mi mero mole

great place. the mole is fantastic. try the lamb and green pork mole. small place and you have to stand in line. worth it. the jamaica margarita is great, get a pitcher.

disappointing. the staff was snotty and rude, the salsa had no flavor and was super sweet, the burritos had an insane amount of cheese (and i really enjoy cheese) but this was so far over the top my husband and i couldn't even finish our food. we had heard great things about this place, so maybe it was an off night. we probably won't go back.

we were heading to por que no the day after christmas, but found it closed when we got there, so we headed here instead and we are so glad that we did. the flavors were super authentic, lots of depth and spices. tacos were a good size and the quesadilla was huge. we really enjoyed this place and will definitely return.

husband and i wanted to go out for some dinner at 8pm on sunday . decided to try mi mero mole. the food was really good, lots of flavor. i had a chili colorado beef burrito. just right spicy. husband had chicken mole. we will be back!

mi mero mole on the east side. a mexican place featuring mexican stews served in tacos, burritos, quesadillas or rice and bean platters. hearty, big, flavourful yet not salty.

avoid like the plague.. if you'd enjoy taking your family to a place where the owner storms over to your table, grabs your kids glasses away from them while loudly cursing at them with four letter words and yelling at your six year old to "sit up," i recommend this establishment highly. this literally all happened today during lunch service. it sounds like a joke, or an exaggeration. it's not.

granted, our kids may have been a bit boisterous. their chief sins appeared to be dropping plastic cups a few times and dumping the container of forks onto the table. this latter incident caused the owner to silently come over, grab the container of forks, and take it to the bussing station, at which point i apologized to him. no response. the third time my six year old son dropped a cup on the floor, the owner came over again, angrily grabbed the cups (including one from our friends' seven year old daughter, who was drinking from it at the time, causing her to break down into tears), and yelled at them to "stop right now" and to "sit up."

folks, this is not an exaggeration. when i told him that speaking to customers' children like that was inappropriate, he responded that it wasn't his job to "pick up their s--t," in full earshot of our young children. if our kids are indeed causing a distraction and disturbing his other patrons' experience - fine. come over and have a quiet polite word with one of the adults. kids drop stuff. but to yell at paying customers' kids and swear in front of them is beyond outrageous. i have never experienced anything like this, ever.

portlanders, you need to know the kind of person you are patronizing if you come here and spend your money. it's really a shame, because - having lived in houston for the last six years - i think the food is terrific. this was our fourth or fifth visit to mi mero mole- we wanted to support it and be loyal customers. somehow, i don't think i'll be back, unless my six year old expresses a wish to have curse words lobbed at him from total strangers.

i have sent emails to the local restaurant critics and food bloggers i know, as well as to the portland chamber of commerce. this owner needs to get the message that disciplining paying customers' children - and cursing at them - is never, ever ok, no matter how poorly they are behaving.

second review: amazing again. four tacos of different flavors, each were brilliant. margarita was a touch tart. there were a lot of kiddos tonight. thanks to ownership for reminding neglectful parents to do their job.

still have tingly full taco tummy! :)


-----02 feb, 2013-----

service was excellent on a busy friday nite, food was consistent which in my opinion is rare even in the finest establishment. not only consistent but very good. great tequila menu and knowledgeable staff recommendations.

amazing tacos. so delicious, i miss texas every time i eat here.

excellent service. great salsa selection and i liked that the burritos are pressed and crispy. every meat item sounded good, i had a hard time picking one. will be back!

amazing options (constantly changing the choices or preparation), always really fast, great service, and just good food!!

