I have been coming here 17 years now, the food is bomb and the service is good. I absolutely love the shrimp pupusas and my daughter love the chicken pupusas. They also have a juice/tea/smoothie bar. Try the wild berry with Mango smoothie super tasty and amazing. Come on through and try your luck. The food is good. read more

It was my first time here, and the lady charge me more, and I noticed because it was kind of expensive and I looked at the menu and YES! She charged more I think that's messed up, my first and last time! read more

I live down the street from this place, so I've been coming here for a while. When it comes to the food, I have only ever tried the pupusas and plantain's. The pupusas do taste fresh, so no complaints there. Unfortunately, the food does take a very long time. This happens every single time. I honestly don't know if the wait justifies the quality of the food. I usually have to wait anywhere from 30 - 45 minutes for the food. I have been to other pupusa places and they don't take that long. Sometimes the ambient is very loud and sometimes very quiet. I say don't come here when you're in a hurry or hungry immediately. read more

Pupusas were tasty and warm! The reveuelta ones are super savory and flavorful. I got 3 pupusas for about 13$, a pretty good deal in my experience read more

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This place is such a gem! Hands down best pupusas I have had in Los Angeles. Reminiscent of home made... not greasy, handmade cheese, fresh beans. Transported me back to Chalate in one bite. Service was stellar, food was fast. They are debit/cash only. Restaurant even feels like el salvador in decoration. Clean and cool even without a/c read more

Food and customer service are great. The restaurant itself needs much work done; the place is old and desperately needs remodeling inside and out. read more

Received a plat of food with moldy cheese. Mentioned that to the waiter, she did not apologize or bring out any substitute. I was also still charged for them. Lol That lady got me. Not going back though. read more

I love the blend of food variety. Such a laid back place to eat , relax, enjoy company, and have a leazure lunch. Comforting and familiar

Restaurant is getting worse and worse . You wait to order and you wait to get served . But you paid in advance . For 4 pupusas and plátano I expend about 45 min waiting each way . Horrible experience. Last time here read more

Restaurante Estela - If you want to wait to order and wait to get served come here. Ridiculous time waiting for just a pupusa . Ask me if I will come back . No - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

No me gusto no da recibo pague 104 por dos guisados una bebida una agua y 8 pupusas no más tengo el recibo

Ok let's start with the location. Walked in and was a bit confused. The restaurant has two rooms. There were two people decorating and didn't say anything when I stood there waiting to get helped. Finally I moved to the other room that also had a cash register. A lady came out and asked me how can she help me. I told her I was there to pick up my phone order. She was kind and helpful. I received my order right away. I had ordered a casamiento ( black beans and rice mixed together). I was looking forward to eating this and unfortunately I was disappointed. It was so watery and no flavor what so ever. I stopped eating that and moved on to my two cheese popusas. They were good actually so I give them a 8-1/2. My daughter said her beans and cheese were ok and my husband said his shrimp and beans was ok as well. They said they give it a 3. I don't think I would order from this place again. A bit disappointed Edith my casamiento since it's the reason why I went to this place. Need to find something better. read more

Food is always delicious, be prepared to wait alil but it will be well worth it. Great customer service to go along with the great food. You gotta try their smoothies, teas, and other food items off their menu, they also serve alcohol. read more

The food was good but it was super expensive so I doubt we will ever go back if we are in the area. We ordered 3 pupusas, one order of platanos with frijoles y crema and one jugo natural and the total cost was $29 and change! We were shocked at the price but at the very least the food was good. Each pupusa costs $3.50. I asked for a medium sized drink but pretty sure they gave me a large. I believe the medium size cost $7. The place isn't even a fancy looking place to account for the price. I'd say 2-3 stars bc of the price and 4-5 stars for the food taste. read more

Ordered and ice tea tastes like soap. Asked to exchange drink and they said they were going to still charge me for the iced tea when I only took one sip. So I took it back and left it on the table. The lady didn't understand our order and just brought what she thought we ordered. My boyfriends was speaking Spanish to her and she still didn't understand. The food was good and hot but the low rating is for the customer service. read more

