Oregon daily emerald., May 05, 2005, Page 7, Image 7

■ Last call
Aaron Hopps,
bartender and
longtime
customer at
Cafe Soriah,
makes a PuraVida
Kahiki or "PVK"
for one of the
patrons
Tuesday night.
Cafe Soriah better suited
for quiet dinner than
for late-night drinks
The small lounge is overwhelmed by the crowd, but
the bright dining room is perfect for an intimate meal
BY AMY LICHTY
SENIOR PULSE REPORTER
Cafe Soriah is well-known in Eu
gene for its cozy, romantic atmos
phere and its delectable Mediter
ranean-style dishes. It was voted the
overall No. 1 restaurant in Eugene by
the Eugene Weekly in 2003. But what
I wanted to find out was how the
scene at Soriah was after dinner
stopped being served and the alco
holic drinks started flowing.
When my friends and I first
walked into Cafe Soriah, at 384 W.
13th Ave., around 11:30 p.m. Friday,
the first thing I noticed was how in
credibly small and dark the front
lounge was. It was standing room
only in the front seating area, and
loud noise — or what some might
call music — was blaring overthe
gobs of people attempting to have
conversations at the bar. I immedi
ately felt terribly uncomfortable, so
my boyfriend and I set off to find a
place to sit.
The dining area was brightly lit
and fantastically quiet. Although I
could see the bar from my seat, the
noise was gone and the mood had
definitely changed. At first we
didn'tthink we
were allowed to
sitbackthere,
but the kind
waiter went out
of his way to ask
the bartender if
that would be all
right. Since there
were no open
seats at the bar,
they allowed my
three companions
and I to sit in the
dining area al
though it had offi
cially closed a half an hour priorto
our arrival.
Gorgeous, framed art lined the
pastel walls, and the tables were
nicely set with beautiful dishware
and glasses. It was a wonderful
place to have a quiet, casual conver
sation over some drinks and would
definitely be a great place to take a
date. The three boys I was with split
a pitcher of IPA, which they all
agreed wasn't very tasty.
Cafe Soriah has a wide selection
of wines, which range from $4 to $8
fora glass and anywherefrom$14to
$125fora bottle.There are also draft
and bottled beers, such as Shiner
Hefeweizen, MacTarnahan's Black
watch Cream Porter and Czechvar
Lager, available for $2.50 to $3.50.
The crowd seated in the bar looked
like graduate students and young pro
fessionals. The bar area was so
crowded groups of friends were out
side deciding on whether to go in
when we arrived and when we left.
My friends agreed it would have
been a completely different experi
ence had we not been allowed to sit
in the dining room. I most likely
wouldn't have stuck
around for too long if
we would have had to
stand or wait for a table,
but being seated in the
dining area allowed my
group to take ourtime
and relax while enjoying
each other's company. Be
cause of this, Cafe Sori
ah's proved to be a fun,
pleasurable experience,
but perhaps would have
been betterfor a nice, casu
al dinner.
amylichty@dailyemerald.com
i
492 E. 13th 686-2458
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