He then brought his findings back home to Arizona, letting these regional dishes shape his menu for Mochilero Kitchen. When researching cuisine to create the menu, Cota traveled to 22 of Mexico's 32 states, meeting home cooks and eating traditional foods all around the country. "We all feel like we've really got to give it our all." "We really want to make sure we get the food right," he says. "As soon as we get the green light from the government, we can give them a call and say, 'hey, you have a job,'" Cota says.įor now the restaurant is running with a staff of less than 10, most of whom are cooks. "One good thing is that it has really deepened the bond with the team," Cota says, describing how they've had to dig in and think of creative solutions.Ĭota hired about 45 people to staff the restaurant, but none were on payroll yet, he says. And the coronavirus has created many unexpected challenges for the new restaurant. When the siblings started building the restaurant, they never imagined opening during the middle of a global pandemic. Now opening a restaurant to provide for the community has become more important than ever, Cota says. "It's not how we wanted or how we expected to open, but we still want to dazzle everyone." Why they opened despite the pandemicĬota and Miranda always wanted to open Mochilero Kitchen in their home community of Peoria to provide high quality food to an area filled with mostly fast food restaurants and big name chains. "We are just really excited to get going," he says. The owners plan to open the dining room as soon as advised by health officials.
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Customers can place orders online, by phone or through Grubhub or DoorDash delivery services. While these services were something the owners hoped to grow into after opening, safety measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus flipped the timeline.įor now, the restaurant will serve a reduced menu, Cota says, giving the community a taste of what is to come.
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Tuesdays through Saturdays for the time being, Cota says. Located in Peoria on the southwest corner of 67th Avenue and Happy Valley Road, the restaurant is now open for takeout and delivery service only from noon-8 p.m. Jorge Cota and Meliza Miranda created Mochilero Kitchen, a modern regional Mexican restaurant that celebrated its virtual grand opening on Wednesday, April 8. While many metro Phoenix restaurant owners are making the difficult decision to close their kitchens during the coronavirus pandemic, one Peoria brother and sister team are continuing with their dream to open a restaurant. View Gallery: Mochilero Kitchen opens to serve Mexican food in Peoria Please be aware of changing local rules, and check individual restaurant websites for any additional restrictions such as mask requirements. The latest CDC guidance for vaccinated diners during the COVID-19 outbreak is here dining out still carries risks for unvaccinated diners and workers.
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(Note: The points on this map guide are not ranked rather, they’re organized geographically.) Also, it’s worth noting that Gresham is a Mexican food haven in greater Portland for more taquerias east of 205, this map may help. From the old-school tiendas ladling bowls of menudo to the newer carts slinging birria, these destinations reveal the layers and nuances of the city’s take on Mexican cuisine.ĭon’t see a favorite Mexican restaurant? Check out the birria, burrito, and taco maps or rally for it in the comments. Portland’s Mexican restaurants, food carts, and mercados use heritage masa nixtamalized in town for tamales and tacos, stock delis with flavorful nopales salads, and simmer moles passed down through generations. It’s tempting to constantly frame a city’s Mexican food against that of Los Angeles or El Paso, but in the case of Portland, that flattens the great Oaxacan and Yucatecan spots that have been thriving here for years, not to mention the uniquely homegrown takes on the cuisine that compellingly argue for compressed watermelon aguachile and fried cauliflower in pipián.
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Portland’s Mexican food scene doesn’t get enough credit.