very well, be he did his job without a lot of fanfare.
We would recommend Portico, but we'd love to come back and be able to enjoy a delicious meal and be able to have a conversation.3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMnice little quaint restaurantWe were happy to finally go to this wonderful quaint restaurant. The restaurant is small, but in warm weather you can sit outside on the patio overlooking the surrounding garden and the beautiful stone fireplace. Our side salads of chopped greens with goat cheese and balsamic vinegarette were large and so good we had to eat it all. The egplant had a layer of cheeses under the mozzarella that was oh so delicious! We had the flan which was not the usual sweet syrupy flan, but a lighter version that bordered on cheesecake with berries inside and out. We sat inside, but I plan to go back when it is warmer to sit outside! The only negative was that it was too loud to comforatbly hear our waiter or each other.3/20/2013 12:00:00 AMOne of our new favorite restaurantsOne of our new favorite restaurants. Broiled Seafood, Salmon, Penne Vodka, and all their specials are excellent. Great lighting and their outdoor dining with that fireplace in the Spring and Summer is wonderful. Two issues: (1) the table all the way in the back to the right side is very cold in the winter; and (2) the guy who is at the door and seats you is in an eternal bad mood. Not sure if he's the Owner or Manager, but whoever he is, he should stay in the back room. Not the first thing you want to encounter when you're spending a lot of money for dinner. And he shouldn't be standing outside in the back of the restaurant smoking where the patrons can see him - not appetizing at all.3/16/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat food and Service but noisyFantastic, but noisy. Recommend seasonal outdoor seating.3/16/2013 12:00:00 AMSeattle's bestI brought colleagues from Seatle to Portico for a unique dining experience and was very pleased. They enjoyed it so much we went again on their return trip to Richmond.3/15/2013 12:00:00 AM