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Whether Portland really used to have “no good Mexican food” or whether Caucasian-centric inner Portland just hadn’t ventured out to find better fare—that debate is dead. A wave of Mexican American chefs and restaurants have found success, from fine dining (República, Metlapíl) and casual counter service (Tito’s Taquitos, Ki’ikibáa) to food trucks (Mole Mole, La Osita) and pop-ups (Mariscos Con Onda, Astral). Two recent openings prove this is no trend.
Madrina Cocina
Madrina Cocina (1235 SW Jefferson St.) opened in August, the third restaurant from first-generation Mexican American Lucy de Leon, who is connected to Salsas Locas and La Patroncita. De Leon bet big on her latest endeavor, an entire 10,000 square feet in downtown Portland. Carlos Quesnel, Mexico’s consul general in Portland, and Mayor Keith Wilson gave speeches at Madrina Cocina’s invitational soft opening, lauding de Leon’s commitment to the Mexican community, and promising abatement and support of downtown business investing in its revitalization.
“You have to be different and find the thing that makes you stick out,” de Leon says. “I see this and admire this drive in the Mexican restaurant owners who have been finding success in Portland.”
Madrina Cocina is different from de Leon’s other Mexican restaurants as it has a neighborhood Mercadito with piñatas, pottery, candles, textiles, art and candies. The restaurant side features more classic Mexican comfort food not served at La Patroncinta, like a chile relleno, ensalada, sopes, elote asado and her dad’s pollo rostizado.
El Trompo del Diablo
El Trompo del Diablo (instagram.com/trompodeldiablo) is a new concept from Diego Palacias and his wife, McKenna, the couple behind street food sensation Machetes. Trompo del Diablo is a new twist on the classic al pastor-style achiote, adobo, and pineapple marinated street tacos slow roasted over a custom al carbón spit designed by local startup Thaan Charcoal. Cooking over Thaan charcoal’s fruit wood briquettes and supplemented with white oak sticks gives the pork a taste of open flame outdoor cooking with subtle smoke and char.
The process takes two to three hours to get the charcoal up to the optimal temperature and requires constant attention to keep the proper heat level and the trompo spinning. For now, Diego says the concept is “a side gig to my side gig,” noting that the al carbón trompo is a prototype of something Thaan hopes to perfect and replicate.
Diego and McKenna have kept del Diablo pop-ups relatively quiet so far, with only word of mouth and a nascent Instagram account, but will keep trialing it at the Machetes residency this November and December at Hawthorne’s Gigantic Brewing.
