Find me a better burrito then chipotle in the city!?!

I know this is going to sound ridiculous but I am a burrito novice obviously and can't seem to find a better overall burrito then chipotle in the city. I know that sounds like blasphemy considering the huge Hispanic population this city has but why do lth'ers loath chipotle? Is it because it’s a franchise chain? Maybe the ridiculous fat/sodium content? (Depending on burrito item choices…) Or is it something that I am incapable of understanding since my burrito taste opinion is not very cultivated, because to me chipotle offers a relatively tasty and obviously filling burrito at a great price. I usually get the chicken burrito with the black beans and rice, with 3 of the 4 salsa’s (corn, medium and mild) as well as guac, sour creme, lettuce, cheese, obviously not a healthy choice calorie wise but very filling and shall I even say addicting? I actually prefer Baja fresh, but the south Michigan location that I used to frequent for lunch suddenly closed unfortunately, and I’m not going to drive up to Rolling Meadows to get my fix. Imo the grilled meats at Baja fresh easily trump chipotle’s meats, but anyhow back to my original point, what are the best overall burrito’s in the city? I like steak burritos but chipotle’s steak is lacking to me in overall texture and flavor, it feels like chunks of ponderosa steak! I am a assuming the great burrito places of this city are the more ethnic Mexican locations that I obviously am oblivious to, as I have only tried chains such as chipotle, Baja fresh, and the horrible burrito beach and burrito king and my neighborhood embarrasment la cantina grill… someone please save me! It seems that the general opinion here amongst foodies is that la pasadita (smaller location of the two) is held in high regard, any other suggestions? Thanks in advance!

FoodSnob77 wrote:.... Imo the grilled meats at Baja fresh easily trump chipotle’s meats... I like steak burritos but chipotle’s steak is lacking to me in overall texture and flavor, it feels like chunks of ponderosa steak!

Um, why go to a place that has bad meat?

Don't answer. I'll never understand.


If I brought you a CHAR GRILLED SKIRT STEAK burrito from the Las Asada's in Des Plaines today, you would absolutely never eat at Chipotle again. Their steak is amazing right now. Assuming that all of their locations use the same supplier, you should try the one on Western:
Las Asadas
2072 N Western Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
(773) 235-5538

Deal breaker for me with a taqueria has always been meat preparation. I'm not sure why so many people in this city prefer griddle fried chuck steak when there are places like Las Asadas that serve char grilled skirt steak. Not sure where you are at, but there are other Las asadas locations: 47th, Brookfield, two in Des Plaines. Look them up.

FoodSnob77 wrote: It seems that the general opinion here amongst foodies is that la pasadita (smaller location of the two) is held in high regard, any other suggestions? Thanks in advance!

besides la Pasadita I like

IRAZU
Costa Rican Restaurant
1865 N. Milwaukee Ave. Chicago IL
(773) 252-5687

mhill95149 wrote:IRAZU
Costa Rican Restaurant
1865 N. Milwaukee Ave. Chicago IL
(773) 252-5687

While I'm no burrito-booster, Irazu probably makes my favorite. (Funny that my favorite example of this tex-mex food item is prepared by a Costa Rican restaurant).

But you might not want to take my recommendation since I find Chipotle to be practically inedible.

Best,
Michael

To actually get to the heart of your question, which I assume is any better burrito in the Loop other than chipotle, your guess is as good as mine. For true fast burritos, in that you don't have to sit down and open a menu, Chipotle has been my favorite. I would put Qudobo in a distant second. As for Chicago, there are certainly better burritos than Chipotle. But, you can't get one in less than a minute from ordering and bring it back to your desk.

McClane wrote:To actually get to the heart of your question, which I assume is any better burrito in the Loop other than chipotle, your guess is as good as mine. For true fast burritos, in that you don't have to sit down and open a menu, Chipotle has been my favorite. I would put Qudobo in a distant second. As for Chicago, there are certainly better burritos than Chipotle. But, you can't get one in less than a minute from ordering and bring it back to your desk.

I'm not sure that the original poster is limited to the loop in any way at all. He simply asked for "the best overall burrito’s in the city".

What neighborhood do you live in? There are plenty of great taquerias out there that make great burritos that will blow away any of the chain joints you will find in the loop.

As previously suggested, the city's huge "hispanic" population has little to do with your search for a great burrito. You might be interested in looking at the links to articles/TV news stories documenting the local burrito king's formula for success in hawking quasi-Mex to the masses.

