Joel Palmer House Restaurant

We chose this restaurant to celebrate our anniversary dining outdoors under the tent. The atmosphere was similar to someone’s backyard. Pretty but nothing extraordinary. The service was amazing. The food was very artistic and most of it was very good. It took us almost 3 hours to complete our 10 course meal. We ordered 1 custom mixed cocktail each, which was fun and had a moderately priced bottle of wine costing about $80. Our total experience cost just over $700. It was fun but I will never spend this amount of money on a meal again.

Lovely fine dining restaurant in an old school home. Their wine library and list is extensive and their Sommelier was very knowledgeable. Food was very good and desserts sublime. Highlight was the duck, the mushroom soup and the elk tartare.

What a unique and fun experience, Alex was fantastic with service. Things were a little slow at times since it was the first warm day of spring and everyone was outside except us. Food was delicious and we waddled out with dessert to go because we were so stuffed. Mushroom touches to everything as advertised, never overpowering though. Definitely rich with the soups and mains. Huge wine cellar but we couldn’t drink anymore after a full day of tastings. Mostly super high end wines but a few more approachable price points hidden in the list. Cocktails were unique and excellent.

Overall, it was a great experience. This was our 25th anniversary dinner, and we really enjoyed everything about it. Mr. Wilson is a mad mixologist as well, one you can put your trust in the bartender with.

I hesitate to write anything as it’s similar to taking a photo of natural beauty, the photo never does the view justice. From the service; Josh was an extremely knowledgeable, personable and kind sommelier, to the personal touches of ambiance the space provides to the procession of tasty, visually appealing and creative meals; I would highly recommend this restaurant experience being worth the cost. Match your personal celebration with a place worthy of an equal high dining experience.

An excellent meal. Special cocktails! Delightful. Great wine selection with help of sommelier. A fun time was had.

Where to begin: from the hot napkins to the little extras they bring out, it's like speed dating but you actually get to enjoy the date (food). As you sit and ponder what you just happened, another beautiful surprise shows up at your table. Look at my pictures. It's like a chef that is also an Artist! Visually stunning. How can someone blend two entirely different oddities? They do, and you need to come in to experience for yourself.

Show up if you're ready for an experience of culinary art. Such an amazing time with my girlfriends! Fantastic wine list, 🍷 excellent food (definitely try the mushroom soup and beef stroganoff if it's on the menu). We will be back again 😋

We've been going here for over 15 years, and still love it! It's an incredible experience in a beautiful setting with great service! We had the Mushroom Madness menu, and the only disappointment was not enough mushroom emphasis. With the help of Josh we found an affordable ($45) bottle of red blend that was really good. I really loved the salad with Oregon blue cheese and hazelnuts. The mushroom tart was a pretty dark on the edge but tasty. I was happy to have enough room for dessert-loved the raspberry tiramisu and ate the whole thing. My husband ate the whole mushroom terrarium and loved it

A local winemaker recommended we book this experience and we are so grateful she did. We were in town from Utah for our 15th wedding anniversary. The staff went out of their way to ensure that the experience was special and added thoughtful little touches. I was even more pleased to learn more about the roots of this family, as I am also from near Reading Pennsylvania. The wine list is extensive as promised, and Levi was so helpful in helping us navigate a perfect bottle of wine to pair with our Omakase meal. Funny enough, he actually selected some thing that we had just barely purchased six bottles of at the winery just an hour before! So we swapped that for something that we had never tried before and loved it. I feel that this funny coincidence strongly points to his expertise in knowing his guests' taste, as well as a firm handle on the local wineries. Unlike some prior reviews, we did not feel pushed in any direction with the menu, but simply decided that while we were here we may as well take full advantage of everything we could taste because it all came so highly recommended. There wasn't a single bite that we didn't want just a little bit more of, everything was delicious and beautifully presented. Some of the highlights for me were the soup, the oyster, mussels, the duck, and the gjetost on our dessert board. Gjetost is one of my absolute favorite cheeses from my Norwegian childhood, and I've never seen it presented at any restaurant before. No one could've possibly known that, again it just points to how well the food is sourced and how deep their knowledge base of food is. Basically, I feel like everyone at the Joel Palmer house can read your mind and give you an absolute five star experience. It is one that we will not soon forget.