Restaurante Estela - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

I've been spoiled. Thanks to Restaurante Estela. My first experience with pupusas began many years ago with an innocent visit to Restaurante Estela in Wilmington, and no matter how far and wide I search, I cannot find a cheese-stuffed hunk of masa that comes close to the pockets of goodness created at this place. Part of this "no one comes close" verdict is that I am a huge fan of lorroco. In a ridiculous way. I can't eat pupusas without ordering at least one queso con lorroco, and then as soon as I have the piping hot plate in front of me, I'm tearing apart my pupusas and screaming "Where's the LORROCO!!!" I'm starting to wonder if any other pupuseria has the industrial size lorroco that Estela does or maybe they're just chopping them up in itty bitty pieces to placate the American palate. Well, not at Estela. Those lorroco buds are packed in there, even to the point of busting out the sides. There is no anxiety when ordering my lorroco at Estela... they always deliver. Now, the other very cool thing about Estela is that there are 23 different variations of pupusas you can order. Yes, it is the usual mix of chicharon con queso, and then chicharon con frijole, and then frijoles con queso... but they have some other options you may have not considered. Some of the pupusas I've wanted to try are the asparagus, cactus, carrot & cheese, jalapeño & cheese... but damn it, I keep going for the lorroco! Even though it's not stated on the print menu, the menu board in the restaurant mentions labios de res & corazon! I don't speak Spanish, but I can only imagine what those translate to! They've got a tiny, little parking lot that always seems to have a spot open and you can kill two birds with one stone if you've plum run out of calling cards for Central America or need a Honduras or El Salvador baseball cap. Restaurante Estela will hook you up! read more

Restaurante Estela - Look at that lorroco!!! - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

NUMBER OF VISITS: 5+ WOULD I COME BACK: Yes I've been on a pupusas kick lately. Probably because I was reintroduced to it a couple months ago when I met up with a friend in Long Beach. Since then, I've been on a hunt for good pupusas. I found some here in Wilmington which has a pretty big Mexican population. I recently learned that historically Mexicans don't get along with El Salvadorians. Anyway, I think this place may be owned or managed by both cultures. FOOD CONSUMPTION: I've tried several pupusa options: Chicken; pork bean and cheese; potato and cheese; rice dough with bean and cheese. All of them were pretty tasty. For me, I like the ones made with the rice flour because it has a chewier feel to it. They serve it with pickled cabbaged that's a bit spicy and hot sauce. Someone referred to it as Salvadorian banchan which I found amusing. (Banchan is those Korean side dishes you get at most Korean restaurants) Bionicos: I'm also new to the bionicos world. I recently discovered it at Hojas which is not to far from here. I think this place makes it good. I'm not a big fan of raisins and my bionicos expecations are different than most I guess, so I'm not a huge fan of this one... (2.75 stars) CUSTOMER SERVICE: Sometimes it's a bit on the slower end, but I'm usually not in a hurry. Other than that, customer service is pretty friendly. LOCATION: It's on PCH. The parking lot is small and on occassion can be pretty challenging. Overall, I like this place. I come here when I have a Pupusas kick. It's pretty good, the pricing is decent and if you have patience, the customer service is ok. read more

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My first intro to Pupusas was at the Farmers Market in Torrance. I've always thought they were a breakfast item since that's when I had eaten them in the past. As I browsed through yelp for food ideas from my yelp friends, I saw the review on Restaurante Estela. Off I went with an address in hand. Easy to find, parking was limited, so I took a tour around the block hoping for parking near by. As I walked in, we were the only ones, so we took a table next to the window. I didn't count all of them on the menu, but I'll take their word that there are 23 different pupusas. We ordered a chicken, a queso, a queso con lorroco, a chicken tamale, and a carne asada taco. Well, after we called it quits, there was only one bite of tamale left, just because it was a big hunk of masa and our tummies were full. The food was good and filling. There is plenty of seatting for a baseball team, and they have an area for Karaoke, and a big screen TV for major sports games. They also have Juices, Smoothies, Bottle Beer, and fruits. read more

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Food was delicious and service by runner(woman) was impeccable. THE MANAGER is Stuupid and has no respect towards his customers. Literally said "I don't care if I lose your fucking business" Customer is not always right with this dude. Really no respect don't waste your time with this man and his restaurant. Accused of not wanting wanting to pay the bill. We did on two cards, but weren't allowed to since their sign "specifies" only 40 dollars max on a card. Nowhere did it specify you can't use two cards. Horrible handling in Frankilino's part. Not everyone was being rude. Not everyone in the party had alcohol. Trying to resort to lies to justify their poor and horrible lack of customer service. FRANKILINO... Horrible service and damn proud of it read more

Restaurante Estela - Won't split checks, even tho this sign don't specify - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

I love this place, the pork,cheese,bean pupusas are the best! Prices are reasonable.There are many great food choices, like lomo saltado and they sell many different flavored teas. It has a roomy dining area,but I take my food to go.parking lot is pretty small.I have been here a few times and staff are normally polite,good service,clean place. read more

