845 Chambers St.
(609) 393-3663
Many comments have been made about the transition of Chambersburg restaurants from Italian to Spanish. Feeling that it was time to catch up with these changes, I decided to embark on a Muncher adventure at Puerto Barrios!
The restaurant was one of the first of the new wave of ’Burg eateries, taking over the high visibility corner of Roebling and Chambers from the former Penny’s Beef and Ribs nearly a decade ago. Entering the dining room on a rainy Tuesday night, our spirits were immediately lifted by the bright cheery color scheme and the pastel mural of an idealized paradise on one wall.
The room was all but empty and Elizabeth, our server, indicated we could sit anywhere. She brought menus and took our drink order. My dining companion asked for white wine, but they didn’t have any chilled at the moment so we both ordered beers. The selection is fairly typical: Corona, Heineken, Heineken Light, Coors Light, Modelo Superior, Tecate, Budweiser. We opted for the Modelo ($4).
While we pondered over the fairly extensive menu, we nibbled on the taco chips and salsa Elizabeth brought to the table. The chips, while not hot, appeared to have been fried on premises. The salsa was bottled.
It took us a little while to sort out what we wanted, and even though the menu was in both Spanish and English, I found myself helping out my companion.
For starters, I ordered the Yuca con Chicharones ($6.50). Co-muncher had the Pupusa Salvadorena with cheese ($2) and we split an order of Tostones ($3).
Yuca is the root of the cassava plant and very popular in Latin-American cuisine. Chicharrones are pieces of fried pork skin. The platter…and I mean platter…was a large serving of big chunks of yuca that had been boiled than fried. The chicharrones were equally large chunks of pork skin and fat that had been rendered out until crisp and almost smoky tasting. They were served with a dipping sauce. The portion would have been enough for appetizers for three people at least.
Pupusas are essentially a stuffed thick tortilla. The stuffing was a mild, white, melty cheese. It was served along with a little slaw known as curtido…lightly fermented cabbage, a little carrot, and a touch of heat. Very nice.
The Tostones were the typical slices of green plantain, fried; then smashed and fried again. They came with a wonderfully rich and garlicky mojo sauce for dipping.
Wanting to save room for the rest of our meal, we set aside the leftover yuca, chicharrones and Tostones and asked to have them wrapped to take home. The language barrier got in the way and there were whisked away to the kitchen and never seen again.
We forged on to our entrees.
I was having trouble deciding between the Carne Adobada (marinated pork, $11) or the Casado (a Costa Rican beef stew, $12.50). Elizabeth steered me towards the Adobada. Co-Muncher had Camarones al Ajillo (Shrimp in garlic sauce, $14). Both of our meals came with the choice of two sides: white or yellow rice; black, red or fried beans; mixed or Russian salad; Guacamole or fried green plantains; elbow macaroni salad or cucumber salad. I chose the black beans and yellow rice to accompany my meal. Yellow rice and the mixed salad to go with the shrimp.
Another round of beers was ordered and our entrees arrived. The pork appeared to be pieces of shoulder that had been marinated, pounded thin, dusted with a mild paprika and some other spices then grilled off.
Something to keep in mind while visiting Latin-American restaurants is that tender, moist, thick pieces of meat may not be the norm. I don’t believe it is faulty preparation as much as the style of cooking. Dishes are generally made with less expensive pieces of meat or, in the case of steaks, thinner cuts of better pieces of meat. They are cooked through and may lose a little succulence in the process.
The yellow rice was about what one would expect. The black beans were slightly disappointing. I was looking for some nicely seasoned beans, what I got was a small cup of beans in cooking liquid. A little seasoning would have gone a long way.
The winner of the evening was probably the garlic shrimp. Seven nice-sized shrimp cooked to absolute perfection in a mildly garlic and oil sauce.
Stuffed as we were, I felt it important that we try dessert. They were out of flan. I tried to order the Atole de Platano, what I guessed would be something akin to a banana milkshake. Again there was a communications glitch and I got instead a Platano Maduro con Crema, a sweet fried plantain served with sour cream, which is really an appetizer. It was good, but I was too full to start my meal over.
In our first foray to a Guatemalan restaurant, we didn’t fare too badly. For those looking to branch out into new cuisines, it can be a good first step on the road to broadening the palate.
Puerto Barrios has a liquor license. They accept cash or major credit cards.
