Stella Taco

Pro Tip — Get the nachos. $ 5 gets you a big portion of house-​made chips smothered in delicious green chili queso, black beans, onions, queso fresco & house made hot sauce. It’s a total deal and it’s amazing.
Next up, tacos. I vacillate between 3 and 4 stars because I’ve had such hit and miss experiences with the tacos… but I daydream about the nachos so I bumped it up. I’ve tried a number of the tacos my favorite of which were the fish and pollo. The slaw on the tacos is top notch. The fried avocado was mushy, bland, let down. I know a good avocado can be hard to find, so I’d be willing to give ‘em a second chance. I’m normally a huge fan of shrimp tacos but I also wasn’t feeling those either.
They have a great drink selection with all kinds of ‘ritas. They seem to try to locally source things which is always a plus. Staff is friendly, food is fast, it’s always nice n’ clean. Happy Hour is daily from 3 – 6 and gets to $ 2 off «street tacos» and $ 1 most bevs.
In short, eat lots of nachos, wash it down with a cold one and life will be good.

For a gringo taco joint with gringo prices (over $ 1.50), these tacos are gooood. Real good.
But please retrain your servers: this is the food business. Don’t cough into your hand and then use the same hand to hand me a basket of tacos. Get it together. Sling tacos, not your phlegm, unless I ordered the phlegm colorado, and I didn’t.

My favorite taco house. Great food and margaritas. Lots of variety and good vegetarian selection for my wife. Great spot in the Alberta arts district. Been here many time and never disappointed.

The Short: Great prices for the hood, good standards (tacos, hello!), and decent beer selection to pair with.
The Long:
This place was great! I came here with my daughter after a 4-​mile bike ride (pulling a trailer) and it did not fail to satisfy our cravings. Walked in and was greeted by a friendly gal up front who happily took our orders and smiled at my kiddo. A very open seating area, some tables up at a «bar» height and others at regular level provided some good structure and broke up the openness of the floor plan. I ordered the monthly special of barbacoa tacos (um, hell yes!), and my preschooler went to TOWN on the pork colorado tacos (and of course the chips and guacamole). Their guac was some of the best I have had anywhere, anytime. (Not to bust out my hand-​knit avocado scarf or anything, but… I’m an avid avocado fan.) I was impressed by the perfect balance of the creaminess to substantial bits of avocado ratio, the hint of lemon and salt and the best (chile-​coated?) totopos to dip in it. The beans and rice did not take away from the experience which is about the best those two can do. (Sorry beans and rice, you are never the cool ones at the party.)
I haven’t tried enough of the menu to give a five-​star review, but so far I’m digging it and will be back! Solid four-​star review.

The ambiance is laid back. Very casual. The location is very clean and the employees were welcoming. We arrived just in time for happy hour and got some of their street taco options. My absolute favorite was Stella’s Horchata. I’d definitely have to come back and try some of their beverage options.

Warm and friendly little hipstery place.
Great chips n salsa, good $ 2 happy hour street tacos.
Whole bill was inly $ 15.
Really nice wait staff and super quick service.
Would definitely come back again.

This is my last review for the year and the BEST is definitely last. :-)
The worst thing about Stella Taco is they are not in Seattle! We went down to see the Mortified show (highly recommended btw), and their location is right across the street. The stars must have aligned for us that night, because we probably wouldn’t have even tried it if we weren’t running so late for the show. Anyway, long story short, we ended up eating there 5 times in less than 48 hours.
Between us we tried most everything on the menu, and had nothing but positive experiences! My favorites were the Chorizo, Chile Colorado, and beef brisket tacos. The tacos are not your standard taco truck tacos, they have some great toppings, wonderful sauces that really complement the meat, and do not skimp on the meat.
In addition, the chicken quesadilla was a great, gooey, wonderful mess! Oh, and we were there for nachos week, when they had a specialty nacho plate, which was amazing! Really crispy chips, piled high with Chorizo, guacamole, sour cream, salsa, and peppers!
And, to top it all off, the employees are really nice! A truly wonderful experience, and we cannot wait to go back!

The hipster formula in Portland is alive and well at Stella Taco. We chose a variety of options and were underwhelmed with most and turned off completely by the fried avocado and vegan mole. I couldn’t finish the mole after the first bite (we had our order to go otherwise I would have let them know it was inedible.
I’d rather have good food instead of a cool scene.

Little tacos, tasty food. What’s not to like?
They’re not the most flavorful things in the world, but they are a good bang for your buck.
Ahhhh, that’s my problem with Portland. I love that we can interpret ethnic foods (like tacos) and make them trendy to a wider audience – not everyone’s comfortable going to a hole in the wall mom & pop shop, but they will go to a bright, clean, bustling restaurant with ingredients they’re used to.
What I don’t love is what gets lost in the interpretation. The tacos aren’t bad, they’re just not great. They’re just a little bland for me and the ingredients they pack in don’t seem to mesh.
I’ll give them another try though, and will update my review if something changes.

