Obvious observation of the year: it's hot. Go to these place we haven't discussed in years, all fine eateries, and cool down with their native sodas:
PUPUSERIA SAN SIVAR: The
hole-in-the-strip-mall takes special care with their pupusas, which
have a crispy yet malleable crust encasing thick, sticky cheese.
Meanwhile, an oily, impossibly sugary plantain laying alongside refried
beans is like a battle between the lush tropics and the Spartan plains
of El Salvador on the tongue; a side of sweet sour cream negotiates a
tasteful truce. DRINK OF CHOICE: Kolashampan, a creamy orange drink
halfway between Minute Maid soda and milk. 1940 Harbor Blvd., Costa
Mesa, (949) 650-2952
triumphant
zenith: raw garlic bulbs transformed into a frosting-like paste thatFs
buttery at first but quickly rampages across your sinuses with its
smelly wrath. Slather it on SassoonFs chicken–golden skin crispy but
retaining juices, meat moist with the savor of smoke, so tender you can
easily pick it off the bones with your fingers. DRINK OF CHOICE: Vimto,
a British-brewed refreshment that tastes like a sharper Dr. Pepper.
3440 E. Chapman Ave., Orange, (714) 516-9600.
]
AMAZON CHURRASCARIA: This
Brazilian beef barn ignores the multicultural influences predominant in
most Brazilian dishes for the straightforward flesh diet of the country's cowboy lands.
Impeccably dressed waiters serve 20 types of meat, everything from the
Homer Simpson fantasy of bacon-wrapped turkey to well-charred chicken
hearts to a great alligator sirloin. DRINK OF CHOICE: Antarctica
Guaraná, made from the apple-tasting guaraná fruit. 1445 S. Lemon St.,
Fullerton, (714) 447-1200.
