Tacos in a Beer Garden? Que Bueno!

Yup, tacos and cold suds; that will work. It’s a birthright, a fiesta and a chance to pay homage to our Hispanic friends as well as tip our caps to Old Bavaria. I think it would be wise for some authority, such as Merriam-Webster for example, to work on replacing the words “Oasis” or “Utopia” or “Nirvana” with “Taco and Beer Garden”. At the very least, make an addendum to known synonyms. Kiki Dee once sang, “I got the music in me.” In response to that Kiki, all I have to say is, “I have a spiritual taco and beer garden AND the music in me, so eat your heart out girlfriend.”

Note: I would post a youtube link to the Kiki Dee Band classic but you do not want that song stuck in your head.

About three months ago, this taqueria and separate beer bar magically appeared on one of the main thoroughfares within inner SE Portland (12^th & SE Division). Needless to say, I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to check it out. As most Portlanders know, when the weather is nice, you have to take advantage of the sun in every possible way (and tacos and beer are no exception).

I’m going to break this down into a split review.

Los Gorditos

http://www.insiderpages.com/b/15250679629/las-gorditas-portland

LGs carries a variety of different meats with a focus on tacos. They also had other items, such as sopes and burritos, but it’s my guess that they mostly move massive amounts of tacos.

A straight up traditional taco with meat, onions and cilantro on a tortilla will run you $2.

They have also a quesa taco (which a naming convention that I think defies the Spanish Language). I thought it could only be queso taco or maybe (longshot of quesa taca). Whatever, my Spanish is muy rusty! A quesa taco ($3) has an additional tortilla with melted cheese and the original taco tortilla has cheese as well on top of the standard taco. The quesa taco wasn’t bad but it just seemed unnecessary to the overall taste of the taco to throw a bunch of cheese and another tortilla at it.

I opted to diversify with three different meat styles/types. I would classify each meat as very solid but not mind blowing.

- Carne Asada Quesa Taco (Steak)

- Carnitas Taco (Pork Shoulder; kinda like pork briscuit)

- Al Pastor Taco (Spicy, Marinated Pork)

All and all, I would say that the taste of the tacos were good. I usually like to load up on the salsa but I was in Apex grabbing beers while tacos were being made. As a result, I utilized minimal salsa/hot sauce due to limited supply at taco deliverance. You can see the hot sauce in the picture; it almost looks phosphorescent with orange/red tones.

Being a big fan of Mexican food, I can tell you of many experiences where a really good, fresh salsa/hot sauce completely changed the complexion and taste of the meal. That’s the one question that remains after my original visit; can the salsa take it higher? Even if it doesn’t, I would eat here again in a heartbeat. There aren’t many places left that you can have a solid meal for $6 plus tip in a nice, casual and friendly environment. As you can see from the pics, there are lots of umbrellas in the event of a really hot day.

Another thing worth pointing out is that you want to have food in the beer garden; they will let you do so. However, the Apex BG does not have any dirty dish receptacles therefore you’ll need to return plates, etc to Los Gorditos for “Here” orders. The “Here” order would be considered the best environmental approach to minimize unnecessary packaging for your order. If you keep things easy, you can get the order to go and dispose of the refuse in the Apex BG.

In summary, I got 3 tacos for $7 and I was satisfied with the portions and the taste. I am not an uber-taco snob with regards to being able to evaluate taquerias but I can safely say that LGs tacos don’t rival Por que No on Upper Hawthorne. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because LG and Apex have their own neat thing going on.

They also carry breakfast burritos. I intend to grab one soon as I’m always looking for the ultimate BB as well as re-visit their salsa/hot sauce options.

Apex

http://apexbar.com/

This place has a very impressive beer collection re draft selections. I would definitely say that they are in the elite of Portland with regards to selection, diversity and numbers of different beers. The tap lines were clean and the finished product was on-point. I believe that the space shared by Apex and LG was formerly a mechanics garage. As a result, the bar itself is pretty small. The beer garden at this bar is going to be very busy when the weather is nice. When the weather turns south, my suspicion is that the place will SLOW down but then again, you always have the taco and beer combo working for you.

I would like to start off by saying that the service was very good and the bartender was pleasant. I’ll tip my hat to personable, service workers who enjoy their gig in the rose city.

The inside of the bar was a little bit sterile. I think of the actual bar as a walk up beer counter. There’s a giant garage door that stays open where folks can come and go with their beers back into the beer garden.

