El Salvador Pupuseria y Restaurante
Doug McClure
Salvadorean restaurant that was new to me.
It is located at:
El Salvador Pupuseria y Restaurante
3824 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105
(619) 282-3018
For takeout I ordered a
Pupusas de Queso con Loroco (Loroco is some kind of vegetable but I
didn't taste anything -- maybe it was left out)
Tamal de Leche con Crema (don't order this -- corn kernels surrounded
by corn masa -- dull)
Platano Frito con Frijoles y Crema (fried plantain with refried black
beans and sour cream)
Tamales de Gallina
Enselada (a fruit drink)
I post this because I'd like to encourage Salvadorean restaurants, but
frankly this was not as good a restaurant as I had hoped. I enjoyed
the pupusa, plantain, and the enselada the most.
However, it's a rare taco stand that is better than mediocre either.
(JV's on Morena is my favorite).
And speaking ot taco stands, this restaurant also serves the typical
taco stand fare. In fact, the girl who took my order had never eaten
any of the Salvadorean dishes.
So I encourage people to try the restaurant and maybe the business
will respond with more interesting dishes.
The best Salvadorean food I've eaten was in Los Angeles, but another
San Diego Salvadorean restaurant was pretty good:
El Salvadoreno
2851 Imperial Avenue
San Diego
(619) 231-8254
(This is an old address/number, so check first before trying it. Also,
beware of the neighborhood.)
DKM
Bos34
>Salvadorean restaurant that was new to me.
You mean Salvadoran, not Salvadorean. For the life of me, I can't understand
why so many people put in the extra "e" (I know, I know, "language police," but
it would grate YOU to see a restaurant in Mexico offering "Americcan Food")
>
>Pupusas de Queso con Loroco (Loroco is some kind of vegetable but I
>didn't taste anything -- maybe it was left out)
Loroco is a flower that grows on a plant which actually grows as a weed in
Southern California--when you visit Salvadoran neighborhoods in LA (there are
about 800,000 Salvadorans in LA, making them the second largest Latino group
there), you see vendors selling bunches of Loroco that they've literally picked
from the hillsides by freeways and the like.
Loroco adds a malt-like flavor to the pupusa, and can be very enjoyable. For
those who are unfamiliar with pupusas, they somewhat resemble Mexican gorditas
or memelas; imagine an extra-thick tortilla with a layer of stuffing in the
middle. A typical order consists of anywhere from two to four pupusas, and they
are served with a thin tomato sauce and shredded pickled cabbage (with shredded
carrot and oregano). Pupusas are generally eaten with a fork and knife. They
are to El Salvador what the hamburger is to the U.S.; the national fast food.
>Platano Frito con Frijoles y Crema (fried plantain with refried black
>beans and sour cream)
This can be quite good.
>Tamales de Gallina
Gallina? That means "hen." Tastes like chicken.