A Taste of Puerto Rico

Food is one of my many muses and I love trying different cultural offerings. New flavors, exciting dishes, a new view on comfort foods - those are the best things about eating. And now, we can try authentic Puerto Rican recipes in a place close to home. Just a short drive outside of Ellicottville, at 63.5 Main Street in Salamanca, NY, is the new home of Abuela’s Kitchen.

Owner Oscar Massagli shared that the restaurant actually began as a food truck. “We started the food truck after my wife and I found a nice little food trailer in Illinois and brought it back to Salamanca where we started setting it up all over town.” And business just blossomed from there. Now they’ve just recently opened their brick and mortar location.

This enables them to expand their menu and showcase more of what makes Puerto Rican food so unique. Oscar said, “Puerto Rican food has a lot of love and flavors that sets it apart from all the usual food options in our area.”

What are these unique dishes? Glad you asked. They’ve got traditional snacks like Sorullos, which are corn fritters that are crispy on the outside and soft and buttery on the inside, as well as Tostones (deep fried not-sweet plantains) served with garlic sauce, and Rellanos de Papas, a deep fried potato croquette stuffed with cheese and meat. And that’s not all - there’s also French fries, mac salad, yellow rice and white rice. Sometimes you can even find the traditional codfish fritters called Bacaladito.

For mains, Oscar says, “We have our yellow rice with your choice of meat!” But he’s being humble and that’s not doing the meal justice. That yellow rice, also known as Arroz Con Gandules, is made with long grain rice, cooked in a savory tomato sauce called sofrito with annatto seeds, turmeric or saffron (that’s where the yellow coloring comes from), and is a staple canvas of Puerto Rican cuisine waiting to be filled with veggies and meat. Typically you’ll find it packed with green olives and pigeon peas.

And those meat choices… You can get Chicken Leg quarters, Chuleta Frita (fried pork chops), Pernil (slow roasted pork, a hugely popular Puerto Rican dinner item), Lechon Frito (fried pork), and my personal favorite, Pollo Guisado, a hearty chicken stew loaded with carrots, potatoes and olives in a tomato-based broth. All of these items are made with love and dedication you can taste in the end result.

They even offer their own homemade desserts like the traditional flan, arroz con dulce (rice pudding) and Quesitos, a cream cheese filled long danish. Don’t forget to grab a Kola Champagne, a beverage that tastes like cream soda or bubblegum, but has no connection to actual cola. You could also snag a Parcha (passion fruit juice) or Coconut Rico (coconut soda).

It seems like they’ve got a lot going on but Oscar is still looking ahead as they go. “We are also starting to serve breakfast on Friday and Saturdays. We’d also like to begin offering catering, a chance for people to share a new cuisine and make a big event extra special.”

Abuela’s Kitchen is open for takeout and dine-in Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00am - 7:00pm daily. Closed Sundays and Mondays. Their menu is updated every day on their Facebook page. You can call your orders in to 716-265-3077. They are also planning to be on DoorDash soon.

In closing, Oscar wanted to say, “We would like to thank the community for their help in making our dreams possible and can’t wait to see everyone!”

Thank you Oscar and your family for all that you are doing. You’ll be seeing this writer a bunch for sure!