Joel Palmer House offers an unrivaled service experience. Every detail is carefully considered, starting from the moment you arrive at the property. My sibling and I were greeted at the door by name and escorted to our table, where the menu options were explained to us. We had called ahead to request a vegan option for my sibling, and the staff at Joel Palmer House was more than happy to accommodate. The host was gracious and went out of his way to make us feel welcome and valued as patrons -- not something you take for granted in your early twenties! The wine list was comprehensive, matching the expertise of both the sommelier and the bar director. While my sibling chose a glass of wine, I opted for a cocktail, and both beverages were absolutely delightful, complementing the meal beautifully. The courses were inventive and highlighted local ingredients. I choose my words deliberately here--the food was not merely sourced locally, but it *presented* Pacific Northwest mushrooms and proteins, utilizing them to their fullest potential. This made for a delightful dining experience, although I must acknowledge that the dishes did not necessarily possess the complexity or richness that one might expect from an establishment of this caliber. Nonetheless, it appears to be a point of pride for Joel Palmer House to ensure that no guest leaves dissatisfied or hungry, and they certainly delivered on that promise. I have never left a meal feeling as completely sated as I did after dining here. Not only was my hunger satisfied, but so was my desire for beauty, and for engaging conversation. A dining experience here truly feels like a slice of life as royalty, and I cannot recommend Joel Palmer House highly enough.

The presentation and quality of the finished dishes was impressive. The service was impeccable. Several dishes were both beautiful and delicious

I saw quite a few takes on here and it was a bit difficult to sift through the noise. Don't believe the people who dismiss this experience; Joel Palmer House is unique, local, delicious and certainly memorable. Greetings are (a tad bit too) formal yet pleasant. Inside and outside dining options are available. Reservations are required. I would suggest inside dining regardless of the weather conditions because the interior of the home is tastefully designed. I thought we were pushed a bit too aggressively towards the Oregon Omakase experience and while I understand the spectacular cheese presentation is amazing and actually love omakase as a concept, we simply could not take full advantage of that option on this visit. So we went with the five course experience instead. There was an amuse bouche as well as a mid-course addition. Both were incredible enough that we wished they had been options on the regular menu. The first was a playful rendition of tartare using carrot instead of a raw meat and the second was a dueling gazpacho soup. The green gazpacho soup was one on the evening highlights and considering the superb dishes we received, that is meant to be high praise for the Joel Palmer House. Cocktails and wine were fantastic. We just went with a dealer's choice on the cocktails and the one I ended up drinking is the best cocktail I've had in calendar year 2024 and quite honestly one of the best I've had period. I only had one glass of wine - a trendy little rose of pinot noir from Brickhouse - and it was an excellent accompaniment to the sturgeon. It's paragraph 6 so let me talk about mains. First, they were all delicious. An elk tartare starter just exploded with savory overload. The mushroom tart incorporates such an interesting balance of earthy flavors. The sturgeon is a colorful dish with the guajillo oil and tomatillo flavors really carrying the day. Tandoori duck breast was cooked sous vide and paired perfectly with delicate chanterelles. The chef was cool and interesting, the entire staff made us feel welcome and had an absolute expert knowledge of every aspect of the food and beverage program, and there was a level of detail to the service that really made us feel appreciated. I'd definitely return to take clients, out of town guests, or for a romantic evening. 5 glowing red stars for this experience.

