El Balazo - 2187 Mission St.
Visited: 3/31/09
Ordered: Chile Relleno (Super)
Cost:$6 and change
Overall Description: Somehow I had not noticed this big yellow building near 18th st. before. A little research tells me this is the most recent addition to the El Balazo chain which exists in N California. For such a high profile location, it seems a little unnoticed....
I had a chile relleno super burrito - misunderstanding the menu that every burrito available could be upgraded to a super. My friend had a al pastor burrito (non-super, if I remember correctly). We'd had two beers at this point, leading me to decide if potential intoxification will be factored into my rating scale. The Answer: Nope (although certain taquerias may need to be revisited).
Composition: (out of 5) 3 - this thing was HUGE, but that meant it was a little cumbersome to handle. I was holding mine by the edge of the paper bag before transferring it to my backpack - and the weight of the burrito broke the bag, making it fall out of my hands. My buddy's al pastor split open after the first few bites. There was also lettuce (which I don't like) but it wasn't too noticeable. The chile relleno was chopped up a lot as well and the cheese was cut into square cubes, instead of being melted and gooey.
Ingredients: (out of 5) 3 - The mexican rice it was naturally served with was fine, although a little dry. My Black beans were fine - nothing extraordinary, but had a bit of their own flavor. It seemed that there was a LOT of sour cream too. Everything else was not especially noteable.
Size: (out of 3) 3 - HUGE! HUGE! Probably the biggest burrito I have ever looked at. After eating half of it, it still sort of felt like a shotput in my hand. Both of us ate half of it with the intention of getting an additional meal out of it.
Taste: (out of 10) 5 - Slightly better then passable, but this did not have the satisfying "Ahh" feeling as I bit into that big wrapped bomb to my tastebuds. The burrito was more then adequate, but not stellar, and I couldn't justify a rating above 6 here. Let's put it this way: I easily put it down halfway through without being tempted to continue. In retrospect, I may have wanted to try the actual veggie burrito (I think I need to revisit the guidelines and try to stick to a veggie burrito whenever one is offered). *NOTE* When I went back to the second half of this burrito the next day, it was actually a little on the gross side. I've dropped the score down from a 6 to a 5 because of this.
Value: (out of 5) 4 - If you are starving, you can get a regular veg burrito (beans rice cheese) that is likely enormous for under 4 dollars. I would have given this place a 5 on value, but my $4.50 burrito turned into 7 w/ tip after making it super. Not bad, but not a complete steal. I'm also factoring in taste with value. Although, this place may very well warrant another trip sometime.
Total Score: (out of 28) 18 As I review more burritos, we'll see where this falls in with the rest of them. This burrito tried, and it's size was impressive, but not even a contender in terms of being "the Best"
Additional Comments:The Chips were kind of stale, we didn't grab salsa as we were on the go. Woman behind the counter seemed very nice, and the decor was a little sloppy, but nice.
March 31, 2009
March 26, 2009
How I Will Rate the Burritos
All official testings will adhere to the following guidelines:
* The Super Veggie Burrito is the best thing to order for overall superiority. As mentioned, black beans will generally be sought out, but not necessarily. Super Veggie Burritos must contain: rice, beans, cheese, avo/guac, and sour cream. While it is okay to score based on a burrito other then a super veggie, it should only be done in special circumstances. In general, if the place I am visiting has a burrito they call a "Veggie Burrito" I will generally choose that.
* Each Burrito will be graded on:
- Composition (5 points). This mostly means how the burrito is wrapped, if it stays together the whole way through, how easy it is to eat, how evenly distributed the ingredients are in the wrap. Good burritos should stay delicious the whole way through, not getting too soggy or falling apart.
- Ingredients (5 points). This both means the quality of the ingredients added, but also any special ingredients specific to the local taqueria, or anything else that qualifies.
- Size (3 points). A good burrito should be enormous. Ideally, finishing the best burrito in one sitting is a menacing challenge, however not necessarily. The easiest way to lose points here is for me to finish a burrito on a relatively empty stomach and still be starving (especially if I had a soda and some chips).
- Taste (10 points). After all, this is what really matters isn't it? Great taste can trump any of these other factors. I will do my best not to let intoxication factor into this scoring, but I cannot promise. And finally,
- Value (5 points). Not just how much the burrito was, but how much it felt like it was worth. Burritos should be between 5 and 8 dollars.
This does only add up to 28, but that's my age as of writing this, 5 points on size just seemed like too much, and I couldn't think of any other categories.
*subject to change if I feel like it cuz I'm in charge*
* The Super Veggie Burrito is the best thing to order for overall superiority. As mentioned, black beans will generally be sought out, but not necessarily. Super Veggie Burritos must contain: rice, beans, cheese, avo/guac, and sour cream. While it is okay to score based on a burrito other then a super veggie, it should only be done in special circumstances. In general, if the place I am visiting has a burrito they call a "Veggie Burrito" I will generally choose that.
* Each Burrito will be graded on:
- Composition (5 points). This mostly means how the burrito is wrapped, if it stays together the whole way through, how easy it is to eat, how evenly distributed the ingredients are in the wrap. Good burritos should stay delicious the whole way through, not getting too soggy or falling apart.
- Ingredients (5 points). This both means the quality of the ingredients added, but also any special ingredients specific to the local taqueria, or anything else that qualifies.
- Size (3 points). A good burrito should be enormous. Ideally, finishing the best burrito in one sitting is a menacing challenge, however not necessarily. The easiest way to lose points here is for me to finish a burrito on a relatively empty stomach and still be starving (especially if I had a soda and some chips).
- Taste (10 points). After all, this is what really matters isn't it? Great taste can trump any of these other factors. I will do my best not to let intoxication factor into this scoring, but I cannot promise. And finally,
- Value (5 points). Not just how much the burrito was, but how much it felt like it was worth. Burritos should be between 5 and 8 dollars.
This does only add up to 28, but that's my age as of writing this, 5 points on size just seemed like too much, and I couldn't think of any other categories.
*subject to change if I feel like it cuz I'm in charge*
Taqueria Master List
Okay, so this is the list I'll be working off. I'm grabbing my locations from Yelp, although if I find a place that isn't listed in Yelp it will still count. While I see potentials for problems w. alphabetical organization, it makes more sense then an east-to-west or other method.
This is a work in progress! At some point in time (hopefully) I will feel this list is complete and will say as much. At that point, please feel free to leave a comment with any taquerias I have missed that fall within my geographical confines (as well as location) and I will promptly add it. Until then - let me figure it out (that means no suggestions until I change the above text). Thanks for your cooperation.
I recognize that this means many of the places I have visited will not be reviewed officially. Also, if a taqueria has more then one location, I MUST visit the one in the Mission to count. And if a taqueria has more then one location in the Mission, I will review them separately. Further rules may follow.
La Altena (Mission & 22nd) 8.5
El Balazo (Mission & 18th)
El Buen Sabor (18th & Valencia)
Taqueria Cancun (18th & Mission)
Casa Sanchez (24th & Hampshire)
El Castillito (Mission & 18th)
La Corneta (Mission & 23rd)
Los Coyotes (16th & Mission)
La Espiga de Oro (24th & Alabama) 22
El Farolito (Mission & 24th)
Taqueria Guadalajara (24th & Shotwell)
Mariachi's Taqueria (Valencia & 16th)
El Metate (Bryant & 21st) 23.5
La Palma Mexicatessen (24th & Bryant)
Pancho Villa Taqueria (16th & Valencia)
Papalote (Valencia & 24th)
La Parilla Grill(Folsom & 25th)
La Pinata Tortas Y Jugos (Mission & 21st) 18
Taqueria San Jose (Mission & 24th) 7
Taqueria San Francisco (24th & York) 20
El Taco Loco (24th & Mission)
La Taqueria (Mission & 25th)
El Tepa (18th & Folsom) 15.5
El Tonayense (24th & Shotwell)
El Toro (Valencia & 16th)
Vallarta Taqueria (24th & Treat)
This is a work in progress! At some point in time (hopefully) I will feel this list is complete and will say as much. At that point, please feel free to leave a comment with any taquerias I have missed that fall within my geographical confines (as well as location) and I will promptly add it. Until then - let me figure it out (that means no suggestions until I change the above text). Thanks for your cooperation.
I recognize that this means many of the places I have visited will not be reviewed officially. Also, if a taqueria has more then one location, I MUST visit the one in the Mission to count. And if a taqueria has more then one location in the Mission, I will review them separately. Further rules may follow.
La Altena (Mission & 22nd) 8.5
El Balazo (Mission & 18th)
El Buen Sabor (18th & Valencia)
Taqueria Cancun (18th & Mission)
Casa Sanchez (24th & Hampshire)
El Castillito (Mission & 18th)
La Corneta (Mission & 23rd)
Los Coyotes (16th & Mission)
La Espiga de Oro (24th & Alabama) 22
El Farolito (Mission & 24th)
Taqueria Guadalajara (24th & Shotwell)
Mariachi's Taqueria (Valencia & 16th)
El Metate (Bryant & 21st) 23.5
La Palma Mexicatessen (24th & Bryant)
Pancho Villa Taqueria (16th & Valencia)
Papalote (Valencia & 24th)
La Parilla Grill(Folsom & 25th)
La Pinata Tortas Y Jugos (Mission & 21st) 18
Taqueria San Jose (Mission & 24th) 7
Taqueria San Francisco (24th & York) 20
El Taco Loco (24th & Mission)
La Taqueria (Mission & 25th)
El Tepa (18th & Folsom) 15.5
El Tonayense (24th & Shotwell)
El Toro (Valencia & 16th)
Vallarta Taqueria (24th & Treat)
March 24, 2009
I WILL FIND IT.....
I am officially on a quest to find the best veggie burrito in the area. Currently, that is the Mission District of San Francisco, and I will stick to this area until I have fully researched it (or move) - however there may be a burrito review from elsewhere from time to time. So, a couple basic groundrules:
* In general, I will try to base my judgement on the taste of a Super Veg Burrito - that is, rice, beans of any style (although I should probably lean towards black beans to keep it "veggie"), cheese, guac/avocado, sour cream, tomato, and possibly salsa, wrapped in a standard flour tortilla. I am allowed to alter my personal preferences by asking them to abstain from adding: lettuce, raw onions, or cilantro, as well as any additional ingredients that seem unnecessary to me. However, I am allowed to step outside of those guidelines as I wish for experiences sake, keeping in mind that the "integrity" of the unbiased testing may be compromised.
* I shall define the "Mission District" in the same way that Yelp! does, between duboce and Cesar Chavez Sts, Dolores and Potrero
* A general guideline for the places I visit: Any place that boasts being a "Taqueria" should be visited, however, I will try to visit any Mexican restaurant that allows you to order a burrito and eat it in the establishment without being "served". Sit-down Mexican restaurants and Taco Trucks are not necessarily included, although I will not ignore them (especially if they boast a must-try burrito).
* It is okay for me to recreate reviews from places I have tried, so long as I am absolutely sure I remember the burrito
* The categories will be defined as the search becomes more refined.
* This is my own damn opinion and may be colored by personal experience.
So! Step No. 1 is to recreate some damn reviews. Let's read on..... (now that I apparently care about this stupid quest).
* In general, I will try to base my judgement on the taste of a Super Veg Burrito - that is, rice, beans of any style (although I should probably lean towards black beans to keep it "veggie"), cheese, guac/avocado, sour cream, tomato, and possibly salsa, wrapped in a standard flour tortilla. I am allowed to alter my personal preferences by asking them to abstain from adding: lettuce, raw onions, or cilantro, as well as any additional ingredients that seem unnecessary to me. However, I am allowed to step outside of those guidelines as I wish for experiences sake, keeping in mind that the "integrity" of the unbiased testing may be compromised.
* I shall define the "Mission District" in the same way that Yelp! does, between duboce and Cesar Chavez Sts, Dolores and Potrero
* A general guideline for the places I visit: Any place that boasts being a "Taqueria" should be visited, however, I will try to visit any Mexican restaurant that allows you to order a burrito and eat it in the establishment without being "served". Sit-down Mexican restaurants and Taco Trucks are not necessarily included, although I will not ignore them (especially if they boast a must-try burrito).
* It is okay for me to recreate reviews from places I have tried, so long as I am absolutely sure I remember the burrito
* The categories will be defined as the search becomes more refined.
* This is my own damn opinion and may be colored by personal experience.
So! Step No. 1 is to recreate some damn reviews. Let's read on..... (now that I apparently care about this stupid quest).
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