New Spot Carlita’s Swears That It’s “Portland’s First Spirits-Forward Taco Bar”

Like Brix and Bartini, it is a place where happy hour seemingly never ends

(Sofie Murray)

"Senoritas prefer Carlita's," says the menu at Carlita's (1101 NW Northrup St., 503-224-7919, carlitaspdx.com), the new Mexican-themed Pearl District bar that makes the bewildering claim that it is "Portland's first spirits-forward taco bar." Elsewhere on the menu, it appears the "muchachos like our tacos," while "las margaritas make everyone bonitas."

Here in the dark heart of the Pearl near Tanner Springs Park, a somewhat suburban niceness prevails. The walls of the former Streetcar Bistro are an inoffensive blue inflected slightly with earth tones, the lights dim, the mood cheerily professional. On an early Thursday evening, the bar was full of both convalescing neighborhood couples and party groups in fives.

As with other Portland bars opened by Urban Restaurant Group (Brix, Bartini), the promise is a happy hour that almost never ends, with only the time between 6 and 9 pm exempted from the deals. But unlike those ridiculously cheap $4.50 martinis at Bartini, it's less easy to get excited about a $3 taco. This is true especially when the food speaks the same questionable Spanglish as the menu, from oversweet apple-smoked carne asada to underseasoned grilled green-mole chicken. Still, a $6 margarita and free house-made tortilla chips seasoned with lime salt are staples foolish to complain about.

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