I stopped off at my favorite farmers' market (on La Palma in Buena Park) to buy a couple pounds of white nectarines when I saw it: a booth selling pupusas. I love Salvadorean food, pupusas and spicy curtido in particular. I was almost out of cash, so I stopped by Estela's restaurant's booth to see how much their pupusas were. The super-nice man at the window said $3. And is the curtido spicy, I asked. Yes, he said. I told him I'd be right back. I raced to my fruit guy and bought fewer white nectarines than planned, and headed back to order, what turned out to be, the very best pupusas and curtido I have ever had! Cooked perfectly with just the right amount of filling (I chose one bean and cheese and one cheese and pork), the pupusas were hot and oozy with cheese. The curtido (shredded cabbage and carrots with basil and red pepper with a vinegary dressing) was flavorful, crunchy, and with the right amount of heat. I am SO lucky to have this treasure so close to me once a week, but I look forward to a drive to Wilmington to visit their restaurant. By the way, I was able to sample their fresh fruit juices (I was out of cash!). I tried passion fruit, a mixed fruit with cashew juice, and soursop. All were just the right level of sweet, very fruit-fresh, refreshing, and completely memorable. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to delicious food and drink at Estela's Restaurant or farmers market booth. (You can get white nectarines anytime!) read more

Restaurante Estela - After racing home with my pupusas and curtido, I'm ready to dig in! - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

Came here for the first time. When you're looking for it be aware that it's right on the corner of PCH and Island, across from Auto Zone. I ordered pork and bean, papa's and beans, chicken, bean and cheese pupusa's. Overall the Pupusa's were okay. The size were good a bit bigger than the plastic forks they give you. Not overly greasy like others. My family really liked them. My grandma had never had them and she liked them (had the bean and cheese) she's insanely picky when it comes to food. I also bought a banana and strawberry smoothie. Below is my review on everything. PROS The staff is very helpful and friendly. The entire place was clean. The size of the Pupusa's were a good size. Local to where I live. Good amount of parking. The guacamole is the best I've had in a long time. MIDDLE OF THE ROAD The banana and strawberry smoothie wasn't what I thought (ice based, not milk) The masa is good (not too much) Ratio between filling and masa is good. CONS The beans are flavorless. Overall the experience was decent. I will definitely go back for the salsa and guacamole. I would like more flavor in the beans, because this throw everything off for me so lessens the rating for me. My total was $47 I bought 2 bean burritos, smoothie, side of guacamole, and a total of 11 pupusa's. read more

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These pupusas are really good. I got the carne asada pupusa and I'm officially hooked! It was so meaty there was almost too much meat! I took a picture: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/restaurante-estela-wilmington?select=dXAS7491i1-3R0QnJIGCJA#nGa038YGczSyGJG7MrU2dw See what I'm talking about? It's a very good buy, even at $4. Nothing I got was greasy and nothing was busting out; very well made. I also got a bean and cheese pupusa but I wasn't too much a fan. I've had a bean and cheese burito from here which I liked so I'm not sure why I didn't like it. The side of rice isn't good at all. It has the potential but needs a little more flavor and some oil. The prices are a little high here, and they no longer accept credit cards. I would also call in the order because the service can be a little slow here.The lady who helped me was very friendly and told me there may be deals on pupusas in the future. I hope they do because I can't wait to try the different pupusas they offer! I will most definitely be back! read more

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Pupusa and campechana yummmy... Avalon and PCH. It's all good in the hood, food. Greaaaaat cocktail of shrimp and octopus. Horchata... Yummmy...tough parking is tight. But food is really a'ight! read more

Restaurante Estela - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

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The pupusas I had were very good. I had the mixed , cheese ,cheese with loroco and cheese with al pastor meat. I will be coming back. Las pupusas estan muy buenas. Agarre rebueltas, con queso, queso con loroco , y la de queso con al pastor . read more

This place has allot going on, I haven't made it to their juice bar yet and it looks like they have bionicos and other good stuff but the pupusas here are so bomb. Bean and cheese pupusas are my favorite with a side of beans crema and plantains. read more

Restaurante Estela - Sooo effing bomb - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

We were craving pupusas and just wanted to try something local. This place had decent reviews and pictures. The pupusas were Ok. The ensalada de fruta drink was very good. Service is a little slow. read more

Amazing Salvadoran horchata and papusas. Caught them before closing time and glad i did. Definitely going to be going back for more

Worst service Wait time was bad Food was bad Tostadas de camaron were a joke a whole bunch of salad and only 7 nickel size shrimps Coctel de camaron same Will not come back here and it's over priced If possible ZERO STARS!!!!!! read more

My family and I love the pupusas here. If we are in Wilmington we go to the restaurant. If it is a Wednesday or Saturday we see them at the Farmer's Market in Long Beach. They have great tasting smoothies too! read more