To display the available beer choices, they have cleverly incorporated Digital displays (Flatscreens) to look like schedules at a train station or airport. Next to the name of the beer, they display the brewery, alcohol content and price. I like this.

I had two Engelberg Pils from Upright Brewery that were pretty good. These Pils were straight forward but crisp and a fine partner for my tres tacos.

I bought my friend a Maharaja Imperial IPA that was 10.4% (Avery Brewery); his response was that it was %#@*& AWESOME! I tasted it and concur. It was the smoothest 10% beer that I have ever tasted.

Make sure you bring your ID. A friend of mine was denied access to Apex’s magical beer garden and he certainly appears to be over the age of 21. Don’t feel too bad for my friend, there was plenty of space in Los Gorditos Taco Garden, which is suitable for all ages.

Apex is a beer bar; no hard alcohol served.

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Note: In the beer garden shot, I have obscured the faces of random folks to protect their identities as I don't have consent to post their images online.

In Search of Delicious, Italian Beef in Portland

My connection to one of the planet's greatest sandwich innovations is two-fold. I’ve spent a lot of time in Chicago while on family vacations; Chicago being the birthplace of the Italian Beef sandwich. Secondly, while in college, I nurtured my love of Italian Beef at M&N Sandwiches in Lincoln, NE. One of my friends was so enthralled with M&Ns, that he took a delivery job there to support his passion. It’s important to note that M&N is captained by a grouchy Chicago Native (Norm) who took his craft and his product seriously. His approach consisted of supplying his customers with only the best ingredients which is the Vienna Beef Brand of Italian Beef, Pastrami and Sport Peppers. The pastrami was a bonus meat that won’t be discussed much in this review but it makes for a great sandwich combination with Italian Beef. Needless to say, I know my way around an Italian Beef sandwich.

Definition: An Italian beef is a sandwich of thin slices of seasoned roast beef, dripping with meat juices, on a dense, long Italian-style roll, believed to have originated in Chicago, where its history dates back at least to the 1930s.[1] The bread itself is often dipped (or double-dipped) into the juices the meat is cooked in, and the sandwich is typically topped off with Chicago-style giardiniera (called "hot") or sport peppers.

Italian beef sandwiches can be found at most hot dog stands and small Italian-American restaurants throughout the city of Chicago and its suburbs. They are difficult to find outside the Chicago metropolitan area. In some cities outside northeastern Illinois, however, Chicago expatriates have opened restaurants across the country serving Italian beef, Chicago-style hot dogs, and other foods original to the Chicago area.

Today, we will be discussing Wayne’s Red Hots on NE MLK in Portland as well as other Italian Beef Sandwiches in the area.

http://wayneschicagoredhots.com/

I have dined at Waynes about 7 or 8 times since they opened a few years ago. That statement alone is a pretty good indicator of my feelings for this place. I want to love it but it usually ends up being “just ok”, I have to say that they know the recipe and have the right elements but it just doesn’t come together like a symphony of flavors. I’m going to break down each component of the sandwich for you.

Bread: per the definition above, the sandwich is to be served on a dense, long Italian-style roll. Waynes certainly nails the dense roll with 100% accuracy. I think this is the biggest obstacle for me to really enjoying their sandwich. It seems like it a 2 day old Grand Central Bakery roll that doesn’t capture the essence of good sandwich bread. My senses should be focused on the meat but the bread always trumps it.

Dry or Wet: Based on my bread summary, you have to go wet with this thing or you will probably dislike the sandwich outright. It’s been my experience that they won’t proactively ask you if you want it dry or wet so be on your toes while placing your order.

Meat: They may claim to be using Vienna Beef Italian Beef but I kind of doubt it. VB Italian Beef is tender and delicious. This meat is fine but not transcendent. In the past, friends and I have ordered Italian Beef kits from Vienna Beef that are far tastier than Waynes. Maybe it’s their method of preparation; all I know is that it’s not the flavor that I cherish. My good friend and Italian Beef compatriot has the same opinion regarding the quality of the meat.

Where most sandwiches shops in Portland are thrifty with their meat, Waynes is not. They load it up as you would find it in Chicago. I have to respect them for that. Because I always find their straight Italian Beefs a bit lackluster, I’ve been going with the BARACK OBEEF on my last two visits. It’s basically the same thing with a Vienna Beef Sausage link in the middle.

Sport Peppers: When you ask for sport peppers, they load you up. It’s another trait of Waynes that I admire. I love sport peppers and when I order them, I want to bask in their loveliness. You’ll note in my picture of my meal that my fries are loaded up with them as well.

