Meet our Empresarios: La Porteña

Hacienda CDC’s Empresarios programming supports entrepreneurs to start, grow, and scale their businesses. Read more about our featured Empresario and learn about our amazing community of small business owners.

Business Name: La Porteña

Country of Origin: Buenos Aires, Argentina | Los Angeles, CA

Significance of Name:  In Argentina “Porteño” is what you lovingly call someone from Buenos Aires. It also pertains to any port city so as Portlanders we hold the same title so that inspired the name “La Porteña”.

Goals for Business: The goal is to get into as many retailers as they can and to expand into more stores. In the future she also plans on releasing more products but her current focus is on the two current products out.

Jessica’s Story

Meet Jessica, Causey, she is the owner of La Porteña. Originally from Los Angeles, California, she has been resident of Portland Oregon for about 25 years. Born of Spaniard and Argentinian decent, she grew up eating traditional meals all her youth which have inspired her recipes today.

Jessicas Mother who is from Galicia, Spain—the North Western part of Spain—moved to Argentina with her family right after the Spanish Civil War. It is there where her mother met her father. He was born in Argentina from Italian parents. After marrying and living, and having a child together, they decided to migrate to the United States in the 70s in search for a better life. Is here where they had Jessica, who grew up in a household full of tradition and delicious foods, inspired by the culture of both parents.

After growing up and going to school in LA for a degree in Early Childhood Education, she decided to move to Oregon in search for a fresh start. Upon arriving, she began working in a Spanish immersion kinder garden. Eventually she got burned out of that carrier and decided to test her luck in the food industry. She worked multiple restaurant jobs where she learned different aspects of that business. During this time she was simultaneously brewing the idea of starting a food cart. She found help from Mercy-Corps but that idea never flourished. However, her goal of creating a business in the food industry to highlight her culture and family traditions was always there. Thanks for the feedback from her peers and family, she decided to package her famous Chimichurri and fine tuned her recipes alongside her mother.

Her packaged business began after randomly meeting Mike Adams, a food scientist who worked for the Food Innovation Center and setting up a consultation. This is where she got the help and direction to properly package and label her product which she brought to market initially through farmers markets and other local events. During this time she reach out to the Portland Mercado after hearing about it from a friend, but unfortunately missed the enrollment date for the Empresarios Bootcamp. The following year she was part of the program and also began to utilize the commercial kitchen to make, and package her products while meeting other likeminded entrepreneurs in the Portland Mercado community. Thanks to her hard work and the help of multiple organizations, her business quickly evolved but due to COVID-19, many of her exposure opportunities vanished. Luckily her Chimichurri “Moms green” and “Spicy Red” can now be found at Portland Farmers Markets, Peoples Co-ops, Local Milk Run, Market of Choice, Montavilla Market, and Masa Fresh so you are still able to find it in stores.

About La Porteña

La Porteña is a small batch Argentine Chimichurri company made in Portland, Oregon. With the use of traditional ingredients and a flavorful spicy twist, this Chimichurri is sure to spark a flair at your future asada BBQ gathering.

With the help of organizations like Hacienda and Portland Mercado, Prosper Portland, GYRM, Built Oregon, and the OSU Food Innovation Center, La Porteña was born in May of 2019. La Porteña is committed to growing a diverse food economy, supporting our local farmers, and building strong communities between growers and producers.

Chimichurri is an uncooked sauce used both, in cooking, and as a table condiment for grilled meat. A specialty of Argentina and Uruguay, the sauce comes in a green and a red version—the red being the spicy one. It is made of finely chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, oregano and red wine vinegar and certain family recipes vary. La Porteña is company whose product output possibilities are wide but their current focus is only on packaged Chimichurri but plans to venture on other products in the future once her brand presence is well established.

Her two current Chimichurris Are:

-The “Spicy Red Chimi” which is inspired by the rich latin flavors they grew up with . Made with sun drenched heat of chilis grown in the Andes of South America and combined with traditional fresh ingredients, this smoky, savory chili will transform any meal. Spoon over your favorite grilled foods, combine with roasted potatoes or veggies, mix with grains or simply use as a dip or spread. Love it with empanadas, pizza or any other meal. It’s the “everything sauce” you won’t want to live without!

-The “Mom’s Green Chimi” is inspired by tradition of offering you a seat at the family get-together—Argentinians are very welcoming! The garlic herb finishing sauce will elevate your meal with its bright, fresh flavors. With the use of locally sourced ingredients and specialty Argentine spices, it delivers a truly authentic taste you can’t find anywhere else. Mom’s Green Chimi is great drizzled over grilled foods, mixed into rice and pasta or simply a delicious dipping oil for bread. It’s simply delicious!

Learn more about our Empresarios program and other businesses at the Portland Mercado.