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La Santaneca Restaurant
3781 Mission Street at Richland
Hours:        Daily
Phone:       415.648.1034

Reviewed:  Fall 2008

By Alexandra Minn

If you look on the internet, many people call this the best Salvadorean restaurant in the City. However, this restaurant first got my attention due to the missing letters in the sign. What does La Santaneca mean anyway? Apparently it's someone from Santa Ana.

Behind a thick wall of bars is my favorite restaurant in San Francisco. As the outside suggests, it's very casual, which is reflected in the price, but definitely not in the quality of the food. I almost always get the pupusas. The thick corn tortillas stuffed with cheese, veggies, beans, or meat and topped with chili sauce and traditional vinegary cabbage hit the spot every time. For about $3, you can get 2, and that's definitely enough for my Sunday lunch. I've even ordered a few dozen when hosting friends and never have any left over. You can also order a vegetarian choice like Loroco, which is a vine flower bud native to Central America.

Sometimes I've ventured away from the pupusas, but I usually have regretted it. Not because the other food has been bad -- and I've heard that the tamales are excellent -- but I'm just such a big fan of the pupusas. I have to admit that the fried plantains and fried yucca are both delectable, but unless you want an entire deep-fried meal, I'd suggest ordering those to share.

I've often been the only non-Hispanic person in this restaurant and that, combined with the decor (which includes hundreds of Christmas lights dangling below the ceiling), reminds me of being in Central America. Cheap, fast, consistently fresh, tasty and perfectly located for SMP residents!