Great queso and ample vegetarian options! The taco i chose wasn’t my favorite. It was the fried avocado and I’m not sure, just wasn’t digging it. But the quesadilla we had was great! probably would go back just for that and nachos. Everyone was SO nice and the place is super cute! definitely try it out if you’re in the hood

This was my second trip to this spot and it was much better than the last. The steak fajita taco was simple but tasty. Generous heping of tender steak with a bit of guacamole. The sides I ordered didn’t disappoint. Lots of crispy chips. The salsa is nicely textured with just the right amount of spice. The black beans were a little bland for my taste buds but I added some hot sauce from the mini salsa bar and… Yum. Loved having a Mexican beer on tap. The country music was also a nice touch. I’ll be back sooner this time.

I love this place! So many options and unique tacos to choose from. The staff is incredibly friendly and efficient. I highly recommend Stella taco for anyone looking for affordable quality eats in a fun atmosphere

I am not sure exactly what an «Austin Style» street taco is so no claims here on how they compare to some of the original flavor. I ordered the carnitas and the chili Colorado. I wanted to taste a side of the beans and rice so I went for this as well.
Carnitas was piled high with big chunks of meat. Good flavor. Moist. A small amount of scooped avocado on the top. The Colorado taco was more of a pulled pork with crunchy pieces of something fried on top. I didn’t taste too much flavor and would have liked a little more kick. The rice was okay. Sort of bland. The beans tasted sour. Like they had vinegar or something strange in them.
I would like to try a few other taco options to compare. Overall it was okay.

Portland Nacho Week Success!
Had the special nachos and Stella Taco nailed it. They should definitely consider making it a regular menu item. Can we just talk about their chips in and of themselves for a second? They went above and beyond in my book. Great texture, heftiness, and crunch, obviously fresh, and like a paprika/​chili powder mix dusted on top? Sold. Tons of guac, sour cream, cheese, julienne carrots, ground beef (I’m guessing), and salsa… drool* Also got one of their Carnitas taco (because the place is called Stella Taco and I can’t go in and not have a taco) and the meat was bomb. I would’ve appreciated some cilantro or more fresh salsa to cut it, but that’s another story and I’m still digging this place.

Great alternative to Porque No. Meats are braised, flavorful but not greasy. Solid homemade chips with a great salsa on the side. There are considered Austin style tacos, im guessing its a tex mex style and they pull it off well. Chile colorado taco is a must, tender pork and the green chile is bright and rich. This isnt Mexican street food but it doesnt claim to be. It fills a great niche in the hood and is like a brighter, less bar style taco joint than cruzroom, which also serves up some delicious gringo tacos.
Four taps of beer, couple of ipas and a mexican style lager, more lagers in a bottle. Margaritas are fine but not great.
Great place!

I’m so glad we found Stella Tacos!
Food: fresh, delicious and (bonus) mostly GF! Everything I’ve tried is my «fav».
Service: Awesome. They smile and look like they are genuinely happy to see you there. They are completely willing to answer any questions with a great attitude. And prompt.
Seating: Plenty plus there’s seating outside. Great atmosphere.

I have to update this to 2 stars. my boyfriend and I have been sick for the past 6 hours since we ate here. Won’t be coming back :(
Super disappointed with Stella Taco. we tried it for the first time and not sure we’ll be back again. We got a brisket taco, pollo asado taco, Colorado taco, and the Guadalupe bowl. The brisket taco and pollo asado tacos were good, but the Colorado taco was way too salty. I don’t know why previous reviews said the food needed salt, it tasted like the lid fell off the salt shaker and a whole bottle of salt was in the food. The Guadalupe bowl was good, but again, way too much salt, which made it very savory and rich and difficult to eat.
3 stars for nice staff, but unfortunately the food just wasn’t there so probably won’t be back.

Ok, just found this place today. Love it! The tacos are great, lots of variety for veggies and carnies alike. The happy hour from 3 – 6 pm is super featuring street tacos for $ 2. Margaritas for $ 1 off. I got the Smoky Arnold Palmer Rita. Very good and smoky flavored! The tacos I gorged on were brisket, carnitas, chile colorado pork, mole chicken, and fried avocado. All good and tasty. The hot sauces are not too spicy that you get to put on top. I like this because I’m sensitive to too much pepper spice. The queso and chips are nice too!

Let me start by saying I went here because of all the mixed reviews. Having been a fan of Unilocal for so long, I’ve discovered that sometimes you just gotta give a place a chance, despite the reviews. So glad that I did. The waitstaff were super friendly, the food was good, prices decent, and I loved the decorations.
By no means does this place try to be «authentic mexican food» they just do their spin. Which I’m perfectly Fine with. It’s similar to Cruz room with it’s interesting take on tacos, yet a little less.hipster.

This place is so great! Coming from California I’ve been looking for good tacos. The brisket street tacos are crave-​able with the perfect amount of jalapeños. I put their hot sauce on it too (not the super hot). I also love the carnitas hard tacos, perfectly crisp the way its supposed to be. And don’t get me started on the Austin Rita… one can knock you back a little. Super fun to drink though!
The people that say this place has no flavor are crazy. I feel like the people who are saying it isn’t good are basing it more on the name than the taste. Just because it isn’t a little hole in the wall with a authentic mexican name, doesn’t mean they can’t make a mean taco. Plus, they keep it local when available and even call out each vendor on their backboard. Great way to spread love to the community.