Cafe El Portale Review

December 16, 2002 Just a few steps from Lebowitz, we finally got around to eating at Cafe El Portal, the Mexican joint that numerous Below 14th readers have urged us to try. Now we know why: it's low-key, low-lit and damn tasty... a perfect 10th-date kind of place. One tip: do not arrive later than 10pm, or you risk a rather pared down menu. One group stormed out after the waiter informed them they had run out of pork, black beans and tomatoes. "What kind of a Mexican place runs out of beans?" the woman huffed. Why, this one does!