We visited Palomino for happy hour last Sunday and it was pretty good. Nothing spectacular, but decent for sure. Our server was great and the food was good. Excellent crab and artichoke dip, and the happy hour margarita was better than most house margaritas. There are better places around, but Palomino certainly isn't bad, and the prices are very reasonable for HH food and drink.

The restaurant was very loud with screaming children and I was seated by the kitchen so constant banging in the background. We placed our drink order and a medium-sized spider walked across the table. We asked our waitress, Brooke, to get the manager. The manager, Eric Welford, was very slow to come to our table, did not seemed too concerned and starting discussing extermination issues with us at the dinner table. Our entree order was wrong so we had to wait longer for our food. Overall, the food portions are too big, greasy, cheesy and the lobster ravioli barely had a piece of lobster in it! While waiting for our check, ANOTHER SPIDER walked across our table. Again, the manager did not have much to say.

I was invited to Palomino for a free meal on opening night. While they had completely gutted the previous restaurant (Manzana) it somehow was largely unchanged inside, except the updated bar area.

The food was very very average, maybe even slightly below average. The cost of both the food and the beer was rather high considering the quality. For example, they are charging $5.50 for a Bridgeport IPA when you could walk 5 blocks to the brewery and get the same beer for less than half that price.

Palomino definitely has a chain restaurant feel. I would recommend passing on this place if I were you, there are just too many better restaurants in Portland.