We are in the Willamette Valley for a wine trip and some sight seeing. This place has a lot of history over 4 generations and has its roots in Reading, PA, which is our neck of the woods. Parking was easy in the smallish lot we walked a few steps from our car for our 645pm reservation. Ambiance is an old house from the1840's. We sat at a corner table just inside the front door. There are also tables set up outside under a large tent. Bathrooms are spacious, clean and easily accessible. The dining room was well lit but not harsh. Sometimes we dine in places that have such low light we can't read the menu or see food we are served. Not so here. The service is top notch and from the first time we walked in the door we felt pampered by the professional and delightful staff. They have a few very nice tasting menus we chose to go with the Omakase Tasting. This is comprised of 10 courses over 2.5 - 3hrs. We had the sommelier select an older less tannic, slightly fruity wine for us he chose a 2013 Sokol Blosser Pinot which was perfect. You can eat as much as you want. Each course is small but quite delicious and unique. We loved the mushroom choices which is a theme. The mussels were a high point for me. My wife loved the oyster which was divine and we could have eaten a dozen of those. The chef came by for a chat which was very nice. He clearly loves his art and made us feel special. We were getting full at course 8 and skipped the cheese course. The dessert board was a fantastic presentation and again we could not finish it. Pasties are made on site. All in $638 including tip. 20% service is included which is fine with us in a place like this. The entire experience was great and special. Highly recommend for an occasion. We are on the third day of a two week trip so I expect it will be hard to beat this dining experience. We will try. Mark & Nancy.

I thoroughly enjoyed my "Oregon Omakase" meal as a single diner. The service, ambiance, and food were unrivaled in my opinion. The portions are intentionally small but I found myself full before the dessert board. I got to taste such a variety of food! I highly recommend The Joel Palmer House as a special experience in Oregon wine country. Don't miss out on the cocktails.

Food was an artistic display of culinary delights! The service was special. The ambiance was suitable. I would love to eat at the Joel Palmer House again. My favorite was the duck, my biggest surprise was the popcorn escargot, and homemade pop rocks. Each dish was unique.

We booked a 3 day wine tasting trip and thought visiting three wineries a day would be a good amount. The second night we decided to celebrate my wifes birthday at the Joel Palmer house. We were greeted at the front porch by a host and he took us to our table which was very nice. We had a nice view from our table and the candle was a nice touch. It was a chefs tasting menu from their "Mushroom Madness Menu" and every course was absolutely amazing. They worked in truffles in a lot of the dishes which we love. We had a very nice bottle of Archery Summit Pinot Noir which was perfect with the mushroom presence in the dinner. I had a nice chat with the sommelier, he was very knowledgeable and pleasant to talk to. We capped it off with the most amazing dessert tray I've seen in a long time. This was a very memorable evening.

The best meal I've ever had. Service is excellent and the people are friendly. The plates are artistically prepared with local ingredients and the seating is romantic. I sat outside and it was delightful. I also had the best desert wine of my life there. This is the spot if you really want to impress your date or treat your family to a special meal.

This might be the fanciest meal I have had in the area. When you get up to go to the bathroom and they give you a new napkin and brush the crumbs from the table, that's probably going to be the case. The experience was magical, and it was truly an experience. The service was also really great. We had a couple people that were really personable and I like that..(I think they all work together in a section, so you will see multiple people). My friend and I did the mushroom madness menu! The only thing from the other menu I was excited for was the cheese wagon (i forget the name they had for it, but 12 cheeses on a rolling cart is a YES PLEASE from me, and yes I tried every single one) and they were kind enough to let us do that because I don't actually like sweets/dessert. My favorite on the menu was the beef stroganoff. I could eat that over and over.

Came here for my birthday dinner... Again! We try to revisit every year or so and it never disappoints. Prices are a lot higher than when I started coming here 17 years age, but prices are higher everywhere. Its a wash. Mushroom madness tasting menu is still one of the best tasting menus I've ever had that has such a focus and encompassment of fungi anywhere. Unbelievable wine selection and knowledge regarding pairing with food. Always take the sommelier recommendations and try some of the high end wines by the glass. Splurge without really spending too much. Ambitious menus and wine options that pay off in spades. With add ons like wagyu and caviar make this a special occasion place that memories are made of. We shall be back. Like always. I suggest you try it out.

