No Sabo Will Take Over the Lilia Comedor Space in South Waterfront

No Sabo, which has been in residence (sometimes called a pop-up) at Kaya Cocktail Bar in NE Portland for the past six months, will leave there at the end of the month. They will take over the Lilia Comedor space for a daytime program there in the South Waterfront neighborhood. Lilia Comedor will no longer operate in this location, and is moving to the existing De Noche space in the North Park Blocks.

I sat down with No Sabo’s owners, Jon and Sabrina, to learn more.

Who Is No Sabo?

No Sabo offers “Chicano comfort food” and is run by first-generation Mexican Americans Jon Barragan and Sabrina Quintana, who met while working together. They both worked for Michelin-star chef Brendan Collins at Fia restaurant in Santa Monica before they moved to Portland together.

Jon was born and raised in LA (South Central), and about 10 years ago he went to Harbor City College, a public community college, for his culinary training. As a community college student myself many years ago, I thought it was pretty cool that he got his training at one of these valuable educational institutions in California.

Sabrina was also born and raised in LA (Downey) and along with Jon has been in Portland for about three years. She did not go to culinary school, but has worked in kitchens for over 12 years, starting when she was in high school. “I’ve been in kitchens since I could be in kitchens!” she remarked.

In Portland, Jon helped open Houston Blacklight, where he was a sous chef. He was also a sous chef at Oma’s Hideaway. ” I really enjoyed my time there, and I loved working with chef Tom, too,” Jon remarked. Sabrina worked at República when she arrived in Portland.

Sabrina and República

For Sabrina, República was a place she had her eye on, and a place that she has a lot of love for. I asked her what drew her to them, and she responded, “Well, I am Mexican. So I do like to be around my culture, my people. And they’re really acclaimed—one of the top-acclaimed restaurants in Portland.”

When she worked at Fia, she would ask around, “What do you guys know about Portland? Any restaurants you recommend?” And República kept coming up in different conversations.

“When we moved to Portland, I immediately started with República and was sous chef there for two years,” she said. She left to pursue No Sabo.

Opening No Sabo

I was curious to know why they wanted to open No Sabo, and learned that it started as a dream to fulfill: “It had always been a dream of mine to own a restaurant,” said Sabrina. “No Sabo was a chance to create a community in Portland that is Mexican American—and to find our people, doing what we love. I want us to share our experiences and how we’ve grown over the years through the food that we’re serving.”

She continued, “One thing that I have mentioned in the past, is the feeling that I want people to have when they try my food—comfort and the feeling of belonging.”

And for those not in-the-know (I count myself having been that) “no sabo” is a slang term, usually used for Mexican American kids who don’t speak Spanish or are not fluent. It’s a “gentle slur,” as Sabrina described it.

Sabrina added, “I mean, I am a no sabo kid! Jon speaks fluent Spanish, but there’s still that disconnect—we didn’t grow up in Mexico. Our parents did. And we’re the product of chasing that dream.”

The No Sabo Residency at Kaya

I wondered what was it about this space that allowed them to to do their work here. Sabrina pointed out that a big appeal was that it is woman-owned.

“Katya Suh is the owner, and she is really personable and sweet, really about community, and shedding light on black and brown families and community,” explained Sabrina. “That’s something that I connected with immediately. And she really loved República and Co, and so she took a chance on us.”

“She gave us a two week trial period. She wanted to try our food and see what the direction of No Sabo was going to be. And I think she fell in love with it and immediately wanted us in this space.”

The Menu and the Hard Shell Taco

At the current No Sabo at Kaya, the menu is on the small but well-curated side. I asked them how much larger the new menu might be and it sounds like it will be about twice the size. “Because because it’ll only be me and Jonathan in the kitchen,” remarked Sabrina. They want to make the workload manageable.

And of course, I asked about what they are really excited about on the new menu. “I know what I’m excited about—the tacos,” said Jon. “I was gonna say the tacos too!” said Sabrina.

One of the things they are planning on having on the menu is a hard shell taco that will be filled with braised short rib. “It’s going to be reminiscent of the kind of hard shell tacos that you would find in LA at your corner Mexican food spots. They have had to change what they to do to fit what the people that are already here kind of like. So in their own way, they’ve made something new.”

We talked briefly about how this sort of thing takes place all over the world—immigrant cultures adjusting their foods to the tastes of the place they move to. One of the cuisines that comes to is Indian Chinese food—Chinese immigrants to Kolkata make incredible food that is delicious (chili chicken will always have my heart) and sympathetic to the flavors local Indians prefer.

