Oporto Food and Wine Bar

the food is excellent

Posted 11/04/09

Great date spot! The food was excellent! I fell in love with crab and avacado crostini. The crab was fresh and the presentation on all the dishes were inviting. They had a well developed wine list with great prices. We had a grenache and syrah blend that was heaven and very reasonably priced! The entire waitstaff catered to us and we never had to really wait for anything. I highly recommend it!

Pros: Great food, exceptional wine list and intimate environment

Cons: a little cramped, dont sit under the wine rack

Posted 10/24/09

Had a great time at this boutique wine and tapas bar. Service was attentive, and the place was real cozy. I wil recommend to anyone looking for a piece f NYC in Houston.
Bravo!!

Pros: awesome food and wine menu

Cons: parking

Posted 10/08/09

a great place! a relief from other wine bars providing not only bunches of wines by the glass, but cocktails,
and great food to nosh on! low key but busy...will come back to try more food. The Mussels and seafood salad were awesome. Highly recommended!

Pros: good prices/quality

Cons: parking on weekends

Posted 01/26/09

This amazing little place has an absolutely lovely atmosphere...very warm and inviting. Food is fabulous. I've been frequently Oporto for the past two months now for lunch, dinner and cocktails. I've continued to have excellent experiences with my food, and actually consider Oporto to be "my little secret". I can't hold this hidden jewel to myself any longer...it would be much too selfish.

This past weekend I ordered the special, Pork Vindaloo, a Portuguese-Goan dish. It was a symphony for flavors...the tenderloin was perfectly marinated in white wine and Indian spice. It was so delicious that after I finished my first order, I ordered another one. I requested to speak to the chef to convey my compliments and out came the owner. A young and innocently-sweet gentleman. He was very humble and gracious. He also mentioned Paella Night on Sundays. Supposedly, a giant paella is served at the bar. I can't wait to try it and will definitely pop in on Sunday for the feast! I finished meal off with the Pumpkin Flan. It was heavenly, so creamy and delicious. Great food, very nice wine selection and friendly service. Okay, my secret is out...

Pros: Food and wine for a good price

Cons: small restaurant...but I hear there is a Oporto 2 in the works!

Posted 11/24/08

I've been going here once a month or so for the past year and a half. It's great for a lunch or dinner with a friend, and I also take my parents here when they're in town.
The Queso de Cabra is AWESOME. The Turkey/Goat cheese panini at lunch is possibly one of the best sandwiches i've ever had. They have a good wine list- not extensive, but pretty good.
The food has always been very good- no complaints whatsoever. Everything I've tried has been delicious. Even their caesar- which has become such a staple at restaurants and quite boring and bland- is spiced up a bit here and their take on it is different, but it's refreshing.
The owners/managers are really nice. I sort of wish you could make reservations here though- because on weekend evenings it gets pretty packed.
I think the only thing they're missing- is some kind of awesome brunch menu for the weekends. But seriously, I love this place.

Pros: Good prices, good wine, DELICIOUS food-everything has been wonderful.

Cons: parking on weekend nights.

Posted 11/21/08

My girlfriend and I just stopped in for a quick drink, but after we had it we didn't want to leave. The atmosphere was really neat. We did not eat, but the food selection looked pretty good. Nice place to bring a date or relax and chat with friends. I will definitely be coming back to Oporto.

Posted 10/10/08

Wonderful food, a chill layedback staff, and um.. g-8 wine!
rjm

Oh, and everything is real fresh!

Pros: great place to meet ,hangout,or have a fast lunch!

Cons: Hard to resist the wine selection!

Posted 08/22/08

we had a great experience at this little wine cafe. Good wine prices with a lot wines offered by the glass.
i have been living in the area for a while and just now discovered that they have been open for two years.
but we immediately felt like we were right at home. The staff made us feel very welcomed and the food was exciting, as compared to other wine bars. Prices were good, food was great, and service accomadating. check it out

Pros: comfortable and value

Cons: parking

Posted 07/15/08

We went to Oporto and sat at the bar for wine and tapas. The bartenders would come by when we finished about ? of our glass of wine and ask if we would ?like to be topped off? which we thought was a ?nice gesture? since our glasses were half full.

When we received the bill we were charged for an entire new glass of wine for every time they ?topped off? our wine.

When bringing it to the attention of the manager and bartenders they were unconcerned by what had happened.

We started asking others about their experience at Oporto and they too had fallen prey to this ?would you like to be topped off scam?.

Posted 07/08/08

One of the best overall dininig experiences my wife and I ,and another couple have had every bite was great . The tapas were so delicious we tried about 9 different ones including the steamed muscels. Im not a big Muscel fan but tried one and loved it. Although we were full we had to try the desert, Very impressed. Also we couldnt help overhearing atleast three other tables arround us ,all we heard was WOW, OMG,and This is Amazing. They will need a bigger building soon.

Pros: Food, Service, Ambience

Cons: Parking

Posted 03/09/08

Wonderful!!! I highly recommend the queso de cabra and their paninos and salads are also awesome. Great wine list and amazingly relaxing. Small and quaint. I love having a nice easy going evening with friends here.

Pros: Ambience and nice wine selection.