This was imaginative and wonderful. Each dish unique and very well put together. Impressive service and attention to detail. Wonderful people and wine list exceptional. Highly recommend if you are an adventurous person who loves excellent unique dishes. Lovely

Do not go to this restaurant if you are expecting high quality food related to the price. For a place that calls itself a "mushroom" restaurant, there was little to no mushrooms included in the courses. In fact, we counted just 2 or 3 small ones in the main dish.The food was amateur compared to their high Michelin Star type prices. Their is no wine pairing option and the sommelier would not advise which wine by the glass would match the cuisine. Many errors in the food preparation. The mushroom tart was burnt black on one side and obviously dried out. The "palate cleanser" was a cucumber/carrot shot that was so garlicky and salty that it surely defeated the purpose of a palate cleanser. More like a palate destroyer. Did not set up the final dishes at all. The table service was just OK with a variety of people assisting at the table. Not sure who our main waiter was? And, there was an automatic non-optional 20% service charge added to the bill. Certainly not 20% worthy service considering the high cost of the meal. The ambiance is really nice. Upscale old farmhouse. Very comfortable. It's too bad everything else about the experience did not match up. All in all - Very Disappointing. Save your hard earned money and eat elsewhere for a much better culinary experience. Note: Do not use Tablz for the reservation and request a specific table and pay the fee. We were not seated at the table we requested?

This is a top notch place. Amazing preparation and nice size servings. Perfect service and attention to detail. The house is beautiful and it's the best ambiance. Everything is mushroom based and so delicious.

We had the Oregon Omakase experience. The service is fantastic. Unfortunately the food is, I hate to use these term but...pretentious and we weren't. And the wine is incredibly overpriced. I love good food and wine. This is not it for us. But I appreciate that the experience can be intoxicating.

OK Yelp peeps, I am moved to post this review out of sheer awe and culinary astonishment. Simply one of the most pleasant and creative dining experiences I've had, ever. There are so many things I appreciate about Joel Palmer House, I can't go there. You'd hate me. But here's some bullet points: -the best, most creative mushroom dishes you will have the pleasure of consuming. -a wine list for us wine osz -they do that thing where the gratuity is set. The staff all get benefits and living wages and were all very relaxed and happy. This permeated the experience. Very relaxed and thoughtful. Loved it. -atmosphere, very cool

This beautiful old house is the setting for a terrific dining experience, and also Oregon's largest pinot noir collection. We opted for the tasting menu, which consisted of more than a dozen different items, many emphasizing mushrooms. Our favorite courses included the mushroom trio (especially the soup and the tart), the A5 Wagyu, the dual gazpacho intermezzo, and the spectacular dessert plate. Service was very professional and welcoming, and the wine list is certainly spectacular.

As a native Oregonian, taking a girls trip with a friend that has never been was an awesome treat! I've always wanted to go to the Joel Palmer House, so I suggested it, and was so delighted when she was in! We had such a wonderful experience here, each and every one of the servers were absolutely amazing, the food was just incredible! The space was lovely! Wait... I will say two exceptions... The main Sommelier wasn't very friendly The duck wasn't our thing... But, every single other thing was epic!

One of the best dining experiences I've ever had. Just happened to only offer a prix fix menu "after" making a reservation for the wife's birthday. Literally almost canceled. So glad I didn't! Upgraded to their 10-course Oregon Omakase Menu for their "Mushroom Madness" theme for the month of March. Portions are small but bursting with so many complex flavors. And once you're on your 6th or 7th course, you're getting satisfied. By dessert, they're rolling you out. Everything from the complimentary sparkling to the caviar and escargot to their chocolate "playground" for dessert, was phenomenal. The service, from being seated, to the waitstaff to the sommelier duo, could not have exceeded our expectations any more than they did. Can't wait to return after the renovations are complete and also enjoy their a la carte menu. Thank you for such a memorable experience, Joel Palmer House!

Outstanding food. Stellar service. This is a perfect fine dining experience with exemplary food, focused on freshly foraged mushrooms. If you are a mushroom lover, you will love this. The mushroom madness tasting menu is amazing. Great options for vegetarians too. The preparation is out of the world. The mushroom soup they serve is their family's recipe handed down a few generations. It was the best mushroom soup I have ever tasted. The tart was amazing too. Everything on the menu tasted great but these two dishes stand out for their mind blowing flavors and textures. The wine list was impressive, which shouldn't come as a surprise considering we are in Wilamette Valley. It was hard to get a reservation here and we planned our Wilamette Valley trip around this. It was a memorable experience and totally worth the wait and anticipation. Will be back here soon in another season.

