a:i'r ^ o r tía n h (Bbseruer
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday • September 28. 2005
Minority & Small Business Week
special editien
‘LittleMermaid’and ‘BeautifulGirl’
Side by Side
Eateries Fuel
Economy
by K atherine B i . ackmore
T he P ortland O bserver
Monica Moreno is owner o f the Northeast Alberta Street taqueria La Sirenita.
Twoquaint taquerías, LaSirenita
and La Bonita, sit next to each
other on Northeast Alberta Street
between 28,h and 29lh Avenues.
While the owners insist that com
petition between the restaurants
doesn’t exist, they noted that din
ers like to think there’s a rivalry.
Each place has its own devoted
followers and with good reason.
Both offer authentic Mexican
foods and are family-run busi
nesses. Their recipes are handed
down from cook to cook, made
with fresh ingredients and a hearty
amount of Mexican gusto. Unlike
some chain restaurants, each
burrito and tamale is cooked with
unique, individual flair. And
they're both easy on the wallet.
So what makes a person hop
from one taqueria to another? It’s
a question only answered by one’s
own tastebuds.
“W e’re pretty similar. Some
times we run out of rice and run
over and get it, or they need cheese
and get it here. They ’ re pretty good
people,” said Monica Moreno,
owner of La Sirenita.
Next door, Checo Lopez, co
owner of La Bonita, said, “They’re
eooU«they've been good neigh
bors. Everybody on this whole
block - there’s never been a com
petitive nature.”
The same sense of community
that surrounds the outside of the
taquerías can be found on the in Brothers Checo and Joaquin Lopez, are co-owners o f the family restaurant La
side.
Bonita, which sits next to another Mexican restaurant on Northeast Alberta Street.
La Bonita
Grows Success
La Sirenita, which translates into “The
Little Mermaid,” was named back when the
restaurant specialized in Mexican seafood
dishes in the mid-'90s.
“Mom used to come here everyday and
made a different plate,” owner Monica
Moreno said.
Although mom’s specials aren’t around
anymore, the restaurant still keeps the fam
ily spirit alive with a variety of favorite
Mexican and American foods.
Everyone employed at La Sirenita is ei
ther a relative or a close friend.
“We have really hard workers who love
their job,” Moreno said. “You have to like
what you do if you want to do it right.”
In the beginning, the dining room’s décor
consisted of just a bench and a wall, but
tables and colorful paintings were added
slowly over the years. Surprisingly, the
business didn’t do much to advertise itself
- people just came, Moreno said.
Prices range from $3.25 for a mouth
watering chimichanga stuffed with fresh
rice, beans and cheese, generously topped
with lettuce, tomato and sour cream, to $9
for their infamous Seven Sea Soup or
Camarones Ahogados, a flavorful, saucy
shrimp dish. They’ve got everything from
tacos, fajitas, chorizo, taquitos and of
course, burritos, all for under $4. The Ameri
can menu includes hamburgers and cheese
burgers
The restaurant accepts phone orders
from 11 a.m .to 11 p.m .forbusy times. Their
only catch: cash only. Call 503-335-8283 for
more information.
La Sirenita owner Monica Moreno helps an employee attend to business at the
Alberta Street taqueria.
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As the descendants of one of Hillsboro's first Mexican families. La
Bonita’s Lopez family knows what "real” Mexican food means. Al
though they didn't know much about starting a restaurant in the
beginning, their delicious food, laid-back attitude and cheap prices
have made the Alberta Street business successful.
Checo and his brother Joaquin agree that the taqueria’s customer
base has grown 200 percent since its opening five years ago.
“It was really slow at first, back when nobody was here. There
was nothing on the street. It's changed. It’s a good thing to see the
area come up. as long as it's kept under control and remains
affordable,” Checo said.
"We learned everything the hard way,” Joaquin said.
Like their neighbors, the employees at La Bonita (which translates
to “beautiful girl”) are family, or close to it. This helps, they said, when
people need to be covered for one reason or another.
“I think that’s the best way to fill in a spot. Every year you change,
things get bigger," Checo said.
Joaquin noted that, "A lot ofpeople like that we're a family. I've seen
the same people with their kids growing up.”
The brothers point to the regulars and the constant flow of new
customers that keeps the place afloat.
"People are curious and came. People just checked us out - some
really liked us and stuck around," Checo said.
During the day, a large part of La Bonita’s clientele consists of
local construction workers and engineers, simply because of all the
structural change going on around Alberta Street lately. In the
evening, the neighborhood comes out for dinner. And on the
weekends, people are known to travel from Gresham and Vancouver
just for a La Bonita burrito.
Prices here stay inexpensive as well, with crispy tostadas starting at
$2.50 and combo platters starting at $7.50.
Favorites among the brothers include any dish made with their
savory shredded beef, as well as chilaquiles huevos, a Mexican
breakfast made with eggs with green chilies and shredded tortillas.
Want adozen whitecom tamales? Pre-orderthem at $ 18. La Bonita also
holds a liquor license and accepts all forms of payment. Call 503-281-
3662 for more information.
A Family Affair
Burnside's Bangkok Restaurant
offers Thai. Vietnamese cuisine
See page B6