Guanaquito Restaurant — Restaurant in Phoenix

Boy am I late to the party! Turns out this place has been around for c. 20 years, next door, but 5 years at present location. A welcoming woman gave a warm "buenos dias" and I repeated it back to her and looked over the menu, wanting to get something with the most variety, so I picked the Plato Tipico which included two pupusas (like a gordita I had at a street fair)--I think made with a flour/cornmeal blend or cornmeal flour--it was smoother than the grittier empanada and stuffed with bean and cheese, two empanadas/pasteles(corn tortilla-like pastry with potato and beef--I think--maybe a few peas or peppers--something green and soft), one fluffy filling with chicken tamale wrapped not in corn husk but banana leaf, yuca fries (very starchy and if you pull them apart they have a layered papery bread-like texture, and added chicharrones (pork rinds: I'd never had fresh ones before and they had some meat attached and just melted in my mouth, not at all hard and super crunchy crisp like the stuff in a bag). The curtido (spicy fermented slaw with some mysterious seasonings--am thinking oregano may have been one) and salsa roja were put in plastic bags and knotted but I couldn't open the knot on the salsa, mind you this is not chunky salsa, more like just thin tomato sauce, so when I got home and tried to gently clip the corner of the bag away, it slipped and the sauce went everywhere. Yikes! Still enough to taste though and it was mild and very tomatoey, so be forewarned for a salsa explosion if you're not more careful than I was. Too bad they use styrofoam--a paper alternative would add to the traditional homey food vibe, and a non-recyclable fork and knife (which I didn't need since I was taking it home--places should ask if needed). Next time I'm going to dine in and get the full El...

As a hole in the wall, I expected a lot more from this place. Pupusas are hard to mess up, but this restaurant managed to give me one of the worst experiences to date. I'll give them that they are cheap: I ordered 3 pupusas with cheese, plantains with beans and cream for about 23$ (year 2024 in September) without tax.

When you walk in, you meet a place that doesn't look clean, and the waitress who took my order could not look me in the eye once. I felt unwelcome from the start. Regulars that walked in were fluent in Spanish, and she was making them feel welcome and they were chatting while I was waiting for my food. Feeling uncomfortable, they brought me my food, still choosing to avoid my eyes, she handed the bag to me while looking to the left or right, and I still looked her in the eye, but I did not feel welcomed even at the end. I thanked her, "Gracias" and got no response.

Having years of experience working in restaurant kitchens, service is everything. Good customer service at the least, and I got none of it. The pupusas were tough, and the flavor was not there. They tasted oily. The only good part was the plantains with beans and cream. Absolutely delicious. I really wanted to leave this place a nice review, because it seems family owned and the people really seem like honest people. Maybe to a fault. If you don't speak Spanish well, or at all, you will not feel welcome here. I would avoid this place at all costs as it is the worst when it comes to pupusas. Any other place will suffice.

I wouldn't recommend this place if you are looking for truly good food with great customer service. There are tons of places where you can get pupusas, and feel welcomed. This is not the place unfortunately.

Que lastima. (Translation:...

Today 12/1/23 grabbed lunch and I don't know what changed, new cook/manager/ holiday spirit but everything was fantastic. Empanadas were just perfect. Keep it up.

Just picked up from this restaurant for the first time 10/18/20. This is now my #1 salvadorian restaurant in phoenix. Food is delicious, pupusas are the best in town, empanadas are amazing, nuegados are tasty(not for everyone) and the quesadilla is delicious. Every time I'm near guanaquito, I may need to order. This place would earn 5 stars if they had more efficient service. Customer service is very polite. However, I can see customers getting upset for long waiting times. I think their problem is from lack of a computer system for ordering and lack of communication with the kitchen.

But I do want to thank you for the delicious meal I was able to enjoy today.

I revisited the location on 3-6-21 and still impressed. Best pupusas in arizona that I have had.

On august 21 2022, I finally decided to dine in and as always the food is on point. If this restaurant fails it will be because of the lack of restaurant experience the owners have. They need to have a better system for the restaurant. Especially since they're heavily understaffed. They need to have a hostess, bussers and a pos system. Taking orders by hand is pointless with all the technology we have in society. Please don't change the way you make food, just help the staff have the right equipment to function efficiently. Also upgrade your Air conditioning. Thank you for the great food. Best Salvadorian food...