Page 128 - South Mississippi Living - June, 2022

DINING PUPUSERIA DOÑA BLANCA
ADDRESS:
12100 Hwy 49 N, Ste. 310 Gulfport
PHONE:
228.731.3249
WEBSITE:
Find us on Facebook
HOURS:
Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
Friday-Saturday 10 a.m.-9 p.m.
Sunday
10 a.m.-3 p.m.
story by Kimberly C. Rasmussen
photos by Kimberly C. Rasmussen and Kelsey Sunderman-Foster
128 | June 2022
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living
The Gulf Coast never ceases to amaze me when it comes to its fabulous places to eat. We have so many delicious and vastly different cuisines. But just when I think that I’ve tried them all, I’m pleasantly surprised with something new and delicious. Located in Gulfport, Pupuseria Doña Blanca specializes in Central American food with an emphasis on Honduran delicacies.
It boasts a fresh and simple take on homemade food and the best part about it is that it’s truly authentic.
At just 27 years old, owner Elder Flores
is one of the youngest restaurant owners that I’ve met. Flores, along with his mother, Blanca, and his four sisters, started cooking family recipes for hungry onlookers at youth soccer games in Gulfport. A demand grew for their home-cooked goodness, leading them to open a brick-and-mortar location in 2014.
Whereas a taqueria sells tacos, a pupuseria sells pupusas, a thick, corn tortilla filled with various meats and or cheeses and resembles that of a savory
pancake. Doña Blanca, or Mrs. Blanca, is an ode to Flores’ mother, the matriarch of this family affair. A quick trip to this quaint diner and you will experience firsthand just what everyone was raving about at the soccer fields.
Each diner at Pupuseria Doña Blanca is treated to a shareable portion of house- made tortilla chips topped with refried Central American Red Beans and a special, Honduran white cheese. It’s rich and salty and is the best way to enjoy perusing the menu. The Baleadas are a restaurant favorite. Made-to-order flour tortillas are generously filled with refried red beans, cheese, chicken or steak. The Baleadas Huevo is a great breakfast option featuring eggs, beans and cheese, but the Baleadas Especial, with its mountain of steak, chorizo, cream, eggs, avocados, beans and cheese, is a definite showstopper.
A house specialty (and a writer favorite) is the Pollo con Tajadas. A generous portion of chicken is seasoned and “naked” fried, then laid atop a bed of plantain slices. The
Pollo con Tajadas.