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| - I noticed how close I was to a milestone 600th review a few days ago. Since then, I've actually been stressing about it somewhat. Should it be another cool non-food destination like #500 (well, actually #499 after a stub-like review removal)? Should it be a hot new restaurant? Should it be a high-end restaurant that I haven't been to?
I guess Yelp may have spoiled the reveal by now... it was none of the above. Instead, I went to an oft-overlooked restaurant in my own neighborhood. Although I have seldom heard about friends' experiences with this restaurant or with pupusas in general, they have all been positive. I decided to act today for lunch.
Las Pupusas is located in the gigantic plaza on Stephanie and Sunset. It is one of several businesses between Hobby Lobby and Ross, and it could qualify as a hole in the wall. It's a little dim inside and the decor seems to try to bring back the feel of El Salvador. The facade-of-sorts over the back area is Mission-style, there are paintings about the old country, and the TV was broadcasting CentroamericaTV. I can make an educated guess that a lot of the patrons are from that part of the world too.
Before I get into the food, I should state that this isn't a place for a quick lunch. It was still slammed after 1pm, with dirty dishes on tables owing to the lack of a busboy. That's right, there was only one employee running the whole front of house. This helps me somewhat mitigate the regret over the missed opportunities for lunch with friends, although we perhaps could have still ordered to-go to fit a visit here into the constraints of a lunch hour.
I'd already browsed the menu, which is available in PDF with prices on their web site, but I had plenty of time to go through it again anyway. To get a feel for the variety of the restaurant, I decided to get a bunch of smaller items. Each of which was conveniently $1.95, which was generally a bargain for what I got. You can build a solid lunch out of 3-4 of these, but I ordered 5.
First, the pupusas. Move over, arepas. While these bad boys aren't as big and there are significant differences, I'll take two of them over one of the arepas from most or all local restaurants when I'm craving something with a thick corn-based container and hot meat and cheese. These pupusas are sealed then cooked, and they have a disc-like shape, resembling a smashed sphere of dough or a flattened hockey puck. They're served with a refreshing, mild slaw on the side, but they don't have any plantains, and the mild tomato sauce is much less interesting than the green sauce that's served with arepas. Regardless, they're delicious.
The revuelta was filled with refried beans, cheese, and "chicharron," a pork that is not at all the same as the fried pork rinds of Mexican cuisine. I actually couldn't decide whether I preferred this to the second pupusa, which was simply chicken with cheese (note: my order could have been less than absolutely specific, but I guess they don't offer a "revuelta" with chicken substitution). The corn flavor shined a bit more on the latter, and I couldn't really get much out of the refried beans anyway.
I also tried their take on a pork tamale. Stop me if you know what I'm talking about when I say it bears a small resemblance to a Vietnamese food known as banh chung. While the fluffy corn masa is a far cry from the somewhat sticky rice and mung bean, the chunks of pork and the flavor from the banana leaf wrapping are definitely similar. I'm not sure whether dousing a tamale in that same tomato sauce is typical, and I didn't need more moisture, but an elderly woman who arrived later did just that. Be forewarned that the pork is concentrated in the middle half, so the edges are just corn dough if you decide to eat directionally instead of cutting it apart and evening out the meat and masa.
Finally, I got to the two tacos that I'd ordered. They're not exactly the same fare that you'll get from most popular taco joints. They do start off with two corn tortillas per taco, but the diced tomatoes and shredded lettuce (with traces of onion) are a far cry from the typical cilantro and onion topping. They also lack a variety of salsas, instead providing a side of some ridiculously hot concoction that I'm sure would challenge even the spicy-tolerant.
They're not bad for what they are though. The meat portions are huge, with cube-shaped pieces spilling out when I tried to eat them by hand instead of utensil. Both the carne asada and the al pastor are seasoned well and flavorful. Unfortunately, the carne asada was overcooked and dry (albeit not inedibly chewy), and the al pastor can't compare to some local taquerias. But that's because the latter are marvelous, not because the meat is bad here.
Phew! I'm glad #600 was an overall success. I'll definitely come back to Las Pupusas for their namesake food and perhaps a tamale. I would even consider the entrees, burritos, or tortas, but I just won't expect a fast dine-in meal.
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