bouquets of brilliance. one of the many things that ran through my mind while dining at mi mero mole this afternoon was, that it is sad; how low our expectations for mexican food have fallen since living in portland. this is a cuisine that should be as vibrant and festive as the culture that it comes from. yet, rarely is. reading reviews for the most lauded mexican restaurants in the rose city, i often feel like these people have no idea what good mexican food even consists of. much less, tastes like. and while i have been to a couple places here that had moments of greatness (santeria, nuestra cocina) they still werent as 'all-encompassing' as the life affirming meal we had at mi mero mole today.
so whats their angle? a simple idea, based around stews (or guisados, en espanol), of which they rotate 4 meat, 4 veg and 1 seafood every day. for my first spin i thought the plato macho would serve me best. this comes with your choice of 2 guisados, rice, bean and tortillas. after some consideration i was drawn to the pollo en salsa verde and their cerdo en adobo. the señora, a much smaller version of me, asked them to populate her plato chico with tinga de calabacitas. when the first thing you see walking through the door (besides the lovely collection of tequila on the wall) is a girl pouring out batter to form, and then press, fresh corn tortillas, you begin to warm to an idea of what is to come. this is a 'order at the counter, grab what you need, seat yourself and bus your table' kind of affair. so we did all those things, scooping ourselves a cup of each of their 4 salsas and then patiently waiting for the goods to arrive.
the first thing that struck us was how vibrant and striking each different dish was. along with the salsas, it was like looking at a beautiful painting whose paint wasnt yet dry. this carried over into the flavor department, where each bite was like a song unto itself. its quite obvious that everything is made from scratch with only the finest of ingredients which are mixed and matched by some genius who should have his own church. i made a couple tacos with their marvelous tortillas but ditched this concept because i felt like i was throwing a blanket over the sun. from there on out it was bite after delectable bite by fork until i was only left with the gravies which i mopped up with the chips until those were gone and then i used my spoon until there was nothing left but the credits rolling across my tongue.
this must be what it is like when someone who has smoked for 20 years stops, and after a few days says "wow, i forgot that food can taste like this!" except that i dont smoke, ive just been suffering the work of amateurs for the last 2 years. my wife was riding the same wave as i was, though the heat in her guisado was kicking her ass. she sucked it up though. well, i dont know what else to say. our minds were blown, or awakened. cant really tell which yet. guess that means we'll have to come back next week and see if the next batch of choices live up to the memories of these.
grade: a ( i am tempted to add this to my favorites list right now, but have a rule that i need to try a place a minimum of 3 times before i do that. im sure its an inevitability though)

amazing service- strange menu setup. the service at mi mero mole was above and beyond. the way they have there menu set up was a little strange to me, but the food was pretty good.

i settled on a quesadilla of lengua en mole coca cola. the quesadilla was well-prepared, and “light” enough for me to enjoy the lengua filling, but the mole was just a touch too sweet. the worker appreciated the feedback, saying the mole is a work-in-progress. mi mero mole es muy interesante, and worth watching.

it was on a dreary saturday evening over gentrified tacos at mi mero mole, nick zukin’s (of kenny & zuke’s) new se division eatery specialising in guisados- stews traditional to mexico city what happens at mi mero mole is you walk up to the counter, select which guisado you would like and then choose if you want it on a homemade taco, in a burrito, quesadilla or on a plate accompanied by rice & beans. you then take your number, go kick it at a table and then have a taco tasting fest with the only friends you have with pronounceable first and last names.

needs improvements!!. we set out for mexican and found ourselves at mi mero mole. first reaction was excitement, the menu looked amazing and we had trouble picking from the great selections. my husband ended up liking his choice more than i did but all around the food was delicious. now for the negatives. my daughter is seven and just likes a simple cheese quesadilla, beans, rice, and a small soda. they charged ten dollars for this!! really? if you have more then one child, i would steer clear. the portion was tiny and didn't even fill her up, and she's not a big eater. the tables were also dirty and we had to look around to find one clean enough to sit at and we were the only ones there. there also was no silverware and we had to get up and take napkins and such from other not-so-clean tables. the floors were just as bad. i guess i feel like if i'm spending $50 and over for mexican food for 2 adults and a child in se portland, where there's lots of cheap awesome mexican food, then at the very least i could have a clean, comfortable place to sit. all around we were disappointed with our experience. all the bads are easy fixes and maybe we will try again. oh, forgot to mention the music they were playing was really good - helped the experience. definitely seemed cool when we walked in but we left feeling bummed out! los gorditos is across the street and is way cheaper and just as yummy and gives you far more bang for your buck.