Pupuseria Salvadoreña & Mexican Food (El Cajon) with a quick ice cream dessert at Neveria Tocumbo

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food Kirk, ed (from Yuma) and Cathy have enjoyed. Or not. Today's post by Cathy is an enjoyable one.

Hi again.  It was Saturday and I needed an item that cannot be found at Lowes or Home Depot and so drove out to Harbor Freight Tools in El Cajon.  Across the street in the parking lot with Papa Johns is

what I assume used to just be a taco shop, but has been specializing in Salvadorean food for about three years now.

Inside, it is neat, clean, small (6 tables, 18 chairs) and efficiently run.

We placed our order, paid and sat down. 

We soon heard the slapping of corn meal in the kitchen, making my pupsas as well as The Mister's corn tortillas.  After a short wait,  my pupusas (one cheese, and one revueltas) ($1.75 each) were brought out, along with a tomato sauce and a nice container of the "Salvadorean kimchee", as we call it (really it is called curtido) , pickled cabbage and carrot shreds with jalapeño.  

 The masa is fresh and the pupsas are cooked just right; you can see the light burn marks on the light crispy corn shell. Here is a cross section of the revueltas. Refried beans, cheese and chicharron. Excellent flavors.  Next time I may just get an all chicharron.  I always say this, but it does not happen.  This is just enough food for me and I always want the cheese and I always want beans...the refried beans here are wonderful.  Probably they use the chicharron or carnitas fat to cook the beans.   

The Mister ordered the Bistek Salvadoreño ($7.95). A thin sliced round steak, stewed in onions, tomatoes and green peppers, served with rice and a salad.  Good, home made food.

The other Salvadoran items on the menu include Yuca Frito, Empenada de Platano, Atole de Elote and Mojarra frita.  All done quite well. 

The, we wanted something sweet, so walked one block West, to Ballard, and stopped in at Neveria Tocumbo 

and could not decide on a fruit (I usually get fruitsalad or a tostiloco here) and ended up with two scoops and one paleta...

one scoop of pistachio, one scoop of fruita seca (dried fruit in a vanilla ice cream) and one ropompo (egg nog ice cream, but on a stick, so pretty much two scoops) it was ~$4 for all of this.  Tocumbo deserves its own post, and will get one. 

A nice meal before the drive home to play with goodies from Harbor Freight tools.  

Pupusa Salvadoreña & Mexican Food 1207 East Main Street El Cajon, 92021 Open 9-9 M-Sat, Closed Sunday (619)447-2501

Neveria Tocumbo , the corner of Main and Ballard, El Cajon 92021 (at the signal light West of El Salvadoreña)  Website

Comments

[Masa Assassin]

Hi Cathy that sounds like an interesting combo Salvadoran/Mex, Im wondering how this stacks up against the other Salvadoran places you have covered in SD.

I have only been to the Neveria Tocumbo in Chollas View, but I can honestly say they have some of the best Mexican Ice Cream I have had outside of Mexico. I think you guys would really enjoy the Guava flavor. They have some great exotic flavors like rose pedals.

Tell Kirk he should wear a "Got Durian" shirt to Tocumbo :P

[ed (from Yuma)]

Nice to read about some Salvadoran food, since my local pupuseria is closed for August.
:-( Do they have aguasfrescas? I find a good fruit drink can be both beverage and desert.

[nhbilly]

Looks like a good eats place and the pictures looks good too.

[Cathy]

I haven't blogged about any other Salvadorean places, MA, but Kirk has. I like them all, but this one is clser to home for me. The recent pupusas I have had came from Northgate Gonzalez, and those are made early in the morning, not when you order.
I think Neveria Tocumbo is family owned and it is wonderful. I actually had wanted a fruit salad, (had been to Fruitilandia last weekend), but it was so humid the other day, I gave in for some ice cream...and it was difficult to choose one flavor.
Since Kirk has a 'Got Goat?' t-shirt, he probably does have a "Got Durian?" one also...

Ha, ed! Closed for August...kind of reminds me of the Dairy Queen-like stores in Detroit being closed for Winter... Yes, PS&MF has agua de frutas Salvadoreña, Horchata Salvadoreña (and Mexicana) and Granadilla Salvadoreña, as well as Jamaica and Tamarindo Mexicana, in $1.75 or $2.25 sizes. It is a great little hole in the wall.

Thanks, Bill!

[sawyer]

hmm i have yet to try a pupusa. i see those places around LA all the time and always wondered what a pupuseria was. tocumbo looks great too...i've never seen a mexican/elsalvadorean ice cream joint. i look forward to that post!

[caninecologne]

hi cathy
what a cool find! now there's another place to go for pupusas!!!

[Cathy]

Pupusas are wonderful, especially if you like fresh corn tortillas, Sawyer (when I get something and they ask me if I want corn or flour tortillas, I always get corn...) I guess we never did a post on Fruitilandia on the blog, Neveria is similar, but apparently a 'chain' with three locations. They make fruit salads, smoothies, ices, just juice, vegetable salads and ceviche or tostilocos.

Hi, CC! I tend to want to try a place more than once before I post and sometimes don't get back for a while... it has been here and was perfect on the day we went.

[foodhoe]

Cathy, I have a great weakness for good refried beans and rice... your pupusa plate sounds so good, especially since they were made fresh to order!

[Cathy]

Excellent refried beans and rice, FH. That is one of my criteria wherever I eat- basics must be done well...

[Carol]

I've never had Salvadoran food and that Bistek Salvadoreño looks delicious.

[Miguel S.]

Sounds delish... I will try it... I'm going to be in that area soon :-) We will see...

- Miguel S.
Mexican Foor Carnisour :-) (Spell check )

http://mrmags.blogspot.com

[Cathy]

Welcome to our blog, Miguel. Do stop by when you are in the neighborhod. It's very good.