Simon's Cliff House - HOOD RIVER

In 2012, my husband and I had our wedding reception at this hotel and have been staying there and dining at the restaurant every year since. However, 2023 will be our last year here. The menu used to offer high-class dishes such as steelhead, high-end steaks, and seafood. Now, it only has an overpriced burger, tough and cheap sirloin steak that is inedible, and fish and chips that are mostly soggy batter with minimal fish. The food is of poor quality, cheap, and overpriced, which is disappointing considering the hotel's reputation. Fewer people dine at this restaurant now, and it's clear why. It's a shame.

The restaurant is in a beautiful location, with excellent service and delicious food. I have had lunch here several times and was lucky enough to have the same fantastic server named Michal for brunch. She was attentive and quick to fulfill our requests. Our party of 5 had different needs, but the restaurant was able to accommodate us with a large table to meet our special requirements.

The ambiance was pleasant, with a clean and tidy environment that seemed to cater more towards an older clientele. The non-alcoholic cocktails were quite good, however, the food was disappointing. I ordered the sirloin steak with mushroom sauce, but it arrived with an unusual smell and seemed to be of low quality. The steak was tough to cut and appeared to be old, tasting rubbery as if it had been frozen and defrosted numerous times. I asked for it to be returned. My wife's burger was also subpar, with a gamey taste that did not seem to come from fresh beef. The bread was doughy and stale, and the vegetables lacked flavor. The server was apologetic and understanding, but it was clear that they were understaffed. Overall, I would have preferred going to In-N-Out instead. It was quite disappointing.

The restaurant was short staffed and the one waiter was taking orders without writing them down. She messed up 3 of the 5 orders. The food took over an hour and it was cold when we got it. The vegetarian dish was a joke. It was one slice of toast soaked in olive oil with a few peppers and slices of onions for $15. It was a very poor experience. Highly recommend going anywhere else! The ambiance was ok.

The restaurant appeared to be completely understaffed. The ambiance of the lounge was modern and inviting but the experience was spoiled by stacks of dirty dishes on the bar. After pushing over used glassware and being served a drink, I had to ask the server to wipe down the portion of the bartop in front of us. Moving on to the dining room, I was disappointed not to see any salmon or othe fresh fish fillet on the menu at this Columbia River Gorge restaurant. The choices were limited and we chose pasta and elk chili with a side salad. The price of the pasta was unreadible on the menu. When I asked the price, the serve gave me a lower price than the actual charge. Despite ordering basic items, we had to wait almost an hour for the food. Sadly, it was slow and ordinary.