La Salvadorena, McKinney . 1103 S Mcdonald St, McKinney . (972) 542-1506
I got my first taste of El Salvadorean food in this cozy, homey kitchenette type of joint. I hesitate to call it "restaurant" because, well, it didn't feel like one. It really did feel like what could be your friend's mom's kitchen. Let me just say I love the lime colour on the exterior of the building. Mark ordered some tamales and papusas for us. Tamales are basically steamed burritos and are eaten as a breakfast meal or anytime meal. This particular one was wrapped in a banana leaf. The tamale batter itself is primarily corn. As I poked and broke into the tamale, I saw the chicken mixture which was steaming hot. There was something intriguing and intimate about this... the act of breaking into the tamale to uncover the steaming treasure. I enjoyed this. After tasting it, it felt like I was eating a comfort food because of the warm, semi-soft texture. But, being Indian and enjoying strong flavoured foods, I felt my tamale lacked punch and flavour. I know it was authentic, and probably a damn good tamale, but I don't know if it's something I would crave later. In short, I could probably make it through life without tamales. Now the boy who brought me there, is a different story :-) Then came the papusa which is a stuffed bread of sorts. It looked like the equivalent of the South Indian dish "uttapam." The papusa was interesting in terms of texture. But again, left me wanting more flavour. I would be interested in ordering the same items at a different El Salvadorean eatery.