I think the proportions of nearly all burritos are sort of vulgar, in a strictly culinary sense. A big sloppy wet mess is just fine for lots of other foods, but the burrito is the "Mexican" equivalent of the bucket of pasta with cream sauce, chicken strips and vegetable chunks. Beyond my personal problem with most burritos as a form, I think Chipotle's are particularly contemptible, owing to the almost soup-like meats (though soup tends to have more flavorful broth) and insipid, gummy tortillas. Damn expensive, too, for a burrito.

But I know and love those who are both "hispanic" and eat burritos. Having endured their burrito binges, I can pass on a preference for Pasadita, Burrito Buggy, and Dona Torta (yes, someone doesn't get tortas at D Torta). If you nix the lechuga y arroz, it's more like food.

I stay away from burritos best I can, but on occassion I'll eat one (mostly Downtown for lunch); the ones I've gotten at Burrito Beach are the best I can recall ever eating: ingredients appear to be good quality and fresh. I eat the tacos from Burrito Beach more than the burritos, and like them as well.

Locations of Burrito Beach can be located at this webpage: http://www.burritobeach.com/bb_frmst3.html.

Believe it or not, Cafe Laguardia at last check a few years ago actually made a decent burrito. It was my go-to place for that before it became the Cuban lounge it is now, and its menu focused almost exclusively on Tex-Mex classics for the Americans. I doubt it's the best in the city, but it's better than Chipotle.

I guess it's not terribly surprising that on this short list, two non-Mexican, non-Tex-Mex places have been suggested given how American the burrito is.


Cafe LaGuardia
2111 W. Armitage
Chicago IL
773-862-5996

If I had to choose between Chipolte and Burrito Beach I would hit up Chipolte everytime. I ate at Burrito Beach in the evening once and didn't feel to well that night.

My favorite place to get a burrito is Flash Taco but I haven't been able to make it to one of their locations in a while.

If the west loop are Perez makes a wicked taco and everything else they serve has been pretty good as well.

Bill wrote:I stay away from burritos best I can, but on occassion I'll eat one (mostly Downtown for lunch); the ones I've gotten at Burrito Beach are the best I can recall ever eating: ingredients appear to be good quality and fresh. I eat the tacos from Burrito Beach more than the burritos, and like them as well.

Locations of Burrito Beach can be located at this webpage: http://www.burritobeach.com/bb_frmst3.html.

Surprised nobody has plugged Taco Burrito Palace #2 yet.

However, I will say the last couple of times I have had their burrito I have been disappointed. Mind you these all have been since they moved to their new location. Not bad, but just missing that over the top blending of flavor wallop I used to praise them for.

Sure I will eat it again though.

My friends swear by La Pasadita.

As mentioned above TBP #2 is the place to try, except instead of the regular old steak/chicken burrito try the "steak fajita" burrito. They use a better cut of steak than the reg. steak burrito and it comes with everything you want including well seasoned red and green bell peppers (I always add some rice and avocado) and even though I am a backer of the taco, I always order them over a burrito, this is a burrito I find myself eating now and then. If you dont like this over Sh*tpotle there might not be hope.

TBP#2 is good, but I've always found their tacos to be better than their burritos. On Diversey, around the corner from Delilah's is, I think, Taco Burrito Palace (not Place) #2. Try the Pepper Steak Burrito if you like things spicy.

jpeac2 wrote:Surprised nobody has plugged Taco Burrito Palace #2 yet...My friends swear by La Pasadita.

I'm not surprised at the lack of pluggings at all (although the thread is young )

Your friends prefer char grilled skirt steak (La Pasadita) to pan fried chuck steak. There was a time in my life when I thought Taco Burrito Palace was good... I used to drink a lot back then. ***

Sometimes I wonder if the people in Chicago are simply accustomed to eating inferior quality meat in their Tex-Mex food, and accept it as the standard. If anyone has never had char grilled skirt steak in a taco, please give the La Pasaditas, or Las Asadas a try. I have also heard that El Asadero around 2200 w. montrose char grills their steak too. If you enjoy pan fried steak as much as char grilled steak, then maybe it won't matter. I've yet to come across anyone that does prefer to pan fry their steak over char grilling it though.


***mild attempt at humor

seebee wrote:Sometimes I wonder if the people in Chicago are simply accustomed to eating inferior quality meat in their Tex-Mex food, and accept it as the standard.

