Juan Rafael Saravia and Stephanie Figueroa, husbands and owners of La Pupusa UrbanEatery, are targeting Latinos in Southern California with their delicious Salvadoran dishes that from time to time They add a different touch.
For example, for this Valentine’s Day they have bet on the most traditional of Cuscatleca food: a giant pupusa but in the shape of a heart.
Are 12 Filled inches of exquisite traditional ingredients and the odd one that arrives to give you a delicious fusion of flavors and perfect to share with your couple this weekend.
“We have the original cheese alone or with cheese with loroco, beans or pork rinds, even with cheese with chicken and jalapeño and also with mushrooms ”, explains Juan about the heart-shaped pupusa that has caused a sensation for two years when they put it on the menu.
Stephanie shared that they used to pr Prepare pupusas with this figure for their children Makayla, 9, and Juan Jr., 5, until one day they decided to make it, but a giant size for the restaurant.
The idea was very well received by customers, so much so that the Last year, the giant heart-shaped pupusa was the best seller of the year, before the crisis came to change the course of everything.
“Last year we sold all day just that, it was the most popular… because afterwards everything from the pandemic happened ”, adds the woman from 37 years.
Laughing, this pair of Salvadorans share that although the process to prepare and cook this dish is complicated, they really enjoy doing it and above all knowing that Your meal will be part of a romantic date on such a special day for your clients.
“Basically we use a type of mold to get to the shape, but then we have to continue accommodating and as it is of a good size takes time to cook ”, explains Juan.
The Salvadoran from 40 years count that it takes about 8 minutes to prepare the pupusa and about 30 minutes to cook.
This is not the only giant pupusa they have in the restaurant, they also have “La Mamasota” on their menu, which measures a total of 18 inches and weighs almost 10 pounds packed with flavor that is served like a pizza.
Community support
For this enterprising couple of Salvadoran origin, keep on liking of their clients because of the fusion they make with their food has been a challenge, especially for those with more traditions, but they assure that their dishes represent their Cuscatleca roots and their Los Angeles culture.
“We are Salvadoran Americans and we grew up here in Los Angeles, we don’t know anything else, we know what our grandmothers and mothers taught us, but also what the street and our friends taught us, who are from different places and the foods that they taught us, so we mixed [los] flavors and it worked “, explained Stephanie.
” We have the seasoning of the grandmothers and ours, “added Juan.
They have been 12 years as a couple and have known each other since they were children, but facing the pandemic as business owners has been a difficult test for them, they confess.
“The truth, for us It was our third year open, it was something difficult to understand and how to handle the situation, but by the grace of God and the community around us, we have always been here, “said Juan.
“It has been very difficult, especially with children at home, but the community has supported us, they have not let us stop… In the midst of the pandemic they even stole our work truck, they found that my father has cancer and we have just lost Juan’s brother, so a lot has happened, but the family and the community won’t let us, so here Here we are, ”Stephanie commented.
Despite the crisis the country is going through due to the COVID pandemic – 19 the couple are planning to expand their business in order to better adhere to safety guidelines and hope they will be able to open their doors to customers soon.
“Unfortunately due to the space we have, we cannot work as we would like, [además] we are in an area that is difficult… Pico-Union and it is a high-risk place and we don’t want to put our customers at greater risk, to make 5 dollars more, no, why? ”Stephanie explained about the reason why they do not serve their diners on the sidewalks and have limited themselves only to taking take out or home orders.
“We hope that the pandemic ends so that we can start everything completely and we can begin to expand,” said Juan.
La Pupusa is located on the block 1051 Washington Boulevard, Unid ad G, in Los Angeles and offer the community an attractive menu of Salvadoran food.