Note: I would like to take this moment to blast Zacks Shack on Hawthorne for their paltry distribution of sport peppers. They give you 2 peppers per order on a five dollar hotdog; just enough in quantity to make it plural.

Giardiniera: Waynes has very good giardiniera.

Definition: Giardiniera is an Italian or Italian-American relish of pickled vegetables in vinegar or oil. Giardiniera is available as either mild or hot. Hot giardiniera is often referred to as "Hot Mix".

Common vegetables in the Italian version, also called sotto aceti, include onions, celery, zucchini, carrots and cauliflower, pickled vegetables in red- or white-wine vinegar. It is typically eaten as an antipasto, or with salads.

In Chicago, giardiniera is a condiment, typically used as a topping on Italian beef sandwiches.[1] Giardiniera is commonly made with serrano peppers and some combination of assorted vegetables, such as bell peppers, olives, celery, pimentos, carrots and cauliflower and sometimes crushed red pepper flakes, all marinated in vegetable oil, olive oil, soybean oil or any combination of the three oils.

Cheese: You can get mozzerella on your sandwich but it really shouldn’t matter either way. The beef should be the prominent taste with a good italian beef sandwich.

Fries: SOLDIER FIELD FRIES- Nacho cheese, spicy sport peppers. Ask for giardiniera (no xtra charge) to kick it up some more. The fries were the highlight of my meal. As I mentioned earlier, I should be hitting Waynes for the sandwich and not walking away with the fries stealing the show.

Atmosphere: The restaurant is an odd L shaped room. It’s not overly spacious but I’m not going to hold it against the restaurant. I guess I would classify the dining area as adequate but not overly comfortable. There is a bunch of cool Chicago décor which I like but it doesn’t make up for the unconventional space.

Other Menu Items: I have had their hot dogs as well as their straight Italian Beefs. It seems that everything that I have ordered has just been fine but not exceptional. I have dined there enough to have witnessed their best and worst day. I would classify it as an average dining experience every time. I would never go out of my way to recommend it but I may hit it up 2-3 times a year. I can safely say that if I went into 10 random Chicago-land IB joints, I would bet that Waynes would rank at the bottom of the list. I really want to embrace this restaurant but the food is average based on my experiences. They do a lot of things right but it just never comes together.

Links of Interest:

Waynes Links:

http://wayneschicagoredhots.com/

http://www.yelp.com/biz/waynes-chicago-red-hots-portland

Other Portland Italian Beef Options:

http://www.michaelsitalianbeef.com/

Note: This place is a little bit better than Waynes in my opinion.

Caveats: I would get the combo which features the link and the Italian Beef; get it wet. Just the plain IB sandwich at Michaels or Waynes does not justify a trip to either establishment. Also, Michaels does not carry any hot peppers; pack your own sport peppers or jalapenos if you need the heat. Michael’s claims to have a hot relish but that’s just a joke in my opinion. I would also like to point out that the proprietor has a reputation for being a jerk. I didn’t talk to him but I could read it all over his face. He just oozes an unpleasant disposition. I won’t let that stop me from having a good sandwich; I’m simply providing forewarning as it is common knowledge. Michaels does have good fries as well.

It should be noted that Waynes sells jars of some Vienna Beef Products: Sport Peppers and Giardiniera.

http://www.kennyandzukes.com/

http://www.yelp.com/biz/kenny-and-zukes-sandwichworks-portland

Note: This link is for the Sandwich Works location which is located at 2376 NW Thurman. This place is run by the famous Pastrami folks that operate Kenny and Zukes in downtown Portland. I have yet to eat here but they do feature an IB Sandwich and have done well with their other endeavors. I plan to hit this place in the near future. To the best of my knowledge, they do not serve the IB in the downtown location.

Order a real deal Vienna Beef Italian Beef kit here:

http://www.tastesofchicago.com/

http://www.viennabeef.com/store/

Note: Ordering from the top link will allow you access to more products like Chicago Deep Dish Pies, etc. I have been very happy with Tastesofchicago.com.

My favorite Sandwich place in Lincoln, Nebraska:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/m-and-n-sandwich-shop-lincoln

Note: I don’t think Norm at M&N knows what the internet is but he makes a mean sandwich. Also, don’t argue with him; just play along like he knows all (when it comes to his sandwiches; he does). Get the Italian Beef/Pastrami combo with sport peppers; it is divine. Tell him that Chief sent you.

My favorite Chicago-land Italian Beef chain:

http://www.alsbeef.com/company/locations.asp