Portions are too small. You'll spend $400 for dinner to have lunch size portions made for children & the elderly. We used to love it here and then something changed. Portions changed but prices remained the same. Not worth it anymore.

I would give 10 stars if possible. What an amazing dining experience. Top dollar but a once in a lifetime experience. 6,000 wines to choose from, exquisite service and attention to detail. Every moment is magical.

Exquisite - presentation, smell, texture, taste, service...perfection Great place for a special occasion. Will definitely be back!

I have long wanted to try this place, and once I discovered that they offer a five course "Mushroom Madness" Tasting Menu, I resolved to make a reservation! I'm glad I did. Service was formal, but still friendly, and very attentive. They were seating customers both in the historic house and outside in a covered area that looked out over the front lawn and gardens. Our table was outside and we found the atmosphere lovely. Heaters were available and it seemed quieter there than inside the restaurant. The food was delicious, inventive and beautifully presented. The earthy flavors of mushrooms highlighted but did not overwhelm each dish. I loved everything I ordered, and the entrees I sampled from my dining companion's selections were delicious as well. The bread was a wonderful accompaniment to the meal and came in two flavors, one braided with truffle filling and one studded with olives. I had the three mushroom tart, the mixed green salad with a Candy cap mushroom vinaigrette, the Beef Stroganoff, and the duck breast. The tart was rich and delightfully savory. The salad was beautiful to look at with very well-balanced fresh flavors. The beef and the duck breast were both cooked to perfection: moist and tender. For dessert we tried the Candy cap mushroom Crème Brûlée and the Chocolate Mousse. The Mousse was artfully molded into logs and yummy. The Crème brûlée was a revelation. The Candy cap mushroom flavor was noticeable, but went wonderfully with the rich custard and caramelized sugar. I've never had anything quite like it. It was topped with a caramel cotton candy that was great as well. For a unique and special food experience, this is a wonderful place to go. The setting is beautiful, and the food and service top-notch!

After coming here for a Memorial Day weekend dinner which cost almost $500 for 3 people, I feel this place is way overrated for what they offer. First of all, I completely agree with one of the earlier reviews that the staff is friendly & nice (except the lead sommelier/manager who was kind of hostile), but totally lacks adequate training for a fine dining establishment. When you spend $100 for a bottle, you would think that someone (like the sommelier in a real fine dining establishment), would come by at some point and refill your glass? but NO, no one came by, after they sent us 2 sommeliers (yes 2) to entice us to finding the perfect bottle. I had to ask FOUR times for servers to refill our wine glasses. Like would you ever experience that at michelin starred restaurant anywhere? However, I have to compliment the water server since she stopped by our tableat least 12 times during dinner. When I told the owner Chef Chris, he said it was because they were slammed for Mem Day weekend and people were busy, but in reading the other reviews, mine is not an isolated compliant, but a recurring one. Chef Chris also wrote inside the bill NOT to leave any negative reviews on OpenTable but only leave 5-star reviews for the restaurant. Reading that was WEIRD! Who would ask for only self-congratulatory reviews? Anyways, I liked most of my dishes except I felt that their salad with balsamic vinegar was way tart and when I gave my feedback to the lead sommelier, I got the impression that it didn't go over well. After that point, the sommelier made it a point NOT to ask us anything like "do you like your wine or food"? He wished everyone at other table a great night and gave them his cards to contact him for a reservation in the future except us. Got the clear message that we are persona non grata and that they would prefer we don't come back.Thanks!

The service was spot on. Quaint, well appropriated decor. The food was amazing. If you go there you must order the everything meal. You will not be disappointed. Well worth the money. An amazing wine list. Thank you Christopher and staff for a wonderful 35 wedding anniversary.

