Grand Central Market Pupuseria From La La Land: Sarita's

Grand Central Market has turned over dozens of stalls since its 2010s revival, but a few counters have outlasted every food trend, and this pupusa stand is one of them. Sarita's Pupuseria, at 317 South Broadway, is a narrow counter where you can sit on a bar stool and watch the cooks pat masa by hand and lay it on the griddle. It is also the stall where Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone shared a date scene in La La Land, which is why someone is usually taking a photo of the stools.

The Grand Central Market vendor page says Sarita's is built on family recipes from owner Sara Clark. LAist, in its guide to the best pupusas in Los Angeles, dates the stand to 1998 and says it has been wowing downtown ever since, long before the market became a stop on every downtown food tour.

The market itself opened in October 1917 and billed itself as the largest and finest public market on the Pacific Coast, and Sarita's has become one of its long-running anchors. The Infatuation, reviewing the stall, admitted the movie cameo draws a steady crowd of photographers, then told readers not to let that put them off, because the real reason to come is the truly excellent pupusas.

The movie connection is a real part of the stall's identity now. LAist called it a fun fact that Sarita's was the filming location for a date scene in La La Land, and The Infatuation described it as the pupusa shop that had a cameo in the film's song montage. Fans still ask which stools the couple sat on, and the cooks behind the griddle have grown used to phones pointed at the counter while they work through the lunch orders.

The official vendor description promises handmade pupusas with dozens of different fillings, including vegetarian options, and the board behind the counter delivers. The traditional side covers revuelta, cheese, beans and loroco con queso, the cheese studded with the green flower buds of a vine native to El Salvador. Then there is a long list of the stall's own creations, which LAist highlighted for less common options like basil, spinach, broccoli, shrimp and garlic.

That range is the reason to come with a friend and split four or five rounds. Pair one classic, such as revuelta or loroco, with one of the unusual fillings, then compare the two side by side with curtido and the thin tomato salsa. LAist also noted that every pupusa here is gluten-free, and that rice flour can be ordered in place of corn masa for a chewier, paler round, which is the version many Salvadoran cooks prefer.

The vendor page lists fried plantains, yuca con chicharrón and stews alongside the pupusas, and the platters are worth a second order. The yuca comes fried and topped with crisp pork, a heavy plate that is easy to share at the counter. Fried plantains with refried beans and Salvadoran crema are the sweet and salty side that turns a couple of pupusas into a full meal.

Sarita's also opens for breakfast, with a fried egg laid over a pupusa of your choice, which is a smart order for anyone exploring the market before the lunch rush. On cooler days there is sopa de res, a beef soup served with rice, and sweet corn tamales for something lighter. L.A. TACO, in its guide to the stops along Metro's Regional Connector, called Sarita's one of the market's two solid stand-bys.

Ordering is simple: pay at the register, take a number and wait while the pupusas are shaped and cooked to order. They are made from scratch on the griddle, and one recent reviewer described waiting about fifteen minutes for a number to be called, so this is not the stall for a rushed lunch. The trade-off is a pupusa that comes off the steel blistered and soft, rather than one that has been sitting under a heat lamp.

The counter seats only a handful of people, so if every stool is taken, take your tray to the shared tables that run through the middle of the market. Landing one of the stools is worth a little patience, because watching the cooks work is half the fun of eating here. Pickup orders can also be placed through Uber Eats.

The Grand Central Market vendor page lists Sarita's hours as Monday through Thursday from 10 am to 8 pm, and Friday through Sunday from 9 am to 8 pm. The market as a whole closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day, so plan holiday visits around those dates.

The market recommends arriving by Metro: take the A or E Line to Historic Broadway Station, or the B or D Line to Pershing Square Station, about a block away. Drivers can use the market's garage on Hill Street, where the posted rate is $5.50 for the first 90 minutes, $2 for each additional 15 minutes and a $40 daily maximum. A Metro Bike station sits on Broadway right in front of the Million Dollar Theater.

Walk out the Hill Street side and Angels Flight is directly across the street. The little orange funicular has been climbing Bunker Hill since 1901, runs from 6:45 am to 10 pm daily and costs $1.50 each way, which makes it the cheapest scenic ride downtown and a gentle way to work off a few pupusas on the way up to the Grand Avenue museums.

Exit onto Broadway instead and the Bradbury Building is right across the street. Opened in 1893, it hides a light-filled Victorian atrium of wrought-iron railings and open-cage elevators, and it has played a supporting role in films including Blade Runner and Double Indemnity. Fans of La La Land can make it a double feature: the Bradbury lobby and the pupusa counter are a two-minute walk apart.

Sarita's Pupuseria is at 317 South Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013, inside the market. Hours per the market's vendor page: Monday to Thursday 10 am to 8 pm, Friday to Sunday 9 am to 8 pm. The market closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Order at the counter and wait for your number. Metro: Historic Broadway Station (A and E Lines) or Pershing Square Station (B and D Lines).