El Gustito Pupuseria y Restaurant — Restaurant in Coralville

Absolutely terrific place on the Coralville strip. Authentic El Salvadorian food, with the main focus being pupusas, which are like flat pancake-like breads filled with cheese and other fillings. Took my son for a dine-in lunch a few weeks ago and then tonight again for a take away dinner because he has not stopped talking about it since we went the first time. Pupusas are amazing - the cheese is perfectly melted and where it has escaped the bread it fries up nice and crispy. Chicken and pork and other meat fillings are super tasty but the spinach and jalapeño pupusas are also delicious. Horchata and other drinks are tasty including some bottled sodas from El Salvador that i have not seen in the States before. Extremely inexpensive and quite delicious. One to two pupusas is enough to satisfy one person - the first time i got two and a tamal and it was a bit too much food. Next time i may branch out and try their various other meals but it will be hard to pass on...

The jalapeno pupusa I had was great! Fresh, hot and about 6" in diameter. It gets 5 stars. The fried chicken (looked good in the on-line picture), was freshly cooked and crispy, but was a little over done with no flavor at all; no salt, pepper (I was told they ran out of this kitchen staple, yet there's a grocer next door), or flour coating. Portion sizes were big with 3 pcs of chicken, rice, beans, salad, and 2 tortillas. 1 star for the chicken.

The service was friendly, good: 3-4 stars.

I would order the pupusas again, but would pass on the...

We decided to try the fried plantains with beans and cream, a dish we've never had. The plantains were fried, not crispy on the outside but tender with just the right amount of sweetness. Plantains were paired with creamy beans and a smooth, slightly tangy cream, would definitely have them again. Next, we enjoyed the jalapeño and zucchini pupusas. The pupusas had a slightly crispy exterior, and a soft, cheese warm interior. On the side, a slightly pickled cabbage that added a refreshing crunch. We will definitely be...