This week's pick: decarli
Every week we point you to one genuinely well-reviewed spot in the Bethany and Portland metro area for a relaxed evening out, a restaurant, a wine bar, an experience worth the drive. This week it is decarli at 3790 SW Hall Boulevard in Beaverton, a short drive south from Bethany and Oak Hills and a different kind of evening from the Thai restaurant we featured last week.
decarli is a modern-Italian farm-to-table restaurant run since 2007 by husband-and-wife owners Jana and Paul DeCarli, with Paul in the kitchen drawing on his Swiss-Italian roots. The cooking pairs house-made pasta and wood-fired pizza with seasonal Pacific Northwest ingredients, and the room, red brick walls, wood-beam ceilings and an open kitchen, has become one of Beaverton's most dependable places for a proper evening out.
Why it stands out
The reviews are strong and consistent: Tripadvisor ranks decarli the number-one restaurant in Beaverton with a Travelers' Choice award, around 4.5 stars across roughly 350 reviews, and OpenTable diners rate it about 4.6 across close to 2,000 ratings. What regulars keep mentioning: house-made pasta done properly, wood-fired pizza, a warm room and an open kitchen that makes the cooking part of the evening.
Not every table has a perfect night, but the consistent thread in the reviews is fresh, well-executed food and warm service. It is the kind of place that works for a small celebration, a slow dinner with someone you want to actually talk to, or a solo evening at the bar with a good cocktail and a plate of something hand-rolled.
What to order or do
Our honest advice: the signature dish the regulars talk about is the espresso- and prune-braised beef short rib, and the polenta fries with gorgonzola butter disappear from every table that orders them. Oysters and mussels in fennel-saffron cream round out the starters, then let the house-made pastas and wood-fired pizzas take the main event.
The bar pours craft cocktails and a curated wine list built to pair with the kitchen. Let whoever is serving guide you, and on weekend evenings or for the lively bar seats, book ahead: reservations run through Resy, and the restaurant's own site has the current menus and hours.
The honest price picture
In the spirit of this site's ask-for-current-pricing standard, we do not print dollar figures here either. In general terms, decarli sits at the upscale end of the date-night spectrum: it is a proper evening-out restaurant, the kind of place where the meal, the pace and the room are all part of the plan, not a quick bite between errands.
The menu changes a little with the seasons, so check their current menu and hours on the restaurant's own site before you go.
Plan the evening your way
Whoever you go with, or on your own, the room is for you. Good food and an unhurried evening are for everyone, and we only feature places that welcome whoever shows up. The drive from Bethany and Oak Hills is short and simple: south toward the walkable central Beaverton blocks around SW Hall Boulevard, with parking close by.
One standing note for this whole series, on the record: none of our features assumes anything about who you are, who you live with, or what your household looks like. This area has room for everyone, and our picks are for all of you.
Ask us for the next pick
We will feature a new spot every week and keep a running list so nothing repeats. If you try decarli and love it, tell us. If you have a favorite of your own that belongs in this series, send it our way and we will test it ourselves.
And if you are weighing a move to Bethany or Oak Hills and want to know what a Friday night actually looks like from a given address, ask us. We know the corridor block by block.