Owner and chef Jake Brown established the business as a food cart in 2009, in southeast Portland's Woodstock neighborhood.

The Oregonian's Ben Waterhouse described the restaurant as "tiny but charming, finished in weathered boards with tabletops milled from wind-fallen maple trees salvaged from the canyon" at nearby Reed College.

[1] From 2009 to December 2014,[1] owner and chef Jake Brown operated El Gallo Taqueria as a food cart in the parking lot of The Joinery on Woodstock Boulevard.

[5] The Portland Business Journal called the cart "one of the most sustainable" in the city, using energy efficient appliances and food sourced daily from nearby farms and farmers' markets.

[2] In 2014, Brown began renovating a 420-square-foot space next to an Ace Hardware store several blocks away,[1][5] making upgrades to meet the Energy Trust of Oregon's green building and sustainability standards.

[14] Nathan Williams recommended El Gallo in Eater Portland's 2020 overview of eateries in the Woodstock neighborhood.