I’ve been meaning to make it to Las Comadres since before it opened, but then healthy lifestyle choices got in the way. I knew Las Comadres had to be legit because their website gives a 404 error message. No self-respecting pupuseria would have a working website.
When we walked in, we were the only ones in the whole restaurant. “Hola, cómo está?” I asked the lone hostess/server. “Hi, table for two? Sit wherever you want!” she chirped in very lightly accented but still perfect English. Whoops. As we got settled, a few more groups filtered in to fill some other seats. In any case, there were still plenty of tables to go around.
Las Comadres doesn’t have margaritas. Lame. And they were also out of Corona. They also offer pupusas only as an appetizer which, while probably correct, now meant that I was forced to order pupusas and an entree. Healthy lifestyle choices were but a memory now. The second appetizer on the menu is “Pupusas Locas.”
“So,” I asked the server, now in English, “What makes the pupusas locas….uh….locas?”
“They are HUGE,” she responded.
Okay, so….not that.
In the end, I ordered two pupusas to share: one frijol y queso and one revueltas (pork and cheese).
These pupusas were like…Hot Pocket lava-hot. Seriously fresh off the comal. I actually preferred the bean and cheese to the revuelta, which I felt was light on the filling. The curtido was clearly homemade, fresh, and acidic.
Then my enchiladas arrived. They were soft and cheesy. The pico de gallo had avocado in it, so that gets an A++ from me. The beans were beany and not overly salty. There was real Salvadoran crema. I have no idea how I could get this much food for $7.95. Las Comadres gets the “Cheap Eats” award for lowest price per quantity of food, I think.
My husband ordered the Las Comadres Special, otherwise known as Meat on Meat on Meat. Our server assured us that this was very popular.
More delicious pico. Chorizo that actually tasted like chorizo. A think-pounded chicken breast cooked over an open flame. And I will never understand how Central Americans can make carne asada that is basically charred and about 10 minutes past well-done that still comes off the grill being superbly tender. Magic, I guess.
They have tres leches cake on the menu but I didn’t get any because I basically had to be rolled out of this restaurant by Oompa-Loompas, Violet Beauregard-style.
Price: $15 per person.
Bottom line: Las Comadres is fantastic if you: a) want a solid sit-down Salvadoran meal, b) have $10 to your name and need to eat, or c) need the cheapest way possible to bulk up for your next wrestling match.
Ward Five Foodie 