Jules F.
Yelp
After months of waiting for the delicious Ocho burrito shop to relocate to the Longfellow Square location, it was announced El Corazon would be expanding from their popular food truck to a physical restaurant. Exciting!
I tried the food truck once, and sadly there was not a single vegetarian option on the menu. Made sense though- little kitchen, different customer.
My boyfriend, our friend and I came here last night (a Saturday night around 8:00). It was bustling, and the host was super friendly and sat us within fifteen minutes.
It's cute inside- small, but nice lighting, high ceilings, intimate. However pretty loud.
Our waitress brought a complimentary basket of chips and salsa- the first basket is free, and anything after that is $3.50 a refill.
They were out of the beers we wanted, but we found things that would work. The server was friendly and not visibly frazzled from the busy night.
The menu appeared to have a few vegetarian options, so I was thrilled. There was one burrito, titled the Vegetarian, filled with sweet potatoes, onions, salsa, rice, and beans, which I ordered.
The waitress told me that though the burrito was named the Vegetarian, it is not- all of the rice is cooked in chicken stock, and all the beans are mixed in with pork.
After learning this, I skimmed the menu and realized everything else I'd considered also would not be vegetarian. What a bummer.
I ended up getting a plain cheese and pepper quesadilla. My friends got a steak fajita, appetizer plate, and fish burrito.
After a while, the appetizer plate arrived- the taquitos were a hit. Our food came out after another twenty minutes.
We had to ask for water and silverware (whatever, it's a new and busy restaurant). But I'd suggest tightening this up a bit.
My quesadilla was served with a tiny dollop of cream cheese and guac, and the cheese inside was scarce. Overall a disappointment.
My boyfriend liked his fish burrito. My friend said the steak was too tough to eat, and the seasonings were bland.
It was all expensive for mediocre food. Our waitress didn't check on us once. She was friendly but essentially nonexistent.
I hope El Corazon irons out its wrinkles in the next few months. If you're in Portland, you should know there are going to be picky vegetarians like me! Having SOMETHING on the menu that we could eat would be nice. Especially when the burrito literally named The Vegetarian is not at all vegetarian.
Ocho, I miss you. I wish you'd taken this spot.
It's a cute layout, all the servers were super friendly. There's a lot of potential here. I hope they tighten up and take advantage of the possibilities they have- I'd love to be a regular here, but right now I don't see it happening.
Go to Escobarr instead.