Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Los Portrillos

Los Portrillos has two locations in Vancouver, Washington. This blog post covers the spot on NE Lakeshore Ave on the west side of Vancouver.


In the adjacent Hazel Dell neighborhood, more and more food spots are popping up, including Mexican places. West Vancouver, in the Felida area, continues to lag even further behind, as it's more residential-saturated, but at least there's a couple of spots on Lakeshore that have food and beer options.

This Los Portrillos spot opened in July 2019, and being a huge Mexican food fan, I zipped over there for my fix.

Barely anyone there on midday Sunday. Hopefully more people, such as the nearby residents, will eventually see this spot. But social media presence will be a big factor in ensuring the long-term viability of this business.

Like other sit-down Mexican restaurants, you'll get free chips and salsa. This also came with some cabbage kissed with lime juice. I'll need to ask next time if they have spicier salsa (i.e. habanero).




Full bar here, and while they may focus more on the tequilas (for their margaritas), there are various hard alcohols back there. There's happy hour every day from 3-6 PM. As a note, Margarita Factory in Hazel Dell has Happy Hour all day on Sunday.

There are two flat screen TVs at the bar area to watch your favorite sporting event.




Margaritas for days here, and some of the prices will use different quality tequilas. For example, the Elite margarita, which will sell for a few bucks more, uses Jose Cuervo. Los Portrillos will also do different flavored margaritas and the jalapeno margarita.



I had a medium-sized margarita ($7). Probably a good 16-18 oz worth. Very well made. I didn't ask which tequila they used, but I do know they have one of my favorites, Hornitos, on one of the bar shelves.



Once again, I default to a spicy dish. The Camarones a la Diabla ($18) has a mix of shrimp, mushrooms, celery, green bell peppers, onions, and carrots in a smoky, spicy, and velvety red sauce. Being the spicy panda, I ordered mine extra spicy, even though for many people, the dish will already be plenty spicy.




It comes with a side of Mexican rice and refried beans, and choice of corn or flour tortillas (I chose corn). A very hot, large plate of food awaited me, with a side of four steamed corn tortillas.





Perfectly cooked shrimp and veggies. I made little shrimp tacos with my corn tortillas. As I enjoyed every bite, I needed to get extra napkins to wipe away the sweat dripping down my forehead. The sauce ensures the spice will stick everywhere in the body, and I say bring it on.

When going to Mexican restaurants near where I live, I happily eat all the chips and salsa, then take home some of my main course to eat later on. Might as well get two or more meals from what I'm paying.

I love that another quality Mexican restaurant has opened up in SW Washington. Their other SW Washington spot is on 192nd in Camas, so if I'm down on the east side, I may stop over there one day, too. 9/10

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