Restaurante Estela - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

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Been to this cozy Restaurant " Estela's " in Wilmington Cali on Avalon & PCH 5 times for lunch & dinner. From the outside it looks pretty small but once u go inside this place is big enough. The cons are : very tiny parking lot shared with 2 other businesses, no air conditioning , slow service when busy, & lastly but very important no credit card machine. Must use debit card & they charge u 50 cents to use debit card or cash to pay for everything. The pros are : Very good food , extremely down to earth people , they offer natural juices/beer/ & aguas , wide variety of Mexican & Salvadorean dishes. They open 7 days a week 8am-10pm. They have Karaoke Fridays & Saturdays 7pm-10pm. I recommend this place. read more

I love this place! I was craving papusa one day and thought of this place because I've tried them before at the farmers market! I love that I can order just vegetables with beans and no cheese! Or better potato and beans! Yum! Left overs taste just as good! Haha Also, the tea is freakin delicious! They customize to your level of sweetness (I go with a level 2) and they steep it fresh! It amazed my how they use fresh juice inside their teas! Not flavored syrups! Owner is really nice. Food is made when you place an order. Serious hidden gem within Wilmington! read more

Love this place!! My friend introduced me to this place a few years ago, I cannot go anywhere else. Pupusas are to die for, and the empanadas are delicious. Can't forget the staff, always friendly and attentive. read more

Very close and convinient.. i have tried pretty much everything on the menu i was highly sattisfied.. great foood. Nice hang out.. pupusas are just right . Smoothies r healthy. . Yummmmmm read more

Restaurante Estela - Salvadoran Near Me - Wilmington, California

After eating at Restaurante Estela close to semiweekly for over a year now, I have to up their rating to five stars. Sure, VERY occasionally they'll burn a pupusa or two or have slightly sour cheese, but as a general rule I am thrilled with the food I am served. I have branched out since, and every new thing I try makes me like to eat here more: - their even-more-extended selection of drinks: the aforementioned Salvadoran horchata, gritty sour guava juice, and passion fruit, PLUS kale cucumber juice, a mix-fruit thing with cashew fruit inside, among other things, and a very tangy, non-sweet tamarind agua. - chorizo pupusas, which are extraordinarily flavorful, so much so that even when the meat is gristly, I eat it happily - a secret, much spicier habanero-based sauce that you can get if you request it, but make sure to only put on a little! - Salvadoran tamales, which are completely different that the Mexican version. It's almost more like a stew wrapped in a leaf because it's so tender, and has a 180-degree different flavor than most masa I've tried, mainly because of a spice that try as I might I cannot identify. For my tastes, I still prefer the Mexican tamales next door, but if you haven't compared to two countries' versions, you should. read more

This place has not disappointed me yet everything is amazing. Service is grwat and so is food

Obviously, I ordered the wrong food.. 3 tacos: chicken, carne asada, and al pastor. It was GROSS! I ate it but I gagged with every taco. Chewy hard meat with pieces of meat that ended up in my napkin. I'd never eat here again. *shivers* Cons -Gross meat -Ghetto area -Slow service -Cash only Pro -Good fresh juice for $3.50 -Salsa was decent -Karaoke and Beer read more

Riquísima comida que bárbaro. Breakfast was so delicious and tastes like home cooked food. The pupusas are perfect, the coffee perfectly made, tamales ricos and service perfect. This place is amazing. read more

Over Priced!! Should be $$$ Really 2 pupusas and a drink over $10?! Had the Revuelta and it was basically a bean pupusa not a Revuelta! The chicken pupusa was mostly cheese...not worth $3.50! The free pupusa on the check-in is a scam ...u have to buy 12 pupusa to get a free one! Do not recommend. ....go somewhere else read more

So I ordered sooa de gallina to go...and oh what a disappointment...it was not fresh as they presume on their menu! The chicken breast was rather hard...the sopa only had few pieces of potatoes, zucchini and hard carrots. The menu says the sopa is 12 dollars...yet I paid 16.99 for a tasteless hen soup. The lemon i was given for my soup had no juice...the chicken soup itself tasted as if it was from the can...I'm sure even from a can would've had more flavor that what I got today. The only good thing were the hand made tortillas. Otherwise waste of money and my 30 minutes waiting for this "fresh" soup. Dont go there! Or don't order this soup. Just sayin' LOL read more

I was visiting Los Angeles to see a few friends an my friend was craving pupusas. Me, being Asian have no idea where to look. Luckily another friend of mine lives down the street from this place and highly recommended this place. It's a mom and pop spot with a big TV in there for events for boxing and maaaaybe MMA. But I know they were showing Cotto/Margarito. The ladies greeted me kindly and got some jalapeno & cheese pupusas, bean and cheese, and carne asada. pupusas. The carne asada one is 4 bucks. The others are 2 bucks. And you top these pupusas off with some mild salsa and some cabbage that resembles a el salvadorian twist on kim chee... Yeah some good cabbage! Anyways, next time im in town, I'll take some to go and freeze em, and eat em whenever, it's that good. I love this place. read more