The Port Restaurant

Well like all Restaurants in Red Wing it’s a fluid experience, as in «your last meal there was your Best or your Worst
In this case the Lamb Shank was a practice Entrée for some Novice Cook that thought Salt was a new Spice, along with Cardamom, Allspice, and Cinnamon .
It must be to novel (in Hip) to use Garlic, and Rosemary, as a Lamb Spice. The Greeks I guess had (have) it all wrong!!!
The side was so over salted I was gagging!
The Experience was a 3. out of 10.
My complaint was ignored by the server, and I had the Privilege of spending $ 55.00 on a meal, that was not bad, not horrible, just so damn inept it was a bad JOKE!
Stay Away. from an outrageously Expensive dining experience, great bar, great cocktails; Id recommend the «BaySide», On the old West-​Side for «maybe the best damn Food» in Town for the Buck. Great Steak Salad, $ 12.95 New Menu. But again everything is fluid in Red Wing.
These Guys are Rocking the Boats in Town in a good refreshing way!
FN

I took my wife here for her 31^st birthday dinner on a Saturday. We had never been to the port before and were in dyer need of a date! We heard it was pretty good from a friend that lived in red wing so we were excited.
The restaurant is in the basement of the St James hotel which is actually the old wine cellar of the hotel. The décor is dark and very vintage with a prohibition style feel. The lighting is dim, more of a romantic feel.
Our reservation was the first reservation but the restaurant filled up pretty fast. Our waitress was very friendly and very attentive but not obnoxious. She was very informative and helpful with menu. My wife ordered the New York Strip that was accompanied by potatoes seasoned with fresh herbs. The steak was about a 10oz steak and was deliciously tender and juicy. I ordered the tenderloin the was on a bed of mushrooms in some kind of red consommé sauce. It was absolutely wonderful! So tender and juicy!
We also each ordered a drink, my wife had a glass of Riesling and I ordered the blood and sand from the prohibition drink list on the menu. Both were great.
Being we were there for my wife’s birthday we were awarded with a free dessert which of course we had to have. We chose the Guinness lava cake which we were told was made from scratch. It was so good that we still crave it.
It was nice to find a high-​end restaurant close to home instead of driving to the cities! It was very expensive so we would probably return for another special occasion or just for drinks because those were worth going back for!

This place is supposedly upscale. The food is okay, the atmosphere is outdated, and the staff doesn’t meet the standards for the prices on the menu. It was a Friday night, and there were only two other tables seated. The waitress stopped by our table way too many times. She was constantly interrupting us for the stupidest thing. It was bizarre.

Don’t waste your time at this restaurant. There must be better places for dinner in Redwing!!! I visited The Port with a group on a Wednesday night.
Atmosphere:
The restaurant is interesting looking. It is dark, stone walls, interesting ambience. The service makes it feel less than friendly. We weren’t sure if the chill was from the ghosts or the staff!
Food:
Everything was over salted. When my friend ordered the spanakopita, the waitress made a point of saying that is a vegetarian dish. When my other pescatarian friend ordered the cod, she made no mention of the fact there was bacon in the dish and it was served over a beef broth. Apparently they do not get many non meat eaters? One member in our party ordered the cod, there were bones in the fish. We pointed this out to the waitress and she apathetically apologized and offered to get him something new from the kitchen. Overall, the food was not good. The gnocchi was mushy, everything was salty. The food was way over priced for the quality.
Service:
I would give the service 1 star… only because at least someone showed up to take our order, etc. There were several «apologies» from our waitress for things like a mistake in the kitchen, not delivering (but being charged for) a drink that was ordered, etc. etc. We did not realize the restaurant closed at 9 p.m. The waitress reminded everyone of this when 2 people in the party didn’t arrive until 8:15. The bartender was great! I’m sure other staff may enjoy their jobs and be warm to guests. We did not have that experience.
Overall, very disappointing. If you literally have no other options… order the appetizers and get a few drinks. I would not waste time or money on the entrees.

