Mex-Sal isn't much to look at, for sure. An area that's sometimes a Salvadoran grocery is most often used to store cleaning supplies, but folks in need will find the Lazos happy to give them the goods on request. All at once. Given that except for weekend nights, the place plays to a fairly insignificant crowd, the din is deafening. Perhaps baskets of chips aren't authentic Salvadoran, but it would be nice to have something to dip into the little dishes of punchy tomatillo and red sauce that arrive with our drink orders.
Food is cooked to order here, and it takes time, even for a no-nonsense cheese crisp.
Curtido is to be piled atop most dishes, including pupusas , the national dish of El Salvador. These are akin to pancakes, fashioned from masa, stuffed with various bits and griddled until speckled brown and puffed. Natives purchase the little bundles from street vendors and wander along, noshing on pupusas like New Yorkers with hot dogs. Loroco y queso offers the most impact, although it may take a few bites for first-timers to adjust to the bitterish, earthy nuance of loroco, the stems of a native flower reminiscent of broccoli. Keep in mind that Salvadoran food benefits from blended flavors, and the loroco sings under a splash of tomatillo and crunches of sharp curtido.