Ole Frijole

Reviews

• Chris J.

  star star star star star 7 June 2026

  I love Olé Frijole. The only spot I know in Portland to home in SoCal. I come ever chance I get.

• Andrew A.

  star star star star_border star_border 5 June 2026

  It's taken me more than ten years to try this place, one reason is that I've been going to their competitor across the street for all that time.
  
  The somewhat ample potato and cheese breakfast burrito is a good deal, love the gooey cheese. The carnitas taco was okay, but falls short of that at other hole-in-wall places.  However, for $2.50 the size is very fair.
  
  I consider this "authentic" Mexican food, and not just because it's cheap.  Of course, that also means that ambiance is non-existent.
  
  Like many such places, they could use a slight enhancement of their condiment selection, but at least they offer pickled cabbage.
  
  Friendly, somewhat fast, and easy parking.  I hope such places remain and Portland doesn't go fully Por Que No and Tacovore.

• Jaye S.

  star star star star star_border 3 June 2026

  Ole Frijole is alright. I mean it's Mexican good in Oregon, so I'm adjusting my review to appropriately address the food they serve to their target audience. I've visited this place at least three times now. The employees are friendly and the place is clean.
  
  They have a salsa bar with mild and hot red salsas and a hot green salsa. There is also a mix of carrots and jalapeños and red habanero cabbage. I love the hot red salsa. The green hot salsa is okay...I don't think it's their green salsa that bothers me as much as it's the fact that I don't care for green salsa. The jalapeños and carrots are okay but seem a bit oily. The red habanero cabbage is okay but a bit hot.
  
  I've tried the rolled tacos, menudo, chicken burrito, and the lengths tacos.
  
  Overall the food lacks some flavor. I will say the flavor is in line with what I'd expect Mexican food in Portland to be.
  
  The Lengua needed more seasoning. It wasn't cleaned well and had some gristle in there. Almost like they cooked the whole younger but didn't remove all of the hard layer and fat/bad parts. It also wasn't as tender as I'd have hoped for.
  
  Menudo was okay after I added all the stuff to it. It didn't have that deep red color that I've come to love. It was lighter but I assume it's so it wasn't too spicy. I've made menudo and the deep color I get is from added spices. Outside of that, the menudo was pretty good. I've had worse.
  
  The other food was okay and better with salsa. My younger kids loved it and my adult child said it was mediocre. Not horrible like Mexican good in Philly so there's that.
  
  I will go back and have. I don't have any other Portland area Mexican good restaurants to compare it to at the moment.

• Pete H.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 26 May 2026

  This place used to be an occasional "go to" if we were passing by.
  
  Never again.
  
  When you find yourself eating crispy beef tacos that make you reminisce, fondly, I add, of the crappy ones they used to serve up to you in your high school cafeteria, it is time to give up on a place.
  
  I could be willing to overlook the fact that they gave me beef, instead of the chicken I ordered. But the shells these things were served in were either commercial, or they were made HOURS ago, if not yesterday.
  
  The same goes for my girlfriend's taco salad she ordered.
  
  Before writing this review, I tried to think of worse Mexican food I've ever had in Portland. And I cannot.
  
  This was just stale, disgusting food.
  
  If you are in this area- really good, fast and cheap Mexican is available at La Sirenita on Alberta, or Javier's on Lombard.
  
  You can thank me later.
  
  *Before I hit "Post Review", I saw in the Yelp sidebar that a guy recently wrote a review indicating that the taquitos from Costco taste better.
  
  I quite agree.

• Dawn T.

  star star star star star 19 May 2026

  Food is fast and consistently great. I'll sometimes get the veggie fajita burrito or the Ole Nachos with black beans and they hit the spot. I love the pickled vegetables that are offered and typically we will get two servings before leaving. The salsa and pickled veggies refrigerated and covered by a metal lid. Keepin' it clean and fresh.
  
  Boyfriend eats the chicken chimichanga and it looks good. He comes here often for lunch.