Went here with the girlfriend. Had an amazing experience. We ordered the omakase menu which is a little bit of everything. Highly recommend that way you can try all of it. Few pictures missing

My spouse and I enjoyed a beautiful, leisurely dinner at the Joel Palmer House. The meal started with a complimentary glass of champagne, as we were celebrating our anniversary. The service was attentive and knowledgeable, but without hovering - at one point or another, all of the wait staff answered questions, or brought us something. They were able to safely accommodate both shellfish and gluten allergies, which was a real plus. We ordered the Omakase tasting menu, and fabulous small plates came out one by one. Highlights were the mushroom soup, and the duck. The sommelier recommended great regional Pinot noir that complimented our meal, and our palates. There is a 20% service fee included in the bill. We hope to go back before long!

Wow what a wonderful evening with delicious, unique cuisine and excellent service. Chef Christopher checked on us personally. Best dinner we've had since our last trip to France!

Fantastic service! I was really blown away by the quality of service. We had two Sommeliers, And three waiters 10 to us. Everything flowed perfectly. Just by looking at the pictures that I've posted you can see the quality of the food. The ambience was wonderful. The feel of eating at a persons private home was very pleasant. I would highly recommend this place.

The food was good but not spectacular especially considering the price. I was looking for the wow factor and never got that. I think the dessert was the best part. the steak was the biggest disappointment for me I did enjoy the beef tartare

What The French Laundry is to Napa, this place is to Willamette Valley. Absolutely astonishing food and one of the best meals I've ever had!

My wife and I are from the Bay Area and we were visiting the Willamette Valley to visit a series of small family run wineries over a long weekend and this was one of our "nice dinner" nights. We opted for the mushroom centric menu and although my sense of the menu was that it skewed to older style and more heavy and traditional type dishes - they were all done quite well and despite the cream and more old school menu it was a delicious night out with pleasant service and solid staffing with a P for professionalism ! Highlights from the menu included the mushroom tart and mushroom soup, the amuse bouchée of carrot tartar, the beef tartar and the elk Wellington as well as the duck and beef stroganoff- which everyone raves about for a reason - it was decadent ! Dessert was beautiful - the creme brûlée was nice as was the chocolate mousse "logs" w mushrooms and chocolate "dirt". They were kind enough to also share a special treat for our special occasion which was lovely and the Somme actually pointed us to their house Pinot which at $60 was tasty and seemingly quite farely priced overall. Visit this place with an appetite for mushrooms and fine service !!

Let me start of with a WOW!!! This place was absolutely amazing. I took my boyfriend here because he loves mushrooms and the menu did not disappoint. I only managed a few photos due to enjoying the atmosphere and superb food, hats off to the chef. The staff was very friendly, helpful with wine selection and attentive to our needs. We will be coming back again!

Having dined here is the past we were shocked and disappointed by the prix fix only menu. Check the menu before you leave home, very limited. The limited choice of items offered fine dining if you like what is served.

Had an anniversary dinner at the Joel Palmer House recently was impressed with the service and the food. From the host to the bartender to head wine steward, to our food server all were excellent and demonstrated total professionalism. What can you say about the food that has not already been said??? Each course was prefect and having the chef come to the tables to meet customers was nice. Only unpleasant thing to happen was having a "Karen" at the next table who for some reason did not appreciate the head sommelier and voice her displeasure loud enough to be heard at other tables. The poor man was trying to understand the reason behind her displeasure with him but nothing he said seemed to satisfy her. Outside of the "Karen" issue the anniversary dinner and service was excellent and we will be going back to JPH soon.

Fine dining at its best. We enjoyed selections from the Mushroom Madness menu, each one a delight to the taste. Impeccable service, beautiful presentation, great taste and texture, with plenty of umami. Fine wines from the extensive cellar added to our pleasure. This is a wonderful special occasion dining destination.

