Birrieria La Plaza

Birrieria La Plaza
The restaurant in 2022
Map
Restaurant information
Owner(s)Oracio Hernandez
Food typeMexican
Street address600 Southeast 146th Avenue
CityPortland
CountyMultnomah
StateOregon
Postal/ZIP Code97233
CountryUnited States
Coordinates45°31′08″N 122°30′46″W / 45.5190°N 122.5128°W / 45.5190; -122.5128
Websitetacoslaplaza.com

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 opened a brick and mortar location and plans to open a stall at Block 216.

Description and history

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Menu display, 2022

The Mexican[1] restaurant Birrieria La Plaza (BLP) originally operated from a red food cart on Stark Street in southeast Portland, in the parking lot of a discount store.[2] The menu focuses on birria and also includes braised beef and vampiros.[3] The Plaza Plate includes a quesadilla, taco, mulita, tostada, and a cup of consommé.[4]

BLP is owned by Oracio Hernandez.[5] During the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant experienced setbacks from beef supply chain issues.[6] In May 2020, Rachel Pinsky of Eater Portland wrote, "At the height of its success a couple months ago, Hernandez’s food cart was going through a thousand pounds of chuck roast a week to make this popular stew. On May 4, the prices offered by his meat supplier for chuck increased by 200 percent. Hernandez was forced to temporarily shut down to find another reliable source of affordable meat."[7]

In January 2023, Eater Portland said the business plans to open a brick and mortar restaurant in the Southeast Division space which previously housed Andale Andale, followed by a stall in the food hall at Block 216.[8]

Reception

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Michael Russell included BLP in The Oregonian's list of "Portland's 10 best new food carts of 2020".[9] In 2021, Tuck Woodstock and Katherine Chew Hamilton of Portland Monthly wrote, "we believe the honor of best quesabirria taco in Portland goes to Birrieria La Plaza".[10] Willamette Week said in 2021, "The birria boom has hit Portland, and the persistent traffic jam outside Birrieria La Plaza signals that it's the chosen one at the moment."[11][12]

Krista Garcia included the restaurant in Eater Portland's 2021 overview of "Where to Eat in Gresham and East Portland" and said BLP "has quickly become a standout amidst East Portland’s birria belt. The restaurant's crunchy vampiros are a particular favorite, but it's worth taking home as much of the restaurant's deeply savory soup as possible."[13] She also included the business in a list of Portland's 17 "standout" Mexican restaurants and food carts.[3] The website's Zoe Baillargeon included the quesadilla in a list of "Where to Find the Cheesiest Dishes in Portland and Beyond",[14] and Nick Woo and Brooke Jackson-Glidden included BLP in a 2021 "Guide to Portland's Most Outstanding Food Carts".[5] Jackson-Glidden also included the restaurant in Eater Portland's 2022 list of the city's 38 "essential" restaurants and food carts.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Satisfy your tacos cravings with these 3 Portland newcomers". KGW. January 7, 2020. Archived from the original on 2022-02-01. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  2. ^ Cottell, Pete (2021-05-05). "Birria Is Blowing Up in Portland, and Birrieria La Plaza Is at the Center of the Boom". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on 2021-12-06. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  3. ^ a b Garcia, Krista (2016-08-26). "Portland's 17 Standout Mexican Restaurants and Food Carts". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  4. ^ Garcia, Krista (2020-11-30). "Where to Find Birria in Portland and Beyond". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  5. ^ a b Woo, Nick (2015-06-10). "A Guide to Portland's Most Outstanding Food Carts". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-09-18. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  6. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2020-05-05). "Where to Find Knockout Tacos for Takeout and Delivery in Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2020-05-30. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  7. ^ Pinsky, Rachel (2020-05-19). "How the Crumbling Meat Supply Chain Has Affected the Portland Area Restaurant Market". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2020-06-26. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  8. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2023-01-10). "Blockbuster Birria Cart Birrieria La Plaza Will Open a Southeast Portland Restaurant". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2023-01-11. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  9. ^ Russell, Michael (2020-09-11). "Portland's 10 best new food carts of 2020". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2021-03-02. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  10. ^ Woodstock, Tuck; Hamilton, Katherine Chew (Summer 2021). "6 Taco and Beer Pairings to Step Up Your Portland Summer". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on 2021-11-29. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  11. ^ "The Top Five Places to Eat in Portland This Week". Willamette Week. 2021-07-12. Archived from the original on 2021-07-31. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  12. ^ "Where to Eat in Portland This Week". Willamette Week. 2021-07-25. Archived from the original on 2021-08-21. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  13. ^ Garcia, Krista (2020-03-04). "Where to Eat in Gresham and East Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-10-19. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  14. ^ Baillargeon, Zoe (2021-09-28). "Where to Find the Cheesiest Dishes in Portland and Beyond". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  15. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2018-01-09). "The 38 Essential Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland, Winter 2022". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-09-25. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
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