Posted 01/04/08

I love Oporto. Great wine, fantastic food, great atmosphere, humble yet charming. Who knew you could find such a warm environment and good service in a strip center? Their paninis are fantastic and not too bready. Their tapas and plates are succulent. Their wine menu is great, even starting at the lowest end. And I really love that low table that seats four near the entrance. One other thing that is great about it, is that it is somewhat unknown, so the ambiance is terrific. I'm getting hungry thinking about it right now.

Favorite dishes, so far -- the salmon salad, the eggplant sandwich, the goat cheese and tomatoe sauce tapas, and the cheese plate. Highly recommended.

Pros: Ambiance, food, wine, service

Cons: It's in a strip mall, but we're in Houston

Posted 11/14/07

Very cool place! The menu is short and sweet with great flavor and freshness. It went well with my Portuguese Vinho verde wine. I was there on a Saturday night, not too busy...They say Friday is the busiest night. The staff very friendly and relaxed. I wish we had more wine bars like this one.

Posted 10/27/07

I'm not a big wine buff, but my girlfriend is. The initial draw to Oporto was the tapas. We love tapas, but don't like the hassle of Rice Village (Mi Luna) parking and crowds. I am really glad we found Oporto!

The ambiance is pretty nice. Dark wood & beautiful bar. The cozy lounge area was taken so we sat at a table. The chairs were cool (metal with spoons as decorations) but could have been more comfortable. Unfortunately, I forgot our waitress' name, she was truly wonderful. Very accommodating, funny, and friendly. My girlfriend ordered some wine. I don't recall the label, but she loved it as it matched well with most of our tapas. I had the sangria, which was quite tasty and refreshing.

For tapas, we ordered the Italian sausage and meatballs (ok), shrimp piri-piri (good), caldo verde (light with a hearty mouth feel, good flavor), empanadas (excellent, matched well with the quince jam), baked brie (always great), Portuguese tiramisu (not what it's called, I can't remember its name, only that it was delicious), two coffee drinks (Americano + Cappuccino, good strong coffee), and two ports (chosen by our wonderful waitress, excellent).

A fantastic experience; we will return!

Pros: Service, food, great atmosphere inside, live music Tue + Fri

Cons: little pricy, strip mall atmosphere outside, no scotch

Posted 10/10/07

The food was decent, but way overpriced. The tapas I ordered should have been priced at $3 or $4 at the most, not around $9. The sausage dish was just 5 or 6 small slices of sausage with some diced potatoes sitting in too much butter and grease--I could have made it myself with Hillshire sausage!
The shrimp plate was just 6 smallish-medium shrimps sitting in butter--I could have made it myself with frozen shrimp from the grocery store. The empanadas did seem like they were microwaved, did not have enough filling and were served with unexciting marmalade (it was probably chutney).

My chocolate cake was blah, the accompanying ice cream scoop tasted like plastic-flavored ice cream. Service was good enough, ambiance was not bad, I would come back if they repriced their tapas.

Pros: good enough flavors

Cons: too pricey

Posted 09/08/07

Came across this place Friday, and thought oh no another wine bar in Houston.
But gave it a shot, and wow! what a great atmosphere, cool wine list, and friendly staff. Next visit I tried the food, and it was awesome! small menu that paired well with it's European wine list. Especiallty the sauteed shrimp piri piri, and baked goat cheese. Spoke with the owner, who expects to open a full service Portuguese Spanish Tapas bar in future. He was very friendly, as was the bartender. After reading the previous review, I felt like i should give my experience, cause this place is down to earth and friendly. Then I read that they liked two rows, and thought ah ha definately not a foodie...maybe he prefers fried greasy food, and flat beer. As for the microwave comment...Most things are cold, sauteed, or baked. don/t see anywhere where micro is needed. Can't wait til they open a restaurant. will be back for more unpretentious wines and service...unlike wine bars like Cova.

Pros: affordable wines great atmosphere

Cons: Parking

Posted 04/24/07

For a place that makes their tapas in a $80 microwave behind the beads, the staff there sure has an attitude. the free wifi is appreciated and the only reason why i'm giving them a 3 but these guys need to get overthemselves and try a little less to be a swanky wine bar with all kinds of exotic cuisines when they're that small and have such limited resources. Places like Cova have the right atmosphere for that. You guys at best are a mom and pop coffee shop.

********update*******While my review may be a bit harsh and not reflective of the every day expiriences of this place, it was my personal expirience on that particular day as are all my other reviews. I have nothing to gain or lose from being honest and am not associated with any place I review. I doubt if the other one timer reviewers can say the same.

Pros: Can watch hot girls going in and out of the tanning salon next door

Cons: over priced cheap wines, microwaved tapas, bartenders with attitudes

Posted 03/14/07

The review I read in Cuzine magazine had me curious, so two of my co-workers joined me and called in an order for take-out. Between the three of us, we ordered the Panino Cubano, Eggplant Tosta, Smoked Salmon Panino and the last two slices of the carrot cake. Everything was fresh and delicious. We'll definitely be back. Can't wait to try their evening menu!

Pros: Fresh, good and inexpensive

Posted 01/10/07

Just came across this place on Richmond Try the Caldo Verde (potato and Kale soup). Can't wait til they get there wine license. Parking can be a hassle at lunch, but it was worth it!

Pros: fresh high quality and great specials

Cons: parking at lunch

Posted 09/22/06