El Taco Yucateco

(UPDATE 8/24/13: El Taco Yucateco is now near SW 10th and Alder in downtown Portland. Neighbors with Ole Latte Coffee and The Dump Truck!)

El Taco Yucateco is located at the Green Castle food pod (NE 20th and Everett) in Portland, Oregon. Elloy, the chef and owner, had some surprises in store for me when I stopped by in early June.

NOTE: As of  January 2014, this is a Mayan food cart, serving panuchos, tacos, burritos, and tortas.

Read the rest of the post to see a new, updated menu!

Walking up to the cart, you can tell this is Elloy's passion. He's always smiling and happy to serve anyone who comes by.

NEW MENU AS OF JANUARY 2014!

Elloy's old menu
(Took this photo on 6/15/12)

I sampled a shrimp ceviche, placed on a fried corn tortilla. For added kick, I could add some of his cart-made habanero sauce. Delicious and explosive. The habanero sauce bites back, but the diehard chileheads will still appreciate all that wonderful flavor. The perfectly fried corn tortilla is extremely stiff and gave a great textural contrast to the dish. It felt like I was eating a gigantic chip with shrimp salsa.

Shrimp ceviche on fried corn tortilla
Habanero sauce on the side!

Arguably, one of Elloy's best dishes is the panucho, filled with black beans, shredded chicken, onions, avocado, tomato, lettuce, and cabbage. Again, it appears to be a fried corn tortilla or shell of some sort. This one, however, was pliable to pick up like a taco. This was also great, refreshing in its own way with a pile of fresh produce. Awesome shredded chicken. Beautiful presentation.

Panucho
(El Taco Yucateco)

I heard from Todd at the neighboring Ole Latte Coffee cart that Elloy wanted to challenge me on how well I handle my spice. Elloy would be getting some fresh ghost peppers and making a spicy puree for some of his dishes. He mentioned a scrumptious salad that would be the perfect canvas for this one. I look forward to it!

Oh, and did you see the tostada bowl Elloy has? Can you imagine the gargantuan, Aaron-sized taco salad that can be made? That edible bowl is literally the size of Elloy's head!

Head to this food cart! 8.25/10