el salvadoreño

goodelsalvadorian food and decent service. some of the food was really good and other parts were just decent. the place is kind of small, but i liked being able to sit outside on a nice day and it's an interesting building.

open your taste buds!. awesome new ethnic food choice for kc!elsalvador's cuisine is not mexican food! it's so much better!! do you get sick of mexican food swimming in lard and cheese? no food here will drown in a lipid sea. bonus gluten free! all food her is gluten free except for one sandwich served on a roll. the main grain used is corn or masa. the pupusas, the tamales, the empanadas, the pasteles, the enchiladas, all are gluten-free!! i agree with other reviewers, the sampler platter is the way to go on your first visit. i loved the pasteles, these are meat filled fried doughy treats. the enchilada is basically a tostada but served on a nicely crunchy corn based crusty thick crust. for dessert try the quesadilla, it's a yummy tart treat that is not at all like a mexican quesadilla. they also have them by the counter, they are flat square like treats wrapped in plastic wrap. yummy!! a pupusa is filled with beans, cheese, meat and fried, it's a yummy pancake. the tamales have some potato and peas, reminded me of an indian samosa, of course though these are gluten-free!

the salvadorean sandwich. they continue to impress me with the variety of delicious foods. i tried the panes rellenos today, and when it came out, i was sceptical. i am not a fan of pickled beets, and only mildly interested in radishes. to be completely honest, if i had known that it came with pickled beets and radishes on it, i would have asked for it without those things. however, yet again, this place made a liar out of me. the flavors all came together flawlessly and i enjoyed every bite, including the beets and radishes. i have yet to dislike anything on the menu.


-----06 jan, 2012-----

one way ticket to flavortown!. went in for an early lunch and found the decor to be a mixed bag. it looked like the place was pretty sterile originally and they have been adding flavors ofelsalvador to the decor as often as possible. there was a beautiful mural on one wall of what i assume is a statue inelsalvador (couldn't get a pic of it this trip), as well as a sprinkling of "authentic" stuff here and there. the lighting was mostly natural during the day and very nice. my waitress was nice and did a good job. now, on to the important stuff!

i started out with a horchata, which tasted like a sweet milk with cinnamon and sugar in it. delish. i ordered theelsalvadoreno sampler and requested a ground beef pastel instead of the vegetable version and a pork tamale instead of the chicken. my waitress accommodated me with a smile (although i'm sure there was an upcharge, which was fine).

when my meal arrived, it was hot and everything tasted fabulous! in the picture of the sampler, i'll start with the bean and cheese pupusa on the left and go clockwise, finishing with the yuca frita in the middle.

the bean and cheese pupusa was a thick fried tortilla (tasted like corn variety) with refried beans and melted cheese in the middle. i have no idea how they accomplished that little miracle, but it was great! the "jug-o-salsa" they brought out with my meal went as a nice spicy complement to it. very good.

next we have the ground beef pastel, which looks like a large empanada. the flavors were great and the aforementioned salsa on the side complemented it well.

on to the most unusual item on the plate (as far as i was concerned), the enchilada. this is not a mexican enchilada. this little piece of heaven starts with a flavorful fried tortilla that has some of the most unusual toppings i have ever heard of for this type of dish. it's like a mexican tostada with totally different toppings. i'm not a fan of some of the items on this little dish, like beets and radishes, but these were fresh and when combined like this with the tangy sauce, it just works.

and now we come to the pork tamale. this was, hands down, the best tamale i have ever had in my life and i have had a lot of tamales! the masa was light and airy, but had a wonderful flavor all its own. seriously, i would have begged for some of that masa to take home if i wasn't diabetic. the pork on the inside was tender and flavorful, but no fat or unchewable bits to be found. excellent.

finally, we come to the yuca frita. this was a few pieces of deep fried yucca topped with some shredded slaw mixed with a spicy sauce and a couple pieces of pork on top of that. the pork had been marinated and then fried. this was a very unusual and tasty treat.

overall, this was one of the best meals (at a restaurant) i have had in a long time. i would recommend this place any time and i'll surely be back.

update 04/30/2012: i finally got a chance to go back for the steak pinchos (kabobs). as expected, they were great. the only caveat i would mention is that they took about 30 minutes. i don't know if that is normal, but for me the wait was worth it.

if you’re looking for some culinary exploration on a saturday night, try venturing out toelsalvadoreno in downtown overland park. yes, it’s deep in the heart of the johnson county burbs, but it’ll taste like a trip to central america, and it’s so worth it.

deliciosa. i shared a combinations platter (with extra pasteles and slaw) with my wife and it was plenty of food, extremely delicious, and very cost friendly. my favorite two items were the pupusa and enchilada, but there is much to be said about the spicy slaw (very good). the two young women serving us were attentive and polite. i highly recommend going toelsalvadoreno before defaulting to the typical tex-mex experience.

every bite waselsalvadorian bliss. not sure where to start. best tamale s around, pupusas were something new and wonderful, outstanding enchilada had the sampler, and its a keeper!

very, very, happy!!!. we went for a spur of the moment dinner on a sunday evening. we knew we wanted some latin food but didn't want the typical tex-mex available in johnson county. i remembered reading aboutelsalvadoreño on urbanspoon and was praying they would be open on a sunday. thankfully they were and i was able to introduce my wife and child to pupusas, which are honestly the best introduction to the food of this region imaginable. by wife and son ended up splitting the appetizer platter which is loaded down with regional favorites and i had the special (which i cannot remember the name of) but consisted of grilled ribeye, rice/beans, guacamole, etc. which is reminiscent of mexican food but with a different pallette of spices and flavors (ask for and enjoy the curtido to put on everything). the desserts are also must haves. everything was simply outstanding. the flavors really brought back memories of foods from our central american honeymoon in belize and we thankelsalvadoreño for accomplishing that.

the service is quite friendly.elsalvadoreño seems to be a family run business and it’s apparent that each person in the kitchen and on the floor have a stake in its success. while small, it’s the kind of dining room that would prove challenging for one server when it fills up. fortunately there are almost always two people minding the front of the house, something its southerly neighbor, elsa’s, should pay heed to.