A new, welcomed flavor has arrived in San Marcos.
El Arco Pupusas Restaurant dishes out delicious and authentic Salvadoran and Honduran food.
What’s a pupusa you might ask? Well, I had the same question too. I’ve never had the opportunity to sample one but ever since I saw pupusas on TikTok, I’ve been waiting for this new San Marcos spot to open just to try them.
El Arco has made defining what exactly a pupusa is by simply plastering it on its wall. “Pupusas are handmade tortillas made with corn flour dough and stuffed with a variety of delicious fillings, the most traditional are chicharron (pork), beans, cheese, and loroco, a native flower and traditional flair and aromatic condiment,” El Arco’s sign says. “Pupusas is the main national and traditional dish of El Salvador cuisine. People eat pupusas at breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
El Arco serves up several pupusa options. A plate comes with three pupusas of your choice and are served with homemade red and green salsas, as well as curtido — pickled cabbage salad in apple vinegar.
During our visit to El Arco, I chose to sample one La Revuelta pupusa — chicharron, frijoles y queso (pork meat, beans and cheese); Revuelta Carne Molida, a ground beef mix served with beans and cheese; and Frijol con queso (beans with cheese).
The word pupusa comes from the Pipil Nahuatl native language, which means “stuffed tortilla.” The pupusas served at El Arco are stuffed with a plentiful amount of fillings. The tortillas are more on the doughy side compared to the tortillas usually found in Texas. But the tortillas are nice and flavorful. Each pupusa was excellent. My favorite was La Revuelta. The way the pork, beans and queso combined with the tortilla made for a great choice. Each pupusa is $2.99 plus tax.
Maybe the pupusas I chose aren’t what you’re looking for, El Arco offers several other options: Chicharron con queso (pork meat and cheese); pollo con queso (chicken with cheese); carne molida con frijoles (ground beef and beans); frijol con queso (beans with cheese); loroco con queso (loroco flower and cheese); jalapeno con queso (jalapeno with cheese); champiñones con queso (mushrooms and cheese); espinaca con queso (spinach with cheese); and calabaza con queso (squash with cheese).
If you’re in the mood to try a traditional Honduran dish, El Arco has baleadas — a selection believed to have originated on the northern coast of Honduras, according to the restaurant. Baleadas often come with beans, crema, crumbled queso duro (salty hard cheese), which is usually called baleada sencilla (simple baleada). There’s also baleada mixta (mixed baleada), which comes with baleada sencilla fillings as well as scrambled eggs or filled with beef, chicken, pork, diced tomato, onion, bell pepper.
El Arco offers several baleadas: carnita en salsa (pork meat with green sauce); pollo con queso (chicken and cheese); and picadillo (beef hash), which all come out to $3.99 plus tax. The new San Marcos restaurant also has frijol, crema y queso baleadas (beans, cream and cheese); huevo con papas (potato and egg); and huevo con salchicha (eggs and sausage) — these come out to $2.99 each with tax.
El Arco has many other items on its menu, including Salvadoran tamale, empanadas, platano frito con crema (plantain with cream).
The eatery has several breakfast plates and lunch plates, gorditas and delicious aguas frescas to drink during your meal. Consider getting El Arco’s jamaica to drink with your dish.
With a new flavor option in town, El Arco is a welcomed arrival and well worth a try. I know I’ll be going back for more.
If you go:
El Arco is located at 714 E. Hopkins St. in San Marcos.
The restaurant is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. El Arco is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Phone: 512-210-8005
