New Portland Food Cart Bajala Opens Serving Baja California-Style Tacos | Eater Portland

"Located in the Nob Hill Food Carts pod and open since June 1 at 1845 NW 23rd Place, I found Bajala to be a fish taco cart run by Juan Flores and Lizbeth Sanchez that aims to recreate Baja California seafood. Their fried fish tacos use an oregano-heavy flour batter that encrusts sturgeon sourced from Washington, topped with cabbage, pico de gallo, mayo crema, chipotle mayo, and onion curtido, and offered with a choice of a green salsa made with serranos and jalapeños or a milder red salsa with chile de árbol and guajillo. They serve battered shrimp tacos and tacos gobernador (stewed tomatoes, onions, and poblano peppers cooked down with butter, finished with shrimp and queso Chihuahua and crisped like a quesadilla), and a marinated Maya octopus prepared in a pastor-like style (guajillo, orange juice, achiote, and alliums) grilled and served with pineapple, onion, cilantro, avocado mousse, and salsa macha. Much of their seafood comes from Mexico (wild-caught Sinaloa shrimp and Maya octopus) while the sturgeon substitutes for the angel shark typical in Ensenada, and their tortillas are sourced to match the Baja-style texture they want to reproduce." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden