El Rincon, Culver City

Fairly or not, no discussion of Cuban food in Los Angeles can commence without the imperative comparison to The Versailles Juggernaut. El Rincon sets itself up right at the gaping maw of its formidible presence. Primarily serving Cuban favorites like chicken or pork in mojo, pressed Cuban sandwiches or several variations of Mariscos (seafoodz), they slyly offer a couple of non-Cuban dishes tucked away among the standards. One example is Saltado, which is traditionally a Peruvian preparation and has the fabulous juxtaposition of sauteed meat and vegetables in a flavorful brown sauce with the french fries mixed in the sautee. Leave it to the industrious South Americans to take separate components and combine them into one dish.

But, since this is about Cuban food, let's do what everyone else does. Ignore the restaurant being reviewed and draw imminent parallels to Versailles, and go on about Versailles food and pay very little attention to the fact that this is a review of El Rincon. El Rincon is very flavorful and a nice departure from Versailles, but the mojo comes in a distant second. It just isn't shocking enough. I know some of you might be put off with the over-the-top preparation of Versailles' mojo, with it's stinging citrus pucker and head-clearing garlic punch -but- like a dirty syringe of Mexican heroin that leaves you collapsed in a tooth gnashing fetal ball on the floor of a Tijuana bathhouse...over time you kind of get used to it. And want more. Each time it seems weaker and weaker, so you order extra mojo on the side, mojo on your fries, mojo on your plantains, mojo in your mojito. You find yourself hiding bottles of mojo surrepticiously around the house: in the toilet tank, behind the gas can in the garage, in the liquor cabinet, under your pillow. You say "I'll quit tomorrow, just one more bowl of fruit loops in mojo, and I'll be fine. Yeah, just something to get me through tonight, and I'll clean up my act tomorrow." How sad vices die hard.

Well, you won't have to worry about that at El Rincon because it is much lighter. Actually, if you are not familiar with Cuban food, it is a pretty nice introduction, since it won't knock your teeth out the first time you try it. The first bite I ever had at Versailles I didn't know what to think, but the second time I was hooked. I can't see that happening at El Rincon, so those of you who have extra sensitive tastebuds might find this a pleasant trial. The portion of chicken is slightly smaller, and it doesn't have that dark crisp or al dente crunch of skin that Versailles has, but it holds up well against the mojo and slices of onion that curl around it and add to the sharpness of the flavor. The chicken is fork-tender and moist, not just from the mojo, but the juices are nicely sealed in the meat.

The oxtail is a pleasant diversion, simmering for hours in a tomato based braise, augmented with flavors of pepper, onion and herbs, it is strongly flavorful like brisket without being overpowered by the sauce. Although its not good date food, the best way to eat these oxtails is to pick one up and eat it like corn on the cob...it falls off the bone, but would require a bit of utenislary prestidigitation to eat with a knife and fork, as each cut potentially launches the circular bone precipitously close to the person sitting across from you. It's the same challenge as spearing a grape tomato with a fork, only to have it pop out from under and arc gleefully in a random direction, onto a random table...and land right in a new bride's cleavage.

On its own, El Rincon is a competant restaurant that has an expansive menu, segregating its choices into pollo, bistec y mariscos. There are a few salads for vegetarians. Definitely a place worth checking out: affordable, friendly, plaintains cooked to sweet perfection, several beers to choose from...but it is Linux to Versailles' Windows. And like Microsoft, you may hate that Versailles is so pervasive and overwhelming the Cuban culinary landscape, but there is a reason for it.