Quiero Cafe

Refreshing Latin American Eats in Saco and Portland

It might seem that I eat out a lot, with all my restaurant reviews I post on my newsletter, blogs, and website. Really, it is because as a real estate agent, I am on the road daily as “Realtor on the Go”, all over Southern Maine and Central Maine for listing appointments, showings, or my favorite… photo shoots with my favorite photographer. We enjoy our photoshoots because that means it is time for finding a new place to eat. This has been our tradition for years. Depending upon the location and time of day for the listing photoshoot, we are either at breakfast, brunch or lunch. We have found some really unique restaurants and iconic diners …. a lot of good eats. 

Last summer, we found ourselves in Saco after taking photos at a new listing. The original restaurant we wanted had a long wait so we decided to try a cafe that was across the street, Quiero Cafe. The place had a warm and inviting vibe, with brick walls, exposed beams, and reclaimed wood cashier counters. Casual rustic chic. 

The food was exciting using fresh ingredients. We both tried a different flavor of their smoothies. I had the Naranjo which was made with carrot, carrot juice, orange, apple, mango, kale, and apple cider. And my photographer had the Verde with pineapple, apple, celery, cucumber, lemon, kale, apple cider, and ginger. They were both deliciously refreshing on a hot summer day. For an appetizer we tried the Tostones which were homemade plantain chips with queso fresco, guacamole, guiso, and garlic aioli. For our main dishes, we split what was appropriately just called “Lunch”. It came with rice, beans, sweet plantains, lettuce, queso fresco, salsa, and avocado and was beautifully arranged on the plate. Everything was delicious. I highly recommend this place.