The Port is lauded as the most upscale restaurant in Red Wing, and that’s probably true. Most of the people in the restaurant were wearing jackets and trousers.
We took a client to this restaurant to show the flavor of Red Wing. I’m not from Minnesota, so it was my first time, too.
ATMOSPHERE:
The restaurant is dark, with stone walls and wooden furniture. It looks maybe Prohibition-​inspired which a touch of upscale rural décor. The tables are very close together — our waitress couldn’t access two sides, and had to reach over people to give refills and plates.
SERVICE:
We started off with wine. I ordered the chardonnay and my coworkers ordered the pinot noir. Both were on special, according to the slip taped in the menu. However, since we did not specify the brand name from the specials slip, the waitress opted to give us a more expensive brand, which she didn’t mention until we were about to order a second round. (So instead of $ 8 glasses, she brought us $ 13 glasses.)
We had the seasonal winter menu. I ordered a house salad and the spanakopita. The waitress said, «I have to warn you, the spanakopita, that’s a vegetarian dish,» which was awkward. I knew it was vegetarian and wanted vegetarian. But I did not want that preference broadcasted when a conservative client was sitting at the table, because then we had to have a whole conversation about it. She did not take that same level of informing to the other guests’ dinners, and they ended up being surprised at what they ordered.
The waiters didn’t know which dish went to which person. Of the 10 plates they set down over the evening (two courses, five people), they never managed to set the right dish in front of the correct person.
FOOD:
The house salad was bitter winter frisee with an orange vinaigrette. Instead of croutons, there were five squares of hot bland polenta. (My coworkers got the «caesar salad» which was a single leaf of lettuce, a pork chop, and a fish filet.)
My spanakopita was fine. Not great, not as good as when it’s served by an Arab restaurant. Two large pieces sat on top of a citrusy bean sauce. Almost a hummus, but not quite. The bottoms of the pieces were soggy from sitting in the sauce.
One of my coworkers ordered the pasta dish, and it turned out, it had whole prawns on it. All of the prawns were turned to face her when they set the plate down, which distressed her. She complained that the waitress verified vegetarian food with me, but not whole scary prawns with her.
My other dining companions ordered the steak and potatoes entrée. A large steak was set upon halved red potatoes.
When the waitress brought the dessert menus, she disappeared for more than 30 minutes. We had fully intended to order dessert, but by the time she came back, we were ready to go.

Came here for our 10 Year anniversary dinner and I was disappointed. Yes it was fancy however I didn’t find it romantic and the food was mediocre and not worth the price.

Awesome food, cocktails, and great service. The atmosphere is quiet and simple and romantic. We have been here a couple times with different menus and each time the food is delicious.

Dine with ghosts! The ambiance may seem old-​fashioned but don’t miss the funky noises, weird cold spots and the best food around. The best cheese ever — try the blue cheese appetizer, a crazy caramel treat! Most items are incomparable. Just have to try them. I had a Bloody Mary appetizer GET THIS: Crab claw, homemade tomato and horseradish ice cream with shredded celery. Every bite a taste treat. AMAZING!

The price performance of The Port was good. Overall the food was very enjoyable and properly prepared including some unique creations like the tomato sorbet and grated horseradish cream that were served with the Bloody Mary Stone Crab. The desserts were outstanding. We had a baked Alaskan and a Lava Cake. The naming of some of the dishes was too similar to traditional dishes but we’re so different that some could be disappointed and the menu descriptions didn’t help. This was the case with their Cesar salad. In reality, it was a dark flavored dish with the pork belly and minimal greens and dressing, not the bright flavor in traditional Cesar. So be clear about what you are getting before ordering. The evening was enjoyable but they need to better consistently train their staff. I had waiter envy all evening as I watch a very professional and capable waitress attend to another table nearby. Our particular waiter was very enthusiastic, but not very good. He forgot to give us the proper utensils 3 times after our dishes came. So we had to sit and wait for someone to go by to ask for them each time. The wine pairings with our 4 course menu were not all good pairings. For example, the Riesling was not nice with the Cesar Salad. And the waiter asked if we were having a Chardonnay or a Cabernet with our Lobster. To me, a pairing is when a professional makes exact selections with exact dishes and they sing together.
There was a very serious, stern looking lady walking around the restaurant all evening making everyone uneasy. She needs to train her staff properly upfront with clear expectations and not hover like a school marm. Overall, I would dine at The Port again because of some of the creative dishes and the beautiful setting.