The Hard Shell

And as a person who mostly associates hard shell tacos with suburban American tastes (and the taco shell is usually filled with mildly-spiced ground beef, iceberg lettuce, shredded mild cheddar, out of season tomatoes, and mild sauce) I wondered, is a hard shell commonly found in Mexican American food? “I would say yes,” remarked Jon. “Very common. But in Mexico, authentically, no.”

He continued, “I would eat hard shell tacos all the time growing up. As a kid, I never saw it as weird. It was just kind of what was there.” Sabrina then said, “And I think that plays well into our story as Mexican American. We’re not Mexican food. We’re not authentic. We’re not from Mexico. We are from America.

Jon added, “But we’re undeniably Mexican at the same time.”

To Drink

As far as what to drink there, they do have a full on-premises liquor license, to they have a lot of flexibility as far as what alcohol products to use. But as they find their sea legs at the start, they may only have a limited number of items.

Sabrina mentioned a seasonal Paloma, a couple of mezcals and beer, a short wine list, an agua fresca. Other NA options will be canned teas and and sodas like Mexican Coke, Mexican Sprite, and Sidral Mundet. (“That’s my favorite, actually—and his favorite, too!” exclaimed Sabrina.)

The No Sabo Space

I noticed that Kaya has quite a bit of seating in three distinct areas (inside, covered patio, outside), and I asked if the new space is comparable, larger, or small. They explained that at Kaya there are about 62 seats. At the new space they will have around 36, so, a little more than half the number os seats.

As for the decor and the vibe, they are not going to be changing too much from what it is now. “It’s a beautiful space already,” said Sabrina. “The plants make it very lively. It’s all open windows. It’s going to be summer, so it’ll be nice and pretty. I don’t think there’s much to change.”

She added, “Obviously, there’ll be little touches of our personality in there, maybe with some art, and that’ll slowly grow over time from the community. I would love to do something like that.”

Also, they are looking at hosting other pop-ups, considering a broad range of cuisines, not necessarily those that are similar to the food at No Sabo.

The South Waterfront

I also wondered how they like the South Waterfront area. “It definitely feels a little bit more on the go,” said Sabrina, comparing it to their experience on NE Alberta. “There’s people walking by quickly. They’re just trying to be in and out, which is what we’re trying to cater to a little bit.”

They are definitely anticipating a robust to-go scene, but not grab-and-go. Everything will be prepared to order.

Also interestingly enough, Cha Cha Cha is next door. “They go in a completely different direction than we are,” said Sabrina. “They brand themselves as authentic and do the classic tacos, burritos—all that stuff. That is not us.”

She continued, “Compared to our peers, we have a completely different style of cooking and plating. “Our food is comforting, and not stuff you’ve never had before.” She mentioned that the food and its flavors will be familiar (like hard shell tacos).

And they are paying close attention to presentation, with the aim to showcase their food in the best way possible, regardless of their natural look. “Normally, when people think of comfort food, it’s not always the most visually appealing,” said Jon. Some of the tastiest food from myriad cultures is in the brown/tan/orange spectrum. Like rice and beans, which we talked a little about.

He added, “Not everything will have rice and beans, but everything will be delicious.”

A Good Support System

With this new project they are understandably feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness. But they have a lot of support, and that makes all the difference. “Having our friends that are in the business and doing other pop-ups, as well as family—they’re all being very supportive,” Sabrina said.

She added, “People who have done this before are helping us. So we definitely feel the support of the community, and we can’t wait to give back to them in any way.”

Both Jon’s and Sabrina’s families in LA are flying in for their opening day, and they are really excited about that. And again, nervous: “We’re nervous for them to try our food because some of them, like his mom, haven’t even tried any of his food!” said Sabrina. “She works hard and rarely has time to go to fancy restaurants in LA. So, it it’ll be a really big opportunity and experience for us.”

“We definitely know who we are and what we’re doing it for. I think that’s kind of what sets us apart from other places is that we feel really extremely connected to the tagline, ‘Chicano comfort food.'”

Their final day of service at Kaya will be Sunday, June 1; they’ll start up in South Waterfront on Friday, June 13. Look for them serving lunch and other dishes and drinks into the early evening, 11am to 5pm Tuesday through Saturday.

Also of note: The final day of service for Lilia Comedor at the South Waterfront will be Sunday, June 8.

Wishing Jon and Sabrina all the best as they wind down at Kaya and re-open in South Waterfront in June!

No Sabo [final day at Kaya June 1, re-opening in South Waterfront June 13, 2025]
3159 S Moody Avenue, Portland
No Sabo at Kaya website | No Sabo website | Instagram

Updated May 30, 2025.