The Great Burrito Debate: La Bamba
2 Comments Published by Keith on Tuesday, June 24, 2008 at 6:48 AM.
[Disclaimer: Yup, this is a music blog. But, as some of you know, burritos are a passion of mine (second to music, of course). So please excuse the brief lapse from music coverage as I discuss a burrito joint in my search for the best burritos in the land. I know, I'm silly.]
La Bamba has a sign outside their restaurants reading "BURRITOS AS BIG AS YOUR HEAD". Well, yes, the super burrito is pretty darn big (and costs $7.50). But what they offer in size, they simply cannot make up for in taste. In fact, I am fairly astonished that La Bamba manages to sustain as many locations as they do, considering how poor the burrito is. Let's start with they key offenses here: they don't offer rice, and they have only avocado, no guacamole. The avocado substitute for gauc has been known to occur, lame as it is, but no rice?! Rice is a staple in any delicious burrito, and this automatically hurt them. With that lack of rice, you'd expect the other ingredients to be outstanding, but that just wasn't the case. The meat and beans were weak in flavor, and surrounded by poor-grade grungy shredded lettuce. The only redeeming quality amidst my meal was their hot sauce, which was uncharacteristically excellent. It had a great kick to it while maintaining flavor, something few places manage to do. Still, good hot sauce was not enough to salvage this mess of a burrito. Suffice to say, I will not be returning.
La Bamba has locations throughout Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Full ratings and rankings below:
Overall Burrito Quality: -
Atmosphere: +
Sauces: ++
Burrito Size: ++
Guac: - -
Wrapping Job: - -
Efficiency: -
Cost: $5/$6/$7.50
Guac Cost: $0.75
Naturally-Raised Beef? ?
Lemon/Lime: NO
Toothpicks: NO
Corporate/Home-style: Home-style
THE VERDICT:
1. Chipotle
2. Anna's
3. El Pelon
4. Felipe's
5. Boca Grande
6. Boloco
7. Baja Betty's
8. Qdoba
9. La Bamba
10. El Famous Burrito
La Bamba has a sign outside their restaurants reading "BURRITOS AS BIG AS YOUR HEAD". Well, yes, the super burrito is pretty darn big (and costs $7.50). But what they offer in size, they simply cannot make up for in taste. In fact, I am fairly astonished that La Bamba manages to sustain as many locations as they do, considering how poor the burrito is. Let's start with they key offenses here: they don't offer rice, and they have only avocado, no guacamole. The avocado substitute for gauc has been known to occur, lame as it is, but no rice?! Rice is a staple in any delicious burrito, and this automatically hurt them. With that lack of rice, you'd expect the other ingredients to be outstanding, but that just wasn't the case. The meat and beans were weak in flavor, and surrounded by poor-grade grungy shredded lettuce. The only redeeming quality amidst my meal was their hot sauce, which was uncharacteristically excellent. It had a great kick to it while maintaining flavor, something few places manage to do. Still, good hot sauce was not enough to salvage this mess of a burrito. Suffice to say, I will not be returning.La Bamba has locations throughout Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Full ratings and rankings below:
Overall Burrito Quality: -
Atmosphere: +
Sauces: ++
Burrito Size: ++
Guac: - -
Wrapping Job: - -
Efficiency: -
Cost: $5/$6/$7.50
Guac Cost: $0.75
Naturally-Raised Beef? ?
Lemon/Lime: NO
Toothpicks: NO
Corporate/Home-style: Home-style
THE VERDICT:
1. Chipotle
2. Anna's
3. El Pelon
4. Felipe's
5. Boca Grande
6. Boloco
7. Baja Betty's
8. Qdoba
9. La Bamba
10. El Famous Burrito
Labels: Burrito
If I ever see one, I'll be sure to pass it by. Being a vegetarian, you practically need rice in your burrito. Wtf are they thinking?
No rice? :/ What, do they think we Asians live off of anything else?
On a side note, I like your use of nested parentheses and brackets in the first few sentences. :)