77515 Tue Jan 17 15:02:10 -0800 2006 8 2 Los Angeles Area 0 427158 At the serpentine and truly dangerous intersection where Virgil meets Beverly meets Temple meets Silverlake Blvd, stands yet another anonymous Los Angeles strip mall housing EL CASERIO. "Fine Ecuadorian and Italian cuisine" proclaims the sign, somewhat schizophrenically. A single, lonely parking attendant negotiates space for twenty cars in an area fit for five. He insists we take the keys with us inside, which later results in some mid-meal interruptions to maneuver the jalopy. Highly annoying. The space inside is informal, inviting. Patrons are a mixture of Latino families and knit-cap and five-o-clock-shadow wearing Silverlake grungsters (mrs rabo representing the former contingent, yours truly representing the latter). First thing to hit the table is a basket of crusty bread, shaped like a Mexican bolillo. Delish. Served alongside is a gravyboat of benign-looking, pico-de-gallo-ish salsa, which I slather on with abandon. Turns out this innocent looking concoction is liquid Hades. For the next ten minutes, it feels like someone is scraping my tongue with a scalding switchblade. Wonderful. We want to order apps, but chilly waitress informs us that they are out of empanadas and tamales---at 6PM on a Saturday. So, straight to the mains: SALTADO DE CAMARONES---mrs rabo's choice. Good-size portion, plenty of plump little shrimpies. A little sweeter than the Peruvian variations we've tried (seemingly due to the onions). Thumbs up. LLAPINGACHOS CON FRITTATA---as recommended by Frosty the Waitress. Flat, substantial potato patties (a Latin lattke you would not want to meet in a dark alley), smothered in peanut sauce, with a barely cooked egg cracked on top. Mix all together, scarf. Heavy, but pretty tasty. Gladly, the peanut sauce, whilst having a good peanutt-y thing happening, was savory, rather than sweet. The real star of this dish is the "grilled pork ribs" served alongside the frittatas. Wonderfully charred to a crisp on the outside, tender and pleasantly stringy, every mouthful an ecstatic journey down to the most porcine depths. Very much like carnitas, very much ass-kicking. I ask for an espresso to round things out. They're out, to my great surprise. Menu has some other interesting items: tripe in peanut sauce, goat meat sauteed in bitter orange juice (next time!), and various exotic fruit juices. A few different bowls of soup whizzing by our table look delectable. "Italian" portion of the equation covered by some pasta entries. Good food, decent value (all of the above + 2 Cusquenas (absolutely flavorless Bolivian beer) = $34. Service is prompt, but, as noted, hovers near the freezing point. Muchos gracias to all Hounds who have previously reported on this place. A good neighborhood joint. El Caserio Restaurant (323) 664-9266 309 N Virgil Ave Los Angeles, CA 90004 Closed Wednesdays. Tue Jan 17 15:02:10 -0800 2006 0 rabo encendido 1 427168 Great review. Do they have arepas? Cusquena is brewed in Cusco, Peru. Tue Jan 17 15:25:10 -0800 2006 427158 0 Mr Grub 2 427169 Thanks for the correction on the Cusquena. Coulda sworn the menu said Bolivian. At any rate, not great on its own, but not bad with the food. Did not notice arepas on the EL CASERIO menu. I get those at CHIBCHA, and, IIRC, you do too, probably. Chibcha Colombian Restaurant (213) 483-8072 2619 W Sunset Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90026 Tue Jan 17 15:37:25 -0800 2006 427168 0 rabo encendido 2 427175 fwiw, arepas are not really ecuadorian - at least not from quito on south. i would also recommend chibcha (on sunset, across from mae ploy) for those. at el caserio try the humita ... it's a fresh corn tamal. Tue Jan 17 16:01:11 -0800 2006 427168 0 heidijo 3 427192 Arepas are a bit of an obsession in Quito & environs, w stands & carts littering the streets & landscape. Can't speak for Guayaquil or Cuenca. Fillings are typically intensely seasoned meats & offal. Not for the faint of stomach. Tue Jan 17 17:11:56 -0800 2006 427175 0 Mr Grub 1 427173 Awesome review. I feel like I was there too. Tue Jan 17 15:50:15 -0800 2006 427158 0 snooze button 1 427451 If you are 2 people or more the awesome bounty of roasted pork that is the Chuchucara is amazing. It comes with plantains, roasted corn kernels and pozole-like corn balls (I forget the specific names of the corn products). As someone else noted the humitas are very good as well. Wed Jan 18 19:29:28 -0800 2006 427158 0 Oro3030 2 427455 Funny. I was espying the chuchucara hungrily, but could not persuade mrs rabo to get piggy with it. Also, out of the humitas on my visit (nevertheless, our waitress say the are, indeed, very tasty). Compiling a great list for my next visit. Gracias. Wed Jan 18 19:40:23 -0800 2006 427451 0 rabo encendido 3 427545 The pork is this unbelievable mixture of tender, flavorful meat but with crispy bits. Kind of like what the best carnitas are like but with different seasonings. It's worth some arm twisting to convince others to go in on it. Thu Jan 19 03:25:53 -0800 2006 427455 0 Oro3030