First, I'd like to state I have eaten here 4 times over the last 3 years so I have history with this fine dining establishment. My last two visits have been during the pandemic. During the summer I ate outside on the open patio and all the servers were masked and following covid safe procedures. My recent visit was on a cold rainy night so the reservation was for inside the house in one of the small enclosed rooms that are available. For some reason I assumed the owner of this restaurant would be following the State's mask mandate for staff for indoor dining. The first people to approach us, seat us, and explain the menu were both wearing masks. It wasn't until after the 1st course was served, I noticed the server was was unmasked. A quick look around and I noticed half the staff were not wearing masks. When I asked the server about it, they said the decision was left up to each staff person. My follow up question was whether everyone was vaccinated. They replied that the policy of the restaurant was that no one knows what the vaccination status is of anyone else. I thought OMG, after being so careful for the last two years, trying my best to keep myself and those around me at minimal risk, and now with the extremely contagious Omicron variant spiking all around, how dare the owner of this restaurant take such careless attitude when it comes to his patrons and staff. If you are going to disregard common sense, at least be proud of your thoughtless approach and own it. Post your policy online where it can be seen when one makes a reservation, post it at the door, and make sure the host communicates it to people when they enter. Now regarding the menu, service, and food prep: your menu has gotten more narrow and tired. Yes, some dishes are specialties and should always be offered, but not 80% of your 5 course Mushroom Madness $95/person. The other option is the Japanese 10 course at $145/person. What happened to the ala carte menu. Half our courses were items pre-made and just served at room temperature. How uninspired is that. Seems like your kitchen needs to search for some soul and inspiration. Or are you just hoping people only come here once and wouldn't know that the mushroom menu hasn't changed significantly in 3 years. Now for the staff. They were generally friendly and engaging, but very green for a fine dining establishment, and grossly undertrained. That's not their fault but one of leadership from the top. Having to ask for wine to be opened after it's delivered to the table, waiting 10 minutes for cocktails to be made, plates and empty drink glasses not being cleared after one's finished, having to get someone's attention to bring more bread to the table; these are things that can be fixed by training your servers better. I will say, my water glass never got down more than an inch from the rim. That person was ever present with her pitcher! I know everyone is exhausted from the last two years, but if you are going to keep your doors open, you need to commit to it and rediscover the reasons you want to be in this business and start executing to the standards you set when you opened. Good luck! I do wish you the best!

The best meal I've ever had was at the Palmer house. I would highly recommend it. The service and food were exceptional.

An Oregon Gastronomy experience! We did the mushroom experience and it was as amazing. The food, staff, ambiance, etc was amazing. We have traveled the world and visited Michelin restaurants and this for Oregon was outstanding!

Dining at Joel Palmer House is an EXPERIENCE! The food is amazing and the service is top-notch. Peter and Alex were attentive and informative. I did not catch the name of the young girl that brought the dishes out, but she was great, too. Perfect timing for delivery of each course...everything was served at the perfect temperature. We had the 5-course Mushroom Madness Tasting menu and added the steak. It was a lot of food, but the steak was so good, I'm glad we added it. We will be back with friends. Highly recommend.

This is the second time we have visited. The ambiance was lovely, I would highly recommend visiting during their slow season since we were one of a few tables and received impeccable service from the two gentlemen working. Levi was fantastic, he was patient, knowledgeable, and made sure we were well taken care of. We were a group of four and two of the four are light drinkers so we were unable to truly delve into their incredible Pinot Noir offerings, but the one bottle we had, the Joel Palmer Cuvée, was pleasant and, reasonably priced at $65/bottle. We partook in the Omakase, 10-course, offering, which was quite good. The courses were thoughtful and, while not wildly creative, dessert being an exception, tasty. The history behind some of the dishes added to the experience and were a bonus to delicious food. The dessert was whimsical and a great way to end the meal. I have two less than positive thoughts, one, we didn't receive 10 courses, we received 9, which included the amuse-bouchée and the entremet, a counting of which is slightly unusual in a coursed dinner, in my experience, and we have visited a broad selection of fine dining establishments, so a comparison can reasonably be done. This is not to say we left hungry nor that the courses served weren't plenty of food, but to say 10-courses and get 9, or really 7, is a slight put off. The second thought is that about 2/3rds into the meal the wait staff switched from the gentlemen, understandably since we arrived at 4:30 just as they opened and Levi, the floor manager I believe, assisted us until a female staff member took over. She was less engaging and at one point a question was asked and she just walked off. To be fair, our table did include individuals that asked a number of questions and she could have been busy and if we hadn't began the night with unparalleled service we may not have noticed the significant difference in the level of service she provided versus the service received at the start of the meal but to just ignore us was off putting as well. I will finish off by saying that while there were a couple of things that left this evening a little short of perfect, the Joel Palmer House is worth a visit, my only tip would be to select the 5-course menu instead of the Omakase and take that extra $50/pp you have saved and put it towards more wine, same level of service, some of the same food options and you will get all the courses you came for...though the dessert presentation may be worth losing out on some courses, it's a toss up. Not sure if we will come by a third time, but if you haven't been and are considering it, it's definitely worth a visit.