One of the things that is so frustrating about Chipotle is that they actually use very high quality meat (Niman Ranch, Coleman, Bell & Evans, du Breton, etc.), but the preparation leaves a lot to be desired.

In addition to the poor meat preparations, Chipotle's rice is just bland as all get out and overwhelms the burrito, they don't steam the tortillas long enough, the spicing is generally heavy-handed, the distribution of ingredients within the burrito is poor and the line workers are more or less uniformly awful at rolling the burritos. I am an occasional fan of mission-style burritos when done properly and with a light hand (like maybe 1/2 to 2/3 the size of a typical Chipotle burrito). I have even tried the Erik M. method of ordering a smaller burrito, no rice, light hand on many ingredients, etc., but I just have a hard time getting a fulfilling burrito at Chipotle.

Honestly, if they are destroying "name brand" high quality meat like that, then that's even MORE of a reason to avoid the place. I've never ever had anything other than chewy, salty garbage for a meat filling there. I'll stick to tender, char grilled skirt steak, thank you very much. Chipotle will still do fine despite our humble rumblings. The endless masses of sheeple will see to that.

I had the barbacoa Burrito Bol for lunch today at Chipotle and I enjoyed it. I like getting them in a bowl and plus they use Mexican crema rather than american sour cream which makes it better.

I thought the seasoning on the meat was pretty good. I mean hey, we know they have to make the stuff mild at chains for the masses but in a pinch, its not bad.

FoodSnob77 wrote:why do lth'ers loath chipotle? Is it because it’s a franchise chain? Maybe the ridiculous fat/sodium content? (Depending on burrito item choices…) Or is it something that I am incapable of understanding

for me the top reasons for not liking chipotle.... if you go during a lunch rush, the quality degrades quickly... you'll tell them you want "just a little of that" and it goes in one ear, out another.

lately the burritos i've gotten have been mushy. mushy mushy ...

the chain aspect doesn't bother me at this point in chipotle's game... most chains are pretty decent when they are relatively new, i still see chipotle that way..

nutrition? yes, loaded w/ fat and tons and tons of salt... but also how about the fact that a single burrito is 1300+ calories?

price? you can't get a burrito and drink for less than... .$9-10? and chips? oh that's another $2-3.


on the other hand, chipotle has a lot going for it too... their whole organic produce/free range natural meats thing is a plus.

...btw, on the same block where baja was you can now found qdoba grill.

seebee wrote:

jpeac2 wrote:Surprised nobody has plugged Taco Burrito Palace #2 yet...My friends swear by La Pasadita.

i always thought TB2 was disgusting. one of my favorite loves is an order of steak nachos w/ everything "to go" from nearby Allende... once or twice i strolled over to TB2 instead. dis-gust-ing. they actually use yellow runny cheese on their nachos. seriously. not that i'm basing my opinion solely on nachos--i'm certainly not, i've had other things there too including tacos and burritos.. i'd rank chipotle higher than tb2 any day of the week.

When in that area and interested in burritoizing I always stop at Angela's Burrito Style on Clark.

A burrito and drink at my chipotle is $7.65 including tax. Even during the lunch rush they get my order perfect every time, and the carnitas are actually fairly good, as are the pintos.

My alternatives within walking distance are Flash Taco, Caoba, and El Fresco. Chipotle beats all of them.

Obviously there's some variation in quality of locations. The chipotle burrito is not without its problems, and I can think of a number of ways to improve it (especially on the tortilla front), but it's still a decent choice.

Chipotle is not bad for downtown. I avoid it because it's just too much food for lunch, and I'd rather eat less food that tastes better and walk the extra couple of half-blocks to BonBon. But I don't think of Chipotle as "Mexican" food any more than I think of the Orange Chicken at The Cheesecake Factory as being "Chinese."

When I do get it, I get carnitas, beans, peppers, salsa, and guacamole in a bowl - no tortilla, no rice.

Oculi wrote:When in that area and interested in burritoizing I always stop at Angela's Burrito Style on Clark.

That place was so much better when it was Flash Taco. I used to live around there and even while very drunk I couldn't stand the food at Angela's.

