Salvadoran Restaurants near Fountain Valley, CA

“This is a nice little spot when I’m craving Salvadoran comfort food, especially pupusas. They’re made to order, so they come out hot with a lightly crisp outside and plenty of filling inside. I liked the revuelta with pork, beans, and cheese, but the cheese pupusa is also a simple, satisfying choice.

The curtido and salsa on the side add a good balance, and I also noticed they serve breakfast plates, soups, and other traditional Salvadoran dishes if you want something more substantial. The restaurant has an old-school, family-run feel rather than a polished or trendy atmosphere, which actually suits the food well.

Service was friendly during my visit, and portions felt fair for the price. It’s the kind of neighborhood place I’d return to when I want something homemade and filling.“

“I was excited to find a pupusa place near work. I loved them when i was in El Salvador. We came the first day but were told the wait would be 45 min. We came back earlier the second day and it wasn’t too crowded. We each ordered two pupusas. My favorite was chorizo. The price was reasonable. I’d come back again.“

“Recomiendo rio Restaurante por la comida muy orijinal benga buen servício“

“Friendly customer service. The pupusas definitely need more filling and consistency.

Came back recently and they made the change and stuffed those bad boys. Can't wait to come back. Definitely a place to keep on rotation.“

“Don’t let the exterior deter you from some good pupusas. We liked the balance between the masa and cheese. Other places give you a ton of masa and little to no contents. This is not the case here. Good flavor, good ingredients, good curtido and their red salsa was nice and spicy. Look forward to trying others. They had cheese, bean, been and cheese, squash/calabasitas and cheese, chicharrón, and revueltas. We had cheese and a revuelta.“

“El caldo de ayer,me encanto.ese lugat me gusta.porque la comida esta sabrosa.y lo mas importante de un restaurante para mi.es el baño,felicidades estan muy limpios,.les recomiendo este lugar!!“

“Toda la comida muy Rica, la atención excelente 100% recomendado“

“Freshly prepared salvadorian food in a simple atmosphere. The kind of place you for the stomach and the flavors and not for the flashiness or distractions. Had chese/frijol and chicken/cheese pupusas.

I'd gladly visit them again and have this same combination or maybe just chicken. Good prices considering how convenient/centric their location is.

Free parking lot on the premises.“

“Nancy's is unassuming, a hole-in-the-wall kind of place. I can't believe it took a long time to visit. I've dropped in a couple of times already and enjoyed my meals. They have a local feel when you walk inside.

There is a little bit of a wait, and I think they make the food to order, so it's hot and fresh when you receive it. I recommend that if you plan to take out, call ahead to place your order to save time.

They are known for their pupusas, which I got on my first visit. I was curious after reading some of the positive reviews. I ordered the revuelta and chicken with cheese. Both had great flavors and would consider getting them again.

The flavorful, crispy empanadas were among my favorites. I got the carne (beef) and spinach with cheese empanadas and loved them. The perfectly fried shell and flavorful filling.

Their Salvadoran tamales are prepared in the traditional style, with a flavorful filling and soft, moist masa, wrapped in banana leaves rather than corn husks. I love Mexican-style tamales (especially homemade), so this was a new experience trying Salvadoran-style tamales.

I think most people will order takeout, but there's a moderately sized dining area with tables. It has a local feel and a pleasant atmosphere. The staff was kind and provided great service. The prices are fair for the quality of the food.

I still can't believe I waited this long to visit Nancy's. I can't wait to come back and try other items on the menu.

Note:
There is a little charge for using credit cards, so cash would be better if you want to avoid the CC charge.“

“Absolutely loved this restaurant! The food (pupusas de chicharon con queso & pupusas de revuelta, pastelitos de pollo, and the empanada de plátanos) were delicious! The Salvi Horchata was very good and authentic- I loved it (that's saying something cause I'm picky with my horchata)! Will definitely be coming back and bringing my friends and family!“

“Their popusas are the most flavorful and tasty in town.
Their Mexican food is also great. Been coming here for over 7 years - this location ia new but they have another in Costa Mesa. Highly recommend this restaurant. Order ahead because wait times can be 25 minutes.“

“We stayed next door at the Great Wolf Lodge and were looking for dinner that wouldn't cost us an arm and a leg. We found this Pupuseria next door and decided to give it a try. I must say that we enjoyed the pupusas very much. They were delicious. The pricing was good and the size is that of your average pupusa. Our server was really nice and helped answer any questions that we had. He came constantly to see if we needed or wanted to order anything else. We actually did order a few more pupusas and a macho banana with condensed milk (which was delicious). I would definitely come back to eat here if I was in the area, or when we come back to the hotel next door. If you are staying at the GWL, just walk over, it's next door. No need to move your car from the crazy parking structure.“

“Let me tell you, at first glance, the food looks a little sad, but it’s deceiving because the flavors are all there. I guess I missed taking a picture of the beans and rice with the salad. Dang it. But, those sides were delicious. My fish tacos were really good, don’t be fooled by the pic. Sometimes great food isn’t photogenic. The salsas were spicy and flavorful. My wife was craving fried fish so we made the 30 minute drive here, only place close to where we were at that sells fried fish. Crazy, because we were literally at and around Balboa Island, and none of those restaurants offer fried fish. Thank you for our dinner 😊“

“Pupusas are delicious! Must go again.“

“No photos because the food was inhaled. My husband and I got carnitas and the meat was so flavorful and tender. My burrito was so fresh I watched them chop up a fresh tomato!
Try the horchata, too!

The folks were so kind and helpful with questions we had about the menu options!
If I wasn't visiting for vacation this would be a regular stop.
It's not the most updated place, but dang it doesn't even matter when the food is so fire!“

“todo esta delicioso.... la comida 100% salvadoreña“

“Our family loves this small restaurant. Food is always hot, fresh, and tasty. Some favorites are the pupusas, pollo encebollado, carne asada, and the yucca or fried banana for a side. The glass bottles of soda out of the fridge are always cold.“

“Best Tacos de Birria around town in my opinion and a major plus is the tortillas hechas a mano, you really tell the difference between a regular and good handmade tortillas like you get here. On top of that the service and staff are great and they make you feel at home. Truly a hidden gem, much love!“

“If you're looking for authentic Salvadorian food, this is the spot. You can tell they cook things to order here. I was craving some good pupusas, and we found this place on Google Maps, and I'm glad we did. Excited to go back again.“

“Muy buena la comida 🥘 todo muy rico“

“Very friendly and helpful.All the waitress are very pretty.The dishwasher even greeted us with a Buenas Tardes,Opened the door for us.That kicked off a great evening dinning there.Can't complain everything went smooth,Popusas were freshly made brought to us hot.Great way to end a hard working week.Gracias“