Salvadoran civil war and US migration (1980–1992)
A 12-year war between El Salvador's government and FMLN guerrillas killed about 75,000 people and drove hundreds of thousands to flee, many to the United States. Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Houston drew large Salvadoran communities.
Pupuserias opened in those cities as community anchors.
Salvadoran food became a fixture of American cities, and pupusas are now a familiar item in many markets.
The same immigrant networks explain a Salvadoran pupuseria operating in Philadelphia's Olney corridor.
