D.F./Taqueria Nueve Refugees Seek New Home

Yeah, it stinks when not one, but two of your favorite restaurants close on the same day. Admittedly, we've slacked on trying new restaurants, so now we're scouring Portland for a new regular spot for margaritas and mouth-watering Mexican food. Last weekend, a group of D.F./Taqueria Neuve refugees checked out Autentica in Northeast Portland.

Autentica is located at the intersection of NE 30th and Killingsworth. Neighbors include Beast, Blackbird Tattoo, Winston's Antiques, Yakuza and more. It's definitely an area to keep your eye on. Later this summer, a new Italian restaurant called D.O.C. will open along the same strip. More on that later...

In a word, Autentica is bustling. This place seems to attract everyone from hipsters, to families to couples on a first date. The result is a comfy place with a vibrant mix of personalities. Fun, fun, fun.

We were seated immediately and nibbled on pickled veggies (did you really expect chips and salsa?) while we perused the tequila menu. Our server suggested the special pomegranate margaritas and who were we to argue??? Make that a round of YES, please.

I have to say that the service was excellent. Our server rocked. She was charming, attentive and knowledgeable. The tri-fecta. And man, could she roll her "R's". She gave us more suggestions for dinner and being easily seduced, we ordered almost everything she recommended. We ordered several platillo mexicano (combination of two kinds of enchiladas: red and green molé and chile relleno, $17), a couple of carne a la plancha con frijoles charros y chiles toreados (cascade natural flat iron steak, cooked on the flat top with charro beans and serrano peppers, $18), tradicional taco al pastor con cilantro y cebolla (pork taco marinated with dried chilies, served with cilantro, onions and spicy sauce, $3 ea) and sopa de tortilla a la autentica con aguacate y queso fresco (tortilla soup autentica style with avocado and fresh mexican cheese, $8).

The general consensus was that the steak was really tender, but bland. The enchiladas were more of a hit. The chicken was moist and delicious and the molé (especially the red) was delicious, albeit intense. Chocolate, eight kinds of dried chiles and nuts. Mmmmm!!!! After all was said and done, the group felt that the food was good, but the drinks were merely passable. But in a town where good food is pretty easy to find, we are still anxious to find something a little more remarkable.

Will we go back? You bet. Another visit or three is definitely on the agenda. We'll keep it in the mix as a contender, but we're eager to taste what else is out there.

Do you have any suggestions for where we should try next?