Cabalito, a Salvadoran restaurant, just opened today at 13 Essex St. The tiny spot next to Cafe Grumpy specializes in pupusa, a kind of handmade corn tortilla that’s stuffed with various meats, cheeses and beans. As Grub Street noted, it was previously necessary to venture out to Queens (or to the Red Hook ballfields) in order to sample pupusa. They cost $3.50 each. The restaurant opened its doors at 11 a.m.
Here’s how the new spot is described on Cabalito’s website:
The concept of Cabalito originated from the curiosity and admiration of Salvadoran culture and cuisine. With about 53 million Latinos living in the United States, about 4 percent of which are of Salvadoran origin, it became intriguing why pupusas weren’t dominating the New York City culinary scene as in Los Angeles. With that as a foundation, Cabalito’s mission became clear: to share traditional and affordable staples of Salvadoran cuisine with the people of NYC.
And a demo from proprietor Randy Rodriguez:
