nuestra cocina

great drinks & food. what more can you ask for?

go early. noisy, crowded, and chaotic, but oh-so-good. what else can one say?

the entrees are great but i can’t get past the tacos, ceviche and sopes! and their spicy margaritas are delicious. i recommend to friends that you can get a truly great meal for cheap here by simply ordering multiple items off of the appetizer lis

compliments go to chef benjamin for orchestrating a wonderful cooking class and menu! i enjoyed the evening, eating the food and the listening to the great preparation directions. our first course was chile relleno con picadillo de puerco. it was amazing. the chef roasted the poblano pepper on the open gas stove. he then peeled them and stuffed with the shredded pork, almonds and raisins. they were placed in the oven an baked. the 2nd course sopes (masa cakes) were like savory tarts with a chile arbil salsa. on cake was topped with beans, the 2nd topped with squash and the third topped with squash. when he made the salsa he used the entire jalapeño, seeds included. it was a great salsa . the last dish was pollo en mole verde which was the tender and flavorful. i cannot wait to return for another dinner or even another class,

my favorite res in portland. great food, drink and service. try the spinach salad. the dressing has a little heat that soon disappears and doesn't over power the bacon or spinach. whether you go for a main course or a appetizer you won't be disappointed

we have been here twice now & think this is incredibly good latin food with a fair price. we have tried several dishes. we love them all. the gorditas are a great value... so filling, flavorful, unique, and delish. good envro, drinks, & food. generally there will be a wait.

still our fav soot. consistent, relaxed, good eats and reliable with a festive feel. our go to with friends, guests, our just us...


-----10 jul, 2012-----

only the best will do. we have this as our mainstay must go place with guests or on our own for years, and the consistency, freshness and flair chef ben sees to brings us back for our favorite items as well as exploring new items. we celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and a good day here. servers know us and what we like. we recommend most items although the only item we have ordered once is the goat cheese tamale, just not my taste...some love it. love the sauces and ambience of this local hideaway. first timers should sit at the kitchen bar for a full experience.


we have attended classes and that was fun as well. always get desert...we recommend the flan and the banana crepes.

first time and will never come back. restaurant so loud, sit outside no air conditioner, table so tight together i feel like the one next to me gonna elbow into my head. food come out on a big plate with a tiny island of food in the middle, not tasty, lamb smell so strong and very not tasty smell, i can smell it from a mile a way, server not very attentive and hard to get attention, dessert taste like a mountain of sugar , in general horrible experience , but the dessert is the final thing that makes me want to throw up. waste of time and money, not enough word to describe this.

no longer a fan. i have been a fan for several years but after my last experience, i think it will be my last. we went early - 5:30ish and it was not busy which was not normally the case - usually a waiting line. we sat at our table for 10-15 mins. waiting for acknowledgement and to order drinks. after turning around and looking repeatedly for our server (jennifer) she finally came over. we took our friends for the first time and it was embarrassing at how slow each step of the service was... drinks slow to arrive, trying to catch server's attention to place order, etc. the drinks finally arrived and in the past i always loved the margaritas but this time they were very watered down and the glass was 2/3 full of ice. not just for the first drink but also for the next drinks. at $8 a drink, i do not consider this a worthwhile drink to order.

the meal arrived and i have always raved about the food being so flavorful but i was very disappointed. i ordered the lamb shoulder and, yes, it was very tender, but there was no hint of any seasoning and the portion was so small that i felt like it was the lamb knee instead of shoulder!

after talking this restaurant up to my friends, it ended up being very embarrassing to take them to this restaurant. i have recommended them to many people but that won't happen again.

you had a good thing going nuestra cocina but i feel that it has slipped to an unacceptable level. sadly, no longer on my list of recommendations.


-----20 sep, 2012-----

wonderful flavors. favorite dish is the chili relleno. not just average and stuffed with cheese - it's stuffed with meat, nuts and all kinds of yumminess! excellent food and the prices are very reasonable. the bartenders are above average and excellent. gotta say that waiting for a table outside was very long and disorganized. it was a slower night and we watched people wandering in from street and nabbing tables when we had been waiting quite some time for an outdoor table.

good eats. excellent service, great food.

not so much. bar was the best part -- which is how they can sell their food, cause it sucks. if people think this is good, they like grease. it is not authentic and is pretty much the loudest place i've been in since i was last at the airport on the tarmac.

skip it

nuestra cocina is a restaurant considered to represent a slice of the portland food scene with menu offerings supporting local farmers.  the atmosphere is light and laid back with a mature young crowd. cochinita pibil is considered a signature

...the food and service and whole experience was top notch and i want you to know about this place.

right at home in our kitchen. on a weekend foray to points south i landed here. portlandia has a major rep as food town spectacular giving seattle a run for the money. what seattle doesnt have is much for classy latin/mexican food. but in ptown i had the pleasure of dining at nuestra cocina. the margarita was divine. the fish seviches was awesome if a little too spicy for this gringa - no worries the waitress noticed my distress and rescued me out with some sour cream on the side. gorditos were tasty and so filling i have one leftover for lunch. my friends who were supposed to meet me for dinner bailed on me and i was left to eat at the bar. no worries jennifer the waitress extraordinaire made me feel right at home a long with the staff in the busy open kitchen. she has worked here 9 years and reports that after a vacation her first stop is dinner here! so take a road trip south to portlandia and be certain to look up jennifer @ nuestra cocina. my only advise is don't be in a hurry as they don't take reservations and getting a table on a busy friday night could take you up to an hour.

not done yet!. to echo an earlier review, the wonderful food that actually lived up to the good reviews was substantially offset by pushy service that presented the bill during the main course! we wanted dessert and had already ordered two expensive cocktails each, and would have ordered another with dessert. this is becoming epidemic in portland and we sadly won't be back.