Wow, finally made it to The Joel Palmer House, in Dayton. Four of us ordered the three course dinner, which at $59.00 each, is not cheap eats. And, we learned, worth every penny! The different courses, I found, were really really good, and a few were extraordinary. My favorites were the Mushroom Soup, the Beef Stroganoff (to die for), and the Candy Capped Pot du Cream. My dining companions absolutely raved over the Filet Mignon and the Limoncello Pound Cake with Raspberries. The service, from the servers to the sommelier to Chef/Owner Christopher Czarnecki popping by to check on us, was spectacular. The restaurant, a 160-year old former home, was comfortable, thoughtfully laid out, well maintained, and wonderfully appointed. Had it not been raining, I would have liked to eaten outside on the patio. We will definitely return. Five Stars.

The quality of the food, professionalism of the staff is unmatched. They showed great attention to detail in every aspect of the service. We enjoyed the 5 course tasting menu and were thrilled with each course. We had to get dessert to go because, we were just too full to enjoy it there. I would highly recommend making this a required stop on any trip to the area.

Excellent fine dining and service. Each course was fabulous, mushroom dishes I had never heard of and so fresh and modern.

OMG! You have to go here. Great staff attentive. AND Chef Chris visits the table and actually cares and wants feedback on the dinner. Meal is a fixed price for standard 5-course or their optional 10-course. If you miss this you are really missing out. Food is WONDERFUL.

The Joel Palmer House is beyond charming! It was easy enough to make a reservation and although I was a little skeptical of a menu that was entirely focused on mushrooms, there was plenty of variety and all palettes were impressed. The Som, Levi, was extremely knowledgeable of their giant (2000+ bottle) Willamette Valley collection and even gave us a tour of the wine cellar after our meal. The rest of the staff was great about explaining each dish and ingredient as we enjoyed the 10-course Omakase menu. We all loved the soup, mushroom torte, 52 day aged steak, and sturgeon. The dessert board that came with the Omakase menu was beyond stunning and such a fun and interactive, yet COVID-friendly option since there was PLENTY for everyone to try their own section of the board. The dining room atmosphere is very intimate and cozy since it's inside a house, but the restaurant did a good job spacing people out. The restrooms are both single stall, but they did a good job of tucking them away behind the kitchen. The only thing that was a little disappointing was ordering the same bottle of wine at a Minneapolis restaurant two nights later for $100 less...when it's literally made a stones throw from Joel Palmer House. I guess that's part of the 'novelty' of drinking local in the Willamette valley.

This was the worst meal of my life. That being said, service was good. My girlfriend and I ordered the omakase, which is essentially a chef's pick of items. The omakase began with "carrot tartar," which had a grainy texture and tasted terrible (probably the worst dish of my life). Next was escagot, or rather a blast of garlic. After was an oyster, which was fine, and some sort of tomato palate cleanser (not stomachable). Then there was the trio: mushroom broth, mushroom risotto, and a mushroom tart. My girlfriend and I hardly stomached a single bite of the risotto and tart. Savory dishes started with duck (literally dripping in too much truffle oil). At this point in the meal, we had hardly eaten more than a bite of any dish and the chef came to our table to ask how the meal was. After saying that the meal was not going well, the chef comically (but seriously) asked if we wanted more mushroom. We requested less. After requesting less, we had steak, which we finished, and then dessert that was passable. Edit: please see professional response from the chef in photo, just in case he deletes...