La Sirenita

The website says they open at 10, but when I called to place an order I got no answer. At 10:30 still no answer, so I drove out there. The sign on the door says they open at 10:30, but at 10:45 the lights were off and the door was locked. Looking in the window, the booths were all beat up, and one even had a sign on it saying not to use. Lousy way to run a business, no matter how good the food is.

I was craving some Mexican food and came to La Sirenita after work. I found it via Unilocal (obviously — how else do you find restaurants these days)?! Sadly this place is falling apart. It needs a major renovation. There are holes in the booth seats and there is a random pipe coming from the wall diagonally into the floor… what?!
Anyway, about the food and service… I don’t know how else to explain it. I’m shrugging on both. We ordered our food at the counter and the employee wasn’t giving us time of day, as he was on his phone. I eventually said, «We’re ready,» and he had the nerve to hold his index finger up and continued to text! Ridiculous. The food finally came and I asked for some limes, which never came. I had to go up to the counter again and ask for it. I ordered the tacos while my friend ordered a wet burrito. We both thought our meals were okay… pretty mediocre, but not terrible. Not sure I would return.

REALLY good food here. Doesn’t have the authentic taste as they do in San Diego but it’s the closest thing. Really good burritos. Had it for the first time and absolutely fell in love. Definitely recommend to anyone who loves and knows great Mexican food.

The hours that are posted for when they open are not correct. Sometimes they don’t open till noon? Unreliable hours sad cause this place has good food.

Really good food. The first time I ate here I got a torta, and it was very very good. Then I got a chicken burrito. My main problem now, is that I want to mix it up, but I know I’m just going to get the burrito every time I’m here…

Pretty casual dining and definitely affordable. Nothing super about the nachos, not enough chips and kinda soggy in the middle. They charge a buck for drink refills and .50 to use credit cards which I think is chintzy. They could charge a little more for the food to offset free drink refills… just saying. Doubt we’ll go back

Delicious burritos, good prices and really friendly fast service.

Affordable, fast, solid Mexican food that came out piping hot. The portion was a little small, but it left room for dessert on the walk back home.
Similarly priced to Chipotle, and other burrito chains. I’d probably choose this place 3 times out of 4. It misses out on atmosphere. Things are dated and don’t always seem clean. Plus there’s no A/​C, so if you don’t get the table outside it’s quite stuffy in the summer.
Soda refills are a buck so full up on water.

Showed up an hour before closing, but they already had the chairs up on the tables, and they were mopping. Didn’t look inviting, so we skipped it. When you’re already closing down an hour early it doesn’t say to me that you’re going to put any effort into the food. Too bad!

If your looking for Fast, Cheap and Great Food try this place. We went for Burritos and Tacos. They were delicious and tasty. The prices were right on very affordable. The Staff was very courteous and helpful. The only concern is the parking. If you live in the neighborhood it’s Great, but if you don’t hard to find a good place to park.

Food was good. Very, very basic place.

The place was cheap, quick and on point! Can’t beat the $ 1.50 tacos topped with the house made green sauce.
A chill vibe, great service and mighty tasty. If you’re looking for a cheap taco night I highly recommend you giving it a shot!

Food was great! Had the steak platter, taquitos, chips and salsa, small nacho, steak and chicken enchiladas and the ground beef burrito. Guy at the front counter was friendly, helpful and service was fast.
Typical décor, nothing fancy but not bad either and it was a little warm in there (just a wall ac unit near the bathroom I believe)
Prices were good, average. Including 3 soft drinks and the above food it was around 38 bucks. We would definitely go back.

I love this genuine spot. Amazing food, great portions, and laid back feel. It’s pretty tiny, but in no way cramped or stuffy. Big windows and they have Jamaica, horchata, and piña!

Love this place. Cheap tacos, right off Milwaukie Ave, and killer authentic Mexican food.
Tacos seem small but they’re PACKED full and only 1.50, which is the best. The vibe is classic Mexican restaurant with bright colors, booths, and great tile work but with a quirky mermaid twist (duh, it’s the name).
Menu is hard to figure out but totally worth your trouble.
On the same wall as the horchata, jamaica, and piña there is a metal box with green sauce and pickled veggies. That sauce is seriously the best green sauce I’ve ever had in my life. Do not miss out on it.

I I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed all of the meals I’ve had at La Serenita and decided to try the Steak Enchilada plate with rice and beans. Now I’ll have a much more difficult decision on what to order on my next visit because the steak enchiladas were better than any others I’ve had elsewhere, including Chipotle Mexican Grill, which the steak was so tough I couldn’t chew it.

I will NEVER be going back here, and I hope you don’t either.
Last time we walked in here my girlfriend heard the guys in the kitchen speaking in Spanish. While she didn’t understand all of it, she did catch «no more», «fuck your mom», and a some other crude things I don’t recall right now. Looking at other reviews, you can see this is a pattern and not a one time incident.
When the people cooking your food are cussing you out in another language nothing good can come of it. I sincerely hope this place goes out of business.

4 stars. Nothing fancy enough to give it 5 stars but still decent Mexican food. The tacos were $ 1.50 each, so I got 3 of them and some taquitos. The portions were kind of small and the food quality slightly above average.
I’d go back if I was nearby and wanted a quick Mexican fix, but it’s not my favorite.

Authenthic, quick, and low cost. My idea of a great meal.
This was my second time here and both times the staff was really friendly and the food came out lickety split.
I was with a friend who got a burrito while I ordered a chicken torta. Never having one before I can’t really compare to anything except to say it was gigantic. It was like eating a chicken taco between 2 larges slices of bread instead of a corn shell. The meat was moist and flavorful and though I shouldn’t have, I ate the whole darned thing.
I will most definitely be returning.

Sirenita is the prototypical inexpensive Mexican restaurant in humble surroundings. I knew there was a Sirenita on Alberta, but didn’t know about this one in Sellwood, so we stopped here to check it out. A friendly young man was at the counter. JP ordered the birria and I went with a cheese quesadilla and a ground beef burrito.
Generally speaking, a birria contains lamb, though it can contain goat, and I think Sirenta’s birria contained goat. The birria soup itself is dark red, made red by all the chili in it. JP thought the birria was decent. My quesadilla was excellent, made with both white and yellow cheeses.
Now on to the burrito. I’m thinking that until this evening, I must never have had a real burrito. I’ve had a chile relleño and enchilada before, but not a burrito. Apparently, I errantly thought a burrito was very similar to an enchilada, but it is not. The massive Sirenita burrito was a tortilla with refried beans spread on the tortilla, with ground beef, rice and lettuce added, then folded up.
JP told me that Sirenita’s burrito was prepared in a very typical fashion. But I’m just not a fan of refried beans as anything other than a side on a combination plate. And putting lettuce in a hot food item never works for me. But apparently, it works for a whole bunch of other people.