Mexican restaurants
This is a list of notable Mexican restaurants. Mexican cuisine is primarily a fusion of indigenous Mesoamerican cooking with European, especially Spanish, elements added after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire in the 16th century. The basic staples remain native foods such as corn, beans and chili peppers, but the Europeans introduced many other foods, the most important of which were meat from domesticated animals (beef, pork, chicken, goat and sheep), dairy products (especially cheese) and various herbs and many spices.
Mexican cuisine consists of the cooking cuisines and traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican cuisine. Its ingredients and methods begin with the first agricultural communities such as the Olmec and Maya who domesticated maize, created the standard process of nixtamalization, and established their foodways. Successive waves of other Mesoamerican groups brought with them their cooking methods. These included: the Teotihuacanos, Toltec, Huastec, Zapotec, Mixtec, Otomi, Purépecha, Totonac, Mazatec, Mazahua, and Nahua. With the Mexica formation of the multi-ethnic Triple Alliance, culinary foodways became infused.
A taco is a traditional Mexican food consisting of a small hand-sized corn- or wheat-based tortilla topped with a filling. The tortilla is then folded around the filling and eaten by hand. A taco can be made with a variety of fillings, including beef, pork, chicken, seafood, beans, vegetables, and cheese, and garnished with various condiments, such as salsa, guacamole, or sour cream, and vegetables, such as lettuce, onion, tomatoes, and chiles. Tacos are a common form of antojitos, or Mexican street food, which have spread around the world.
¿Por Qué No? Taqueria, commonly referred to as Por Que No and sometimes stylized as ¿Por Que No?, is a small taqueria chain owned by Bryan Steelman with two locations in Portland, Oregon, United States. The restaurant is known for its Mexican-style tacos, but also serves a variety of entrées including enchiladas, quesadillas, rice bowls, salads, and tamales.
Nuestra Cocina is a Mexican restaurant in the Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood of southeast Portland, Oregon, in the United States. Benjamin Gonzales and Shannon Dooley-Gonzales are the restaurant's co-owners.
Mexican-American cuisine is the cuisine of Mexican Americans and their descendants, who have modified Mexican cuisine under the influence of American culture and immigration patterns of Mexicans to the United States.
There were approximately 60,000 people of Hispanic or Latino origin in Portland, Oregon, as of 2020; about 10% of the city’s population.
Papi Chulo's is a restaurant with two locations in Portland, Oregon, in the United States. The original taqueria in the Pearl District was opened by restaurateur Ramzy Hattar in December 2019, with Antonio Javier Palma Caceres as the chef and Davide Bricca overseeing cocktails. The trio had previously worked together at River Pig Saloon and Two Wrongs, two neighboring establishments also owned by Hattar. A second location opened in northeast Portland in 2023. Papi Chulo's serves Mexican cuisine, such as tacos, burritos, nachos, birria, margaritas, and micheladas.
Xico was a restaurant serving Mexican cuisine in Portland, Oregon's Richmond neighborhood, in the United States. The restaurant opened in 2012; sibling establishment Xica Cantina opened in northwest Portland in mid 2019. Xico closed in March 2023.
The Original Taco House was a chain of Mexican restaurants based in Portland, Oregon. Established by the Waddle family in 1960, the business peaked at five locations. The last remaining two locations closed on December 31, 2017.
La Calaca Comelona is a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
El Gallo Taqueria was a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States. Owner and chef Jake Brown established the business as a food cart in 2009, in southeast Portland's Woodstock neighborhood. In 2015, El Gallo relocated and began operating as a brick and mortar restaurant in 2015. The business closed in 2022.
Nacheaux is a Mexican-Cajun fusion restaurant in West Linn, Oregon. Previously, the business operated in Portland.
La Bonita: Food for the People, or simply La Bonita, is a small chain of Mexican restaurants in Portland, Oregon, United States. The family-owned business operates three locations in north, northeast, and southeast Portland, serving burritos, chilaquiles, tacos, tamales, and other traditional cuisine. The restaurant has a good reputation, and has been included on two Thrillist lists of the country's best burritos.
Mi Mero Mole was a Mexican restaurant with two locations in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Birrieria La Plaza is a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon, in the United States. Initially operating from a food cart in southeast Portland, the business has announced plans to add a brick and mortar and a stall at Block 216.
Taqueria Los Puñales is a queer-owned and operated Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon. Opened by Brian Aster and David Madrigal in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant has garnered a generally positive reception.
Birrieria PDX is a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
Tierra del Sol is a Oaxacan restaurant with two locations in Portland, Oregon. Chef-owner Amalia Sierra began operating the business from a food cart at Portland Mercado in 2015. A second location opened in the Montavilla neighborhood in 2020.
Media related to Mexican style restaurants at Wikimedia Commons
