La Buca

Enjoyed pasta and Bruschetta with a bottle of wine! The server was great and answered all our questions. Was very attentive and honestly some of the best service we have had in a while! We sat on the patio on a weekday and it was quiet and nice people watching!

CALLING Gordon Ramsey!!! This place needs a serious reality-check!!The pasta was cheap QFC quality boiled to a mush. The spaghetti and meatballs were in a bright orange sauce that was really sugary. Meatballs fresh out of the freezer.On top of being nasty garbage food, we paid 105.00 for two pasta dishes, one salad and a tiramisu- criminal!! They don't tell you about the automatic 20% gratuity.. so basically left a 40% tip lol. Sketchy!!Should've gone to a steakhouse for those prices. Sorry but never again. Don't be fooled!

Soft yellow walls, candles on the tables, lights strewn across the ceiling, music playing in the background, La Buca offers a quiet, quaint, and intimate setting for those looking to enjoy a meal. My server brought over complimentary bread and went over the daily specials and his personal recommendations. He mentioned food I did not even have on my radar, so I decided to try his recommendations. I ordered the burrata which came with sliced tomatoes, the Abituale - penne pasta with spicy Italian sausage in a tomato cream sauce, and a slice of lemon cheesecake for dessert. The burrata was good, but I felt like it could have used another element of something to take it to the next level. I enjoyed the Abituale, and the spicy sausage balanced nicely with the tomato cream sauce. This was not what I originally had planned on ordering, so I was pleased with my server's guidance. The lemon cheesecake was perfectly creamy, but I wished it would have had a bit more lemon flavor, and there was also more crust than I would have liked. After my meal, my server packaged up my leftovers and put everything in a bag to go. Wonderful service in an intimate setting. I will be back for more pasta soon.

Jennifer and her husband owns this nice corner restaurant for over 25 years. And there is a good reason for it. And the reason is a very simpleOne: they serve good food. - You can have Italian food almost on every corner in the USA. - you will find nicer and more "Italien" feeling places But at Bucas you will find Italien inspired food with a personal touch in service and an experienced influence of good flavor. It's a great Neighboor restaurant you want to go to. We had Bruschetta with goat cheese and caramelized onions and bruschetta shows you if the chefs understands the concept of one bite. In Bucas they do and that bite is so good. And I learned through the years it's important to be risky sometimes and order items you normally would not and so I'll be ordering the soup of the moment: Soups toscana with spicy Italian sausage - and I don't like sausages that much especially Italians can have very strong spice profile. But this soup was an experience and one in every way a very good experience. Instead of the typical Italian soups that mostly are clear this one was cream based and so tasteful without overwhelming into any spice hikes. Just delicious. As main, there was the salmon pasta and the Chicken Marsala both made with fresh ingredients and the salmon made to perfection. Did we have dessert, yes - I could not resist and I ordered another bowl of soup - can you imagine? Yes, it was that delicious. The husband and wife owners deserve five stars even when the paper napkins would have been way cooler if they had been replaced with fabric ones. And a side note: they do not serve espresso. And there is a simple reason for it a Starbucks is just a couple of entrances away. And they have in their Corporate rental agreement that there are no espresso makers allowed in the same house/building or block. Tbh I can understand this from a Starbucks corporate viewpoint - with that brand I would want to have the same in my rental agreements. If you allow it you will have fastly others to follow and you want to be the only one in the block to protect the brand and revenue. But the thing is Starbucks at this location close at 4 pm and Buca doesn't even is open at that time. I wish there would be a way to find a solution for local situations like this to make an exemption. Cause what is an Italian restaurant without an espresso machine.

Omg this place is fire the food is amazing me and my family are obsessed with this restaurant really really recommend this place

Excellent food, great service, and a very family-friendly place! Every time we visit our family in Portland, we look for places with a kids menu that have good food for the parents as well. This place is perfect! Excellent cocktails, delicious steak (cooked perfectly medium-rare) and potatoes, fantastic seasonal seafood pasta, and the prices were very reasonable. We will definitely come back!

We got the abituale pasta and the pancetta e funghi pasta. It was delicious! We got some wine, they brought us complimentary bread, and everything was fairly priced. Staff was very friendly.

Came here the night before my birthday and had some lovely food and drinks. The pasta was very tasty and the place was warmly casual and inviting. The arancini appetizer was particularly good.My biggest compliments are for the professional and very sweet waitstaff however. One of our friends had had way too much to drink and began making a scene and berating the staff over some petty issue with the order. We got her out of there and apologized profusely and the staff could not have been more understanding--they could have made us feel terrible but did the absolute opposite. (Even offered me a complimentary slice of birthday cake!) People of Portland, give these fine folks all your money. Highest recommendation.

Food is really good, loved that they were really welcoming. Good customer service. went there with my friend and we shared a pasta plate together and the mash potato is so freaking good too!

Pasta is delicious! My favorite mashed potato in Portland. Quality food, best eaten in person but delivers well on UEats.