After entertaining -- and cooking for -- family over a recent weekend, my wife and I decided to treat ourselves to a night out and investigate the recently opened PortoVino Italian restaurant.
We were blown away!
The space that previously housed Lago Azul, then Origins, then Candice’s Vietnamese Kitchen has undergone a dramatic transformation.
Guests enter a reception lobby which is lined with bottles of wine – just a hint of the restaurant’s emphasis on offering fine wine to go with excellent food.
Patrons pass the cozy bar and a seating area next to a fireplace before entering the main dining room with its own “wine wall” holding about 800 (!) bottles of wine. That means some great choices for those of us who love good wine.
The main dining area has the feeling of an old school steak house complete with subdued lighting, dark woods, and a surly wait staff.
Well, “86” the surly wait staff; our servers at PortoVino were prompt, friendly, attentive, and ready with recommendations. Our main waiter, who was Italian, also politely endured the few words of his native language that I tried to speak.
We started the evening with glasses of Chianti Classico, then split a salad and an appetizer before moving on to our main course.
The Insalate Greca was a slight departure from a true Greek salad, which I can confirm from my time working at The Greek House in Burien. It had romaine lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, Kalamata olives, red onion, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, Feta cheese, and a vinaigrette dressing. A traditional Greek country salad does not have lettuce, but no matter. It was delicious!
For our appetizer, we chose the Gamberoni Fiorentini: Large prawns sautéed in garlic and Florentine liquor, with spinach and tomatoes. The prawns were perfectly cooked: tender and juicy without a hint of the toughness that comes from cooking shrimp too long.
Our main course, from the Primi section of the menu, was the Ravioli con Salsiccia: Sautéed peppers, red onions, spicy sausage, cilantro, and red sauce. Our server made sure we’d seen the word “spicy” and were OK with that, which was thoughtful but unnecessary as the sausage brought only a modest amount of zing to the party.
We were too full to move on to the Secondi section, which offered four different chicken dishes, halibut, and filet mignon.
Though the dessert tray was tempting, we finished the evening with a glass of Limoncello, which was the perfect tipple.
Prices are a bit higher than other Italian restaurants but this is not your average “noodles-and-gravy” house. With its inviting interior and excellent food, PortoVino is a welcome addition to Des Moines’ cuisine scene. We will definitely be back!
Visit my main page at TheTravelPro.us for more news, reviews, and personal observations on the world of upmarket travel.
Photos by Carl Dombek
Click on photos to view larger images
We were blown away!
The space that previously housed Lago Azul, then Origins, then Candice’s Vietnamese Kitchen has undergone a dramatic transformation.
Guests enter a reception lobby which is lined with bottles of wine – just a hint of the restaurant’s emphasis on offering fine wine to go with excellent food.
Patrons pass the cozy bar and a seating area next to a fireplace before entering the main dining room with its own “wine wall” holding about 800 (!) bottles of wine. That means some great choices for those of us who love good wine.
The main dining area has the feeling of an old school steak house complete with subdued lighting, dark woods, and a surly wait staff.
 |
| Refined interior |
Well, “86” the surly wait staff; our servers at PortoVino were prompt, friendly, attentive, and ready with recommendations. Our main waiter, who was Italian, also politely endured the few words of his native language that I tried to speak.
We started the evening with glasses of Chianti Classico, then split a salad and an appetizer before moving on to our main course.
The Insalate Greca was a slight departure from a true Greek salad, which I can confirm from my time working at The Greek House in Burien. It had romaine lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, Kalamata olives, red onion, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, Feta cheese, and a vinaigrette dressing. A traditional Greek country salad does not have lettuce, but no matter. It was delicious!
 |
| Greek salad |
For our appetizer, we chose the Gamberoni Fiorentini: Large prawns sautéed in garlic and Florentine liquor, with spinach and tomatoes. The prawns were perfectly cooked: tender and juicy without a hint of the toughness that comes from cooking shrimp too long.
 |
| Prawn appetizer |
Our main course, from the Primi section of the menu, was the Ravioli con Salsiccia: Sautéed peppers, red onions, spicy sausage, cilantro, and red sauce. Our server made sure we’d seen the word “spicy” and were OK with that, which was thoughtful but unnecessary as the sausage brought only a modest amount of zing to the party.
 |
| Ravioli con Salsiccia |
We were too full to move on to the Secondi section, which offered four different chicken dishes, halibut, and filet mignon.
Though the dessert tray was tempting, we finished the evening with a glass of Limoncello, which was the perfect tipple.
Prices are a bit higher than other Italian restaurants but this is not your average “noodles-and-gravy” house. With its inviting interior and excellent food, PortoVino is a welcome addition to Des Moines’ cuisine scene. We will definitely be back!
Visit my main page at TheTravelPro.us for more news, reviews, and personal observations on the world of upmarket travel.
Photos by Carl Dombek
Click on photos to view larger images
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