The Low Tide Lounge — Restaurant in Portland

I like this place. The building itself might have worked well as an auto shop, frankly - it's got clear machine shop/warehouse bones. That poses an atmosphere challenge for the owner's interior decoration plans because, under no circumstances could their Spanish imperialist decorative theme EVER outshout the building itself. What's a bar owner to do?

Go light, then. Go light.

The Conquistador pays decorative attention to its name and the spanish menu, but does so sparingly. Less is more in this case. Instead, the owners put most of their attention into the menu, the bar, and the skillful execution at both stations. In this way, The Conquistador delivers.

The staff has been consistently attentive. The food well prepared and very tasty. Five stars for bar food. Which is fine; if I'm looking for Spanish themed fine-dining, I shouldn't be looking for it in a bar. And since this is a bar, the drinks should carry the evening.... and they do. Try the shandy from the specialties list. The Margaritas kicked my butt, just like they should, thanks.

And... with a pool table, shuffleboard table, and pinball machines upstairs, I just can't quite shake the thought that there's a bit of the old style "Portland Confidential" about the joint.. is it possible there's more to the place than meets the eye? Probably not, but it's fun to imagine. And that's what keeps me...

PSA for cilantro haters: numerous ingredients throughout their menu have cilantro mixed in. Every salsa, the cabbage slaw, and the pico de gallo have it. You can ask to leave it off but then you're stuck with a dry dish with less flavor. Go elsewhere if that's a problem for you.

First visit here was meh. Food was good after it was fixed and brought back (asked for no cilantro on the taco salad, came out with a pile of pico and chopped cilantro on top). Server seemed unenthusiastic about suggesting substitutions so we were stuck figuring out something that sounded good.

Empanada and arepas were indeed tasty. As a cilantro lover I enjoyed the avocado salsa, but my wife was stuck with a dry, bland salsa-less taco salad.

-1 point for the overuse of cilantro in nearly all menu items, -2 points for unhelpful service, +1 point for the dishes...

Great bar with just the right amount of ambience and dive-bar feeling. We ordered the nachos along with the margaritas. Nachos: it's a huge portion, and it's made to order. Not only was it delicious (one of the best nachos in a bar I have ever had), it was also extremely flavorful. And the drinks: these margaritas are also great. They have several flavors: we got the default lime ones and I can't wait to go back for more.

The people working there are friendly and chilled: they really seemed to like this place and felt down to earth. The customers were all also chilled (what you expect from SE).

There's a small upstairs lounge that anyone can use. Oh, and for all you vegetarians: this is a 100% vegetarian bar (I was surprised to find that out accidentally last night) with some vegan options.

Overall, I...