You'd rank Chitpotle over TBP2 any day of the week? That's amusing. First of all I guess the drunk yuppies prefer the oozing yellow cheddar, simply ask for the "good stuff". While I will agree that Allende serves a better steak taco (still not the best anywhere) TBP#2 has some very good items worth chowing on their menu including some of the best enchiladas, very good homemade tamales (the owners wife makes them), the previously mentioned steak fajita burrito, they have one of the better chicken tacos, make a good homemade salsa and those in the know will tell you that they have some of the best cheese fries in the city and I challenge any one on this board to find me better Mexican rice. All that said im not putting this place as "one you MUST try" but the question was finding a better burrito in a city that may have as many Mexican restaurants as any except probably Mexico City, this isn't hard! I've been to as many taquerias as anyone out there and im letting it be known for the "drunk late night Mexican binge" TBP#2 is a fine choice, its known amongst the crowd that the cooks at night are better, is it the best? no. I don't eat burritos but my go to steak taco spots are La Pasadita (the one that sits on the block alone) and La Palapita on Milwaukee.

Da Beef wrote: I don't eat burritos but my go to steak taco spots are La Pasadita (the one that sits on the block alone) and La Palapita on Milwaukee.

Another thumbs up for char grilled skirt steak over the crap that most taquerias serve.

La Pasadita, La Palapita, and Las Asadas are all connected by ownership.
I also have recently confirmed that El Asadero on 2200ish W. Montrose char grills skirt steak for tacos and burritos. To the OP, FoodSnob77: I might sound like a broken record on this, but if you prefer your steak on a grill instead of in a frying pan or griddle, I suggest you check these places out. Once you figure out that you don't HAVE to settle for garbage meat from a taqueria, you will figure out that Chipotle might not be the place for you. I personally can't dine at chipotle anymore. There is no reason to. It is too expensive, and the product is bad compared to the other options in this city. I wish chipotle the best of luck, so they can keep the masses away from the places I frequent for real steak flavor in my burritos or tacos.

seebee wrote:

Da Beef wrote: I don't eat burritos but my go to steak taco spots are La Pasadita (the one that sits on the block alone) and La Palapita on Milwaukee.

Another thumbs up for char grilled skirt steak over the crap that most taquerias serve.

La Pasadita, La Palapita, and Las Asadas are all connected by ownership.
I also have recently confirmed that El Asadero on 2200ish W. Montrose char grills skirt steak for tacos and burritos. To the OP, FoodSnob77: I might sound like a broken record on this, but if you prefer your steak on a grill instead of in a frying pan or griddle, I suggest you check these places out. Once you figure out that you don't HAVE to settle for garbage meat from a taqueria, you will figure out that Chipotle might not be the place for you. I personally can't dine at chipotle anymore. There is no reason to. It is too expensive, and the product is bad compared to the other options in this city. I wish chipotle the best of luck, so they can keep the masses away from the places I frequent for real steak flavor in my burritos or tacos.

But, would you go so far as to say you can't be friends with someone who prefers Chipolte?

On Chipotle -- you know a lot of people comment about the calories and size of the burritos. I agree, it is just too much food. But I still think their food is good for quick lunch options. I usually halve everthing; since they are made to order while watching, I ask the worker to put half the rice, half the meat, etc., so it is a more managable burrito.

Also, the soft tacos usually are usually a better bet if you don't want such a huge meal. And, as I don't like sour cream, I never get that stuff so calorie count stays reasonable. My biggest gripe for Chipotle is with their soft tacos. I thnk they should use corn rather than flour tortillas.

JoelM wrote: I usually halve everthing; since they are made to order while watching, I ask the worker to put half the rice, half the meat, etc., so it is a more managable burrito.

In my experience, if you halved the meat on a typical Chipotle burrito, you'd have little, if any, remaining meat....I just am not a fan of the place. I hope the original poster's inquiry was meant to be partially sarcastic. There are a lot of great burrito places in Chicago.

When I lived in Lincoln Park, I thought that TBP2 was great -- and I actually ate there sober, many times. I also frequently ordered from El Allende. However, I love TBP2's burritos, and I also like their tortas. I also used to enjoy a place called Las Americas, just west of Southport on Belmont. Back in the day, they had some excellent chargrilled steak burritos. I'm not sure if they're still there, but I'd heard the place went downhill a few years ago.

In general I like Chipotle's ingredients, but you really need to react fast if you have a special request - because sometimes the workers are in hyperdrive and you get everything. My biggest problem with Chipotle is the tortilla. Many burrito places brown/toast the filled tortilla, but at Chipotle it is just white and doughy. I usually get a bowl. Also, wouldn't it be great if they offered corn tortillas for their tacos?, that would really improve things for me.