El Farolito (24th & Mission)

El Farolito - 2950 24th St.
Visited: 4/12/09

Ordered: Super Veggie Burrito
Cost:$6

Overall Description: This was one of my first burritos in the city, so it has sort of set the standard. However, a friend of mine had never been and I figured I needed to go remind myself why I thought this particular place was so good. I have to admit - I was not disappointed. The burrito was every bit as tasty as I remember them being (recently I have started getting their Veggie Torta instead of the burrito b/c it's definitely the best torta I've found). There's a reason this place has a line out of the door pretty much nonstop when other taquerias are empty.

Composition: (out of 5) 4 - Solidly wrapped, and able to stand on it's own. The only thing I don't like here is that the wrap is done very fast, and this means that parts of the tortilla ALWAYS fold up inside itself. Some people might like this as it adds an extra consistency, but I like my tortilla on the OUTSIDE of my burrito.

Ingredients: (out of 5) 3.5 - Not quite a four because honestly none of this stuff is SUPER fresh, but they do use avocado instead of guacamole, and their rice is pretty tasty. The beans actually aren't the best I've had, but all in all things are tasty and far from stale.

Size: (out of 3) 2 - After seeing the El Balazo burrito, I have a new idea of what a LARGE burrito is. This is a good size, definitely a lot of food for one sitting, but is nowhere near as large as the El Balazo super.

Taste: (out of 10) 8.5 - Goddamn, these burritos are good. Satisfying, filling, each bite is slightly different from the one before it, and it sits in your stomach like lead, but the first half of this burrito is always delicious, even more so on a late night when you've been waiting for 20 minutes just to get it. I would actually like them to be just a touch spicier, and sometimes the cheese is all deposited in one section which detracts, but after a few months of not having an El Farolito super veg, I am kind of wondering what the fuck is wrong w. me.

Value: (out of 5) 5 - 6 bucks for a great super burrito - can't beat that.

Total Score: (out of 28) 23 Not too shabby at all. I sort of think if this place scored better then a 64 on their last health exam I'd be inclined to rate everything a little higher, but for now, the bar is set high, but not unobtainably so.

Additional Comments: Some of the best chips in the city.