2 new flavors of Mexico
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
By PAUL CRAIG, Columbian Staff WriterTwo neighboring Mexican restaurants celebrated Cinco de Mayo by opening their doors to Vancouver customers for the first time on Monday.
El Pollo Loco and On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina, both at the corner of Southeast 164th Avenue and 15th Street, are the new franchises in town, each offering their own take on Mexican cuisine.
El Pollo Loco operates 397 “fast-casual” restaurants in the U.S. and is known for citrus-marinated flame-grilled chicken dishes ranging from chicken legs to burritos and tacos. The 3,100-square-foot restaurant at 1525 S.E. 164th Ave. employs 50 and seats 86.
The Vancouver restaurant is owned by West Pollo Partners, a development company that has a multi-unit agreement with El Pollo Loco to open 35 restaurants in Washington, Oregon and Northern California.
El Pollo Loco was founded in Guasave, Mexico, in 1975. It’s first U.S. restaurant opened in 1980 and West Pollo Partners opened its first El Pollo Loco in December 2007 in Pittsburg, Calif.
Monday also saw On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina open at 1505 S.E. 164th Ave. The restaurant offers “Mexican classics with a twist,” such as carne asada steak and shrimp and mahi-mahi grilled fish tacos.
The Vancouver location is owned by franchisee Border Pacific, which also operates 12 other On the Border restaurants.
The franchise chain opened its first restaurant in Dallas, Texas, in 1982 and operates a total of 160. The chain is a principal brand of Brinker International, which owns, operates and franchises around 1,200 restaurants, including Chili’s Grill & Bar and Romano’s Macaroni Grill.
On the Border in Vancouver is 6,300 square feet and will employ around 150 people.
PAUL CRAIG covers business for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4520 or via e-mail at
paul.craig@columbian.com. | 
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