Location:
The Southeast corner of 7th Street E and Beech Street.
Locator Map

Atmosphere:
Family Friendly.

Cuisine:
El Salvadorian, Central American, and Mexican food.

Parking:
Street

Dress:
Casual

Reservations:
No

Monday September 10^th, 2007

I suggested that we go out to lunch. Peggy was all set to whip up one of her wondrous concoctions but she put her culinary ideas on hold while we headed to lunch. I suggested Taco House and got a lukewarm response… then suggested Carbone’s for pizza and got a warmer lukewarm response. After I had driven for a while, Peggy asked where I was going. She thought we were headed to Taco House and I was headed to Carbone’s. As we approached Carbone’s she suggested that we try Mañana. We had been meaning to eat there for awhile but we never got around to it. Today was the day.

We arrived at the restaurant and circled the block to find a parking spot, fining one on Beech Street just a few cars away from the restaurant. We entered the restaurant at about 12:15 pm and perused the banner menu written in Spanish that was hanging over the cashier. We are old and had trouble reading the banner that was flapping in the breeze from the air conditioner.

Peggy was just about to ask if they had menus, when she found them in a rack next to the order counter. We took a couple and stood aside so we could read them uninterrupted. The menus are mostly in Spanish. While we were standing reading we noticed a glass case with several hot entrées that looked interesting. We returned to the menu and decided on our order.

Peggy ordered two Tamales de Gallina (chicken tamales) and I selected the Burritos de Carnitas (pork and beef burrito) with rice and beans. We had water to drink.

It was lunch time so it took a few minutes for our food but nothing out of the ordinary. When the food came Peggy’s tamales came first. The server told Peggy that the tamales were very good. They were piping hot and when Peggy took a bite her expression changed to nirvana. As she sat there she just pointed to her plate and told me to taste. I am not a fan of tamales which Peg refers to as one of my failings, but I could become a fan if I ate tamales at Mañana Restaurante y Pupuseria. Peggy said that they were the best tamales that she had ever tasted and the non-fan would have to agree with her. If you like tamales, you will definitely want to try them here.

After a few more minutes my order arrived and it covered a platter. I thought, shoot, I have quantity but where is the quality? The burrito was cut in half and wrapped in tin foil. The other half of the platter was covered with rice and beans.

I picked up my fork and tried the beans first. I could feel my eyebrows rising, the beans were very good. Then I tried the rice and again the rice was very good. Ok now for the burrito. I picked up half of the burrito and tried one of the two kinds of salsa that it came with. The red salsa was mildly spicy and the green salsa was spicier, but not overpowering. I took a bite and again I was pleasantly surprised. Overall We were very pleased with our dining experience and will definitely return.

We were both impressed and are already planning our next meal at Mañana Restaurante y Pupuseria. Our total came to $10.70, not including tip.