NAME: Tu Casa Salvadorena Restauraunt (urbanspoon)
TYPE: El Salvadoran Restauraunt
INFO: 70 Washington Ave, Portland, ME 04101
PRICE: $6-13 an entree.

“Tu Casa” is Spanish for home. Located on Washington Ave (on the Peninsula in Portland) Tu Casa is one of the many international options open for eating in this sometimes neglected corner of the city. Considering that the other option for Central American Cuisine is a place that translates to ”crazy chicken” my dear Mint Films colleague Andy Barbo and I decided that to go ”home” was the best option.

Now Portland is not short on burrito options, there are maybe 15 options for Burritos in the GPA (Greater Portland Area) from fake-Mexican (Magaritas) to fake-everything (Taco Bell) to authentic-something-or-other-wrapped-in-a-tortilla-so-we-call-it-a-burrito (Wild Burritos, Bruce’s, the late Granny’s etc.) but for authentic South/Central American cuisine you typically need to head out to Washington Ave.

Now El Salvador is small, 21,040km² to be precise (compared to Maine’s 91,646km²) and crowded (almost five times Maine’s 2008 population) but they do make good food. The pupusa, a kind of tortilla-turnover being one of their signature dishes which is supposed to be quite good and sopa de pata which seems like a high-culinary version of a cafeteria dare.

Not speaking Spanish or knowing anything about El Salvadorean cuisine however, I was in a tight spot the first time I walked into the medium-sized restauraunt. The menu was mostly in Spanish (authentic Spanish, the kind that doesn’t help you out with pictures) with only some recognizable words like shake, and burrito and I was confused by the order-at-the-counter-and-then-sit-down procedure that all the regulars seemed to find the easiest thing in the world, so I gringoed out “burr-EE-tow com POY-oh” and then requested a blueberry shake. The guy behind the counter laughed and said that I did a good job. I then stood around for a while until he told me to sit down. When I came in the second time with Andy I was thankfully able to naviagate around this.

So, for repeats: Walk in. Order/Pay at the counter. Sit down. Eat. (You can also watch any number of interesting Latino channels they have playing on the TV in the corner.)

The Set-Up: What if Mom came home one day and said “I think I’m going to knock down a lot of walls and set up a restauraunt on the first floor of our house.” If she was managed to pull it off on  a shoestring budget the result would probably look like Tu Casa. Clean, if a little spartan. Relaxed with people talking, to eachother, to cellphones or to the TV chattering away in the corner. Fun, not to shabby, but probably not a place to bring your prom-date.

The Eats: Home-cooking is the key word here. Presentation is not. My burrito was delivered alone on a plate like some delicious avacado-filled Ayers Rock. Andy got fajitas (adventurous aren’t we?) and aside from the bell peppers on one side of the plate the meal was an adventure into the world of browns. I did see some guy eating something that could have been sopa de pata which was bright and colorful but presentation-junkies beware, this place is not your friend.

But it doesn’t have to be.

Burr-EE-tow cawn POY-oh, SEE VOOZ plates.

Burr-EE-tow cawn POY-oh, SEE VOOZ plates.

The food is good, filling, warm, sittin’-at-Mom’s-table good. You get a red and a green sauce for spice which is sufficient for most. The portions are hearty but you can usually clean your plate and don’t feel like you’ve been shortchanged. The shakes are great, simple, things of beauty and you can crack can after can of Goya if you’re thirsty for soda-pop. They serve beer too!

The Rest: Wondering if you remember anything from those four years of Spanish in High School? Miss the meals mom made back in San Miguel? Want a dollar fifty papusa? This aint a bad place to go for any of those options. Plus it’s local.