El Tapatio Restaurant
Outside of El Tapatio Restaurant at 2627 SE 82nd Ave. in Portland, OR.
March 2024El Tapatio Restaurant, located at 2627 SE 82nd Ave., has served the Jade District a menu of authentic Mexican food for over 30 years now. Part of a local family-owned franchise of restaurants around the Portland/Gresham area, their first restaurant was founded by Efren Guitron after he arrived from the small town, Cuautla, in the state of Jalisco, Mexico. Efren wanted to be able to use his hometown recipes to share the regional cuisines he grew up with. Traditional dishes like tacos, enchiladas, and tostadas.
Stephanie Navarro and coworker in front of El Tapatio
We spoke with Stephanie Navarro, restaurant manager at El Tapatio, to learn more about the business.
“How long have you been working in the restaurant industry?”
I grew up in the restaurant industry, started working as a greeter at the age of 13 and have since worked positions as a busser, server, cook, and now manager. Working in restaurants for so many years you understand the bond created between yourself and fellow coworkers. For everything to go well there needs to be communication, trust, and teamwork between staff. Having spent so many hours working together, your coworkers begin to feel like your friends and even your family. Soon you find yourself spending time with them even on your days off.
“What is it like in the Jade District?”
I’ve always loved the diversity of the neighborhood. We see ourselves as a multi-generational restaurant and have been able to serve delicious food to new generations as the families of long time customers grow. We have noticed a decrease in people out walking along 82nd ave. especially after the pandemic. This has made it hard for us to attract new customers who might have stopped in to try El Tapatio. Having less foot traffic can make it feel less safe, especially at night, in a neighborhood that is not very well lit. We’ve had to adapt to these changes, sometimes reducing our hours during really slow weeks. The cost of food has risen so much in the last few years we’ve had to adjust our prices a little bit to be able to continue making our recipes from scratch and avoiding taking shortcuts. It can be hard when people still expect prices to be the same as ten years ago.
“What do you hope for the future of the neighborhood”
I would love to see more community events in the neighborhood to bring people together more often. Being able to build a stronger community where everyone has the opportunity to be involved. We all hope that things pick up at the restaurant so we can stay open for our employees and customers.
