During our visit to Portland Oregon, one of the places I was most excited about was Papa Haydn. Why? Because they seem to have loads of amazing looking desserts! Yet, upon my further investigation (Yes I do love to investigate a spot before we go and dine…), I saw that they also have tasty looking food too. So was double excited. We went to their Northwest location for dinner.
It was much bigger than I thought it would be, but then again, I might be more used to the NYC sized restaurants… It was nice and open, with lots of space everywhere. High ceiling, many seatings, and bright with natural light flooding from floor-to-ceiling windows.
Right at the entrance, they have a large window display with their desserts. They all looked so good, I wanted to order one of everything!
We were welcomed with warm and friendly staff. And, to our happy surprise, we arrived about 10 minutes before their happy hour ends! Yay! They call it “Cocktail Party” and we quickly put in our drink orders. We went with Papa Haydn Espresso Martini ($9/cocktail party). It is made with Vanilla Vodka, Kahula, Baileys, and Espresso. The martini was so good! Strong and sweet, decadent and flavorful. Really well made, perfect cocktails to wake up the senses.
We also placed a couple of orders for food from their Cocktail Party as well. We got Roasted Cauliflower Bites ($9/Cocktail Party) and Cubano Slider ($9/Cocktail Party). Cauliflower came in a small, beautiful copper pot, I wish if the food came with the pot, so I could take it home…
Roasted Cauliflower Bites is made with Fire Roasted Pepper Crema, and Chives. It looked beautiful, with bright red and green. They had a nice amount of cream coating. Cauliflower pieces were a bit harder texture than I thought. I wish if they were slightly bit softer. The cream was really nice and tasty.
Cubano Slider is made with Slow-Braised Pork, Swiss, Prosciutto, Pickled Jalapeno and Onions, Garlic Aioli, Brioche Bun, served with a side of Green Salad. Slider had an amazing aroma, and packed with flavor. It had melty cheese over the pork, every bite was delicious. Since it is a “slider” it was a bit on the small side, but it was still satisfying. It came with loads of fresh salad too.
Then, from regular menu, we added an order of French Onion Soup ($12). It is made with Beef Broth, Crostini, Gruyere and Parmesan Cheeses. Onion soup came piping hot! Broth was earthy and flavorful, very comforting. Nice and cheesy, nice bread and lots of onions. It was a perfect soup!
Now, time for desserts! Since we wanted to try several different desserts, we made sure we didn’t order too many food. We ordered Cappuccino ($5) to go with the desserts. It was a nice cup of coffee, with a delicate foam and cubes of white and brown sugar.
Deciding which dessert to order was not an easy task. Everything looked and sounded so good! There were three of us, and we ordered four desserts in total. They were all such beautiful desserts! First up, Raspberry Gateau ($13), made with Brandied Chocolate Fallen Soufflé, Dark Chocolate Ganache, topped with Glazed Raspberries. Came with a side of cream. The gateau was velvety and creamy, very chocolate-y but somehow not heavy. It was rich and almost like a thick mousse texture. Raspberries were ripe and tart, a great way to balance the sweetness of the chocolate. So good!
Next, Baked Alaska ($13), made with Dulce de Leche and Banana Ice Creams, Dark Chocolate Ganache, Vanilla Cake, and Toasted Italian Meringue. My hubby is a fan of Baked Alaska, and we have tried a few from different places. The chocolate in the middle was a bit thick, making it hard to cut/slice to eat. Otherwise, it was delicious! Banana ice cream was creamy and tasty, cake was airy, and the toasted meringue was velvety. I wish if the cake was a bit bigger, as it was sliced thin. It sure was delightful.
Then, we moved onto Passion ($13), made with Passion Fruit and Raspberry Mousses, Buttermilk Chocolate Cake, White Chocolate Collar, and Passion Fruit Curd. It was mostly passion fruit mousse with raspberry mousse center. Mousse was light and velvety, and passion fruits puree was amazing!
Last but not least, Boccone Dolce ($13), made with French Meringues Drizzled with Semi-Sweet Chocolate, Whipped Cream, and Seasonal Fruit. This is one of their most popular and well-known dessert, as they are featured on their website all over. This one was quite big piece, to my happy surprise. It is like a Pavlova, melt in your mouth. It was just unbelievably delicious, every bite was heavenly! Fresh fruits, very light cream with minimum sugar to accompany the merengue. Loved it!
I didn’t realize how large Papa Haydn is until I started looking for a restroom. There are different dining areas, and felt like it goes on and on. At the back, there is a green-colored room with a bar. The restroom is located to the left of the bar, behind the green curtain.
There are men’s and women’s bathroom, and through the door, there are a couple of stalls and sinks. A bit dimly lit, but clean and well stocked.
Our visit to Papa Haydn was a success! We enjoyed all the food, drinks, and desserts! The staffs were all friendly and polite. Every dessert was as good as I had hoped. I am so happy we got to go try their desserts!
Papa Haydn – 701 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR