New Flavors: Salvadoran Restaurant Opens
One of the main things that has led to my obsession with food is the thrill of experiencing new flavors. There are an endless number of cuisines and related ingredients to try, especially in this ethnically diverse area. And then there are endless varieties of single ingredients, like the hundreds of tomatoes that I had to choose among when buying seeds for my garden.
So the minute I saw a new Salvadoran restaurant that opened on Freeport Boulevard, I had to see what they had. When I lived in DC, there was a pretty significant Salvadorn population there, and we used to eat their signature pupusas oozing with warm cheese on late nights and hungover mornings. But in California, the Latino cuisine you see the most is generic "Mexican," whether it's from the Caribbean coast or near the northern border. (That's like grouping all cuisines in the U.S. into "American" food, despite the wide range of flavors from region to region.)
Isabel's Pupuseria/Taqueria opened a couple of weeks ago in the building that has seen a lot of restaurants come and go. Across the street from McClatchy High School, it's burdened with no parking lot and a busy street. But the former Balinesia Indonesian restaurant there was pretty tasty (and that's the sign that's still on the building). Nevertheless, they closed and Lollicup opened with blaring TVs and a bunch of tapioca drinks. I thought for sure that would survive with the high school audience so nearby. But, no. So now Isabel's is making a go of it, as probably the only Salvadoran place in town (that they know of, anyway). They've got a great patio for outdoor dining, if you can stand the traffic going by. Personally, I'd lose the awning and just open up the front area despite the summer sun.
Pupusas ($1.50 each) are the star of the menu, with fillings like refried beans and cheese, shredded pork and cheese, and shredded chicken and cheese. The main ingredient is always cheese, and its sandwiched between two small handmade corn tortillas, so that the filling is completely encased. It's like a cross between a quesadilla and a tamale. Isabel's serves them with curtido, a spicy, vinegary cabbage salad that was delicious. It helped cut the richness of the cheesy pupusas, which also came with a fairly mild salsa. I thought the pork was a bit dry, but the beans and cheese were delish.
On my next visit, I got a Mexican tamale ($1.50), a Salvadoran tamale ($1.75), and two pasteles ($2 each). The tamales were pretty different from each other. Salvadoran tamales are traditionally wrapped in banana leaves and the masa is cooked first, then wrapped around the filling and steamed in the leaves. It makes for a softer masa that's got a bit of bitter greenness from the banana leaves. The filling was shredded chicken with diced potatoes, green olives, and some whole white beans. It reminded me a little of Nicaraguan nacatamales, with the potatoes and olives, and was much tastier with a drizzle of salsa or the avocado sauce that came with it. The Mexican tamale was the traditional firm masa with shredded chicken, wrapped in a corn husk and steamed. It was also very good, without being too greasy.
What I really liked, though, were the pasteles. These were little masa pockets stuffed with ground beef and fried. They were reddish, as if they'd been fried in achiote-tinged oil. They were hot and crisp. Yum!
So the food is definitely worth trying. The main issue right now for Isabel's is that the service is glacially slow. There weren't many people there either time I stopped, so waiting twenty minutes for two tamales and two pasteles was way too long. And they've either kept or decided to jump on the TV bandwagon, with three blaring televisions in a space the size of a large livingroom. Two of the TVs were next to each other and tuned to the same channel. Is that really necessary? They do have two computers with apparently free internet access, and a sofa for lounging.
The menu also includes breakfast served all day, burritos (reported to be okay), enchiladas, tortas, and several kinds of aguas fresca. If they can pick up the pace of service, I think it will be a nice addition to the neighborhood. Let's hope they break the curse of the short-lived business at that address.
Isabel's
3071 Freeport Boulevard
7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Comments
I'll definitely have to try it. We never did make it to the Salvadorian place up in Placerville that day...
Posted by: cyndi | March 27, 2007 12:47 PM
I think this place may have closed?? Are there any other alternative pupuserias out there?
Posted by: Allison | April 12, 2007 2:33 PM
La Flor at 2339 Northgate Blvd in Sacramento also serves very good pupusas. Haven't been there in a few months, so I can't guarantee they're still open. If they are, it's worth a visit if you like pupusas!
Posted by: David Lowe | April 14, 2007 1:25 PM
I checked and Isabel's IS still open. So make sure to go by and check it out!
Posted by: Ann | April 18, 2007 11:07 AM