Superb!
Fabulous service, meal & drinks.
Spent a Friday evening in Red Wing, enjoyed Jimmy’s Bar & when we were sat for dinner impressed with the wine list. Many more options than expected.
Port offered fall specials which is expected & appreciate at a high end restaurant.
Great atmosphere — we will be dining again!

The Port is an odd duck.
First of all, it’s buried in the basement of the St. James Hotel. Second of all, it doesn’t look like the décor has been altered since the 70s (Classy Euro Steakhouse Iteration?); I seriously expected them to bring us wine in a bottle wrapped in rope. Heavy stone walls, heavy woodwork, brass on everything, hunting prints and historical sepia photos on the wall.
Third of all, and despite the above, the food was surprisingly good. Unlike the frozen-​in-​amber feel of the room, the menu is a very serviceable mix of well executed New American-​style offerings. Nothing TOO crazy, but not remotely as stodgy as the environs would suggest.
My girlfriend had the short ribs with truffled cauliflower, and I had the pork chop. I think we both could have gone for several of the other entrees, really (the «beggar’s purse» looked intriguing), which is always a nice sign. Of the two, I preferred her ribs, but both dishes were solid. My only real quibble with my pork chop was that it didn’t really come with a sauce or pureed item, and the contrast between grilled meat and lightly dressed greens was too wide a gap. But the chop was perfectly cooked, and the other items were well seasoned and presented; I’m a stickler for precision in dicing, and was very pleased with my teeny cubes of apple. Both entrees were moderately sized, too; somewhere in between pretentiously wee (a frequent larger city failing) and «reassuringly» massive (typical in smaller town fine dining places that don’t want to scare people away).
Girlfriend enjoyed her specialty cocktail, and we both liked my «mocktail» quite a bit. It was definitely more than just your typical «umm, throw some fruit juice in some soda water» afterthought. Our starter was not bad, but not memorable. And our desserts were kind of meh, too. But our server was pleasant and willing to entertain our dumb tourist questions.
Overall, the Port is a pleasant and refreshing surprise. Red Wing is a charming place, but — at least based on our experiences over a couple of visits — the food there rarely aspires to anything higher than mediocre pizza. It’s hands-​down the best place we’ve eaten at in the immediate area, and certainly much better than the Veranda restaurant, upstairs. Which is kind of strange, since both operate out of the same hotel, and presumably share some management and cooking staff. If you are looking for a higher-​end dining experience in Red Wing, this is the spot, and it’s a pretty good one.

Great food and view. Quiet so we could carry on conversation. Had walleye and Prime Rib. Fast and attentive service.

We had a wonderful time and a great meal. The mussels as an appetizer were wonderful. I had the Kobe flat iron steak. It was excellent. One of my companions had the duck and loved it and another had the salmon and also raved.

Great great food! Hotel is stunning! Room is clean, and cute as can be with a view of the Missippi River! Outstanding service in the restaurant «Veranda» by Laura! Highly recommend it all!

this place looks awesome. it kind of boasts from the sidelines about being a prohibition bar and restraunt. however its not. the bar the actual bar and mirrors as well as the woodwork got brought to red wing from a prohibition bar in new york city. its got an old school gangsta feel…
but this is where the good ends.
I suggest stopping for a drink… perhaps to look but not much more. I can’t imagine eating somewhere that smells of this place.
it smells terrible… musty and like rotten meat.
there are very limited menu items.. seven if I recall correctly… and definatly nothing on the menu that appealed to four of the five guests … I can not tell you about the food… we litterly got up and left. unimpressed.

Had the bison ribeye, just outstandingly prepared! Very friendly place, good conversation. A little pricey, but it’s worth the treat.

Location: beautiful historic downtown Red Wing. In the historic St James Hotel. Elegant period décor.
Nice drink menu with excellent tap beer lineup.
Mussels were a fantastic start.
Bison ribeye was perfectly cooked and seasoned. Fantastic presentation.
Kobe flat iron was brilliant as well.
Make sure to leave room for dessert.
Service was great.