Elitist Douchebag

To expound upon Quinn's point, it does seem sort of silly to pit NorCal and SoCal against each other on something so arbitrary. Jonathan, burritos are not a zero-sum game.

This may be the first time nostalgia for the Sunset/Alvarado Burrito King has been characterized as "elitist". "Reverse snobbery" maybe, but "elitist"?

Casey and Quinn: SoCal/NorCal rivalry, and baiting, has been a century-long tradition, and the differing approaches to the burrito are no exception to the rule, though the debate doesn't rival the Chicago/NY pizza argument. JG's just screwin' with your head.

Chowhound has years of posts by Southern Californians complaining that NOCalers are determined to load burritos with superfluous stuff (though given the legendary pure SoCal-ness of the Tepeyac Hollenbeck, it seems like the pot calling the frijoles pot black...).

Over on the other side, No Cal-ers continue to express astonishment when they hit a regional Mexican taco truck for the first time in So Cal, and get handed a burrito with "nothing but" meat, a little onion, and a little salsa.

Lighten up, guys!

As a San Franciscan I refuse to take the bait, but you may be amused by this story:

http://idlewords.com/2007/04/the_alameda-weehawken_burrito_tunnel.htm

Frankly, if you were to choose a food to emphasize LA's attractions, ceviche would be a better choice.

Ive got to agree with JG on this one.

Mr. Gold is right about what makes a good, classic burrito.

He's wrong about the location. The first burritos I discovered piled with too much crap, as long as a fore arm and thicker than a baby's skull was in LA. Perhaps made popular by such chains as Baja Fresh (a SoCal creation), nearly every burrito hut I went to while living in LA proudly carried on that tradition.

The taquerias up north seem to be much more reasonable. Although I won't pretend you can't find grotestquely large burritos if you want one, they certainly aren't more common.

Making this a north/south thing is bullshit.

Advice from one former SF-er to others: abandon your burrito dreams and learn to love the taco.

As a San Franciscan who used to live in LA (and liked it just fine, thank you very much) I guess I'm curious as to why I never saw these minimalist burritos when I lived in Venice Beach.

Then again, I'm not a big fan of burritos anyway because tacos are way better. Besides NO ONE ANYWHERE puts frakking rice in a taco the way they do in burritos. Rice in burritos sucks!

mmm I love a huge norcal burrito. nom nom nom

As a recent immigrant to Los Angeles from NorCal, I can understand that you folk don't understand the classic San Francisco burrito. We always bought the story that the burrito came from the families working the fields in Salinas, who needed a way to pack a day's meal into one oversized, easy-to-transport wrap. And as a bohemian in SF from way back, I used to live off of the SF burrito. Some days when I was feeling poor, I'd save the stub and eat it the next morning chopped up into my scrambled eggs.

It truly is a culinary item of its own, and I'm a little disappointed to see Mr. Gold- of whom I'm a fan- dissing it so easily. Los Angeles is a taco town, and does that well. But the SF burrito has a flavor and culture that is unique and delicious. The combination of the refried beans, charred grilled meats (as well as stewed options, but let's face it, the SF burrito is about grilled chicken or carne asada), some salsa fresca and hot sauce, and you've got a perfect lunch. Tacquerias of the north are their own breed, and I miss them.

Arguing over whether LA or SF burritos are better is like arguing over whether the Chop Suey is better in Cleveland or Pittsburgh. The only way to win is not to play -- stay at home and learn how to make enchiladas, or crepes with poblano cream sauce, it's not that hard. Make a fresh pot of beans and see how they taste without the excessive salt and shortening/lard. But do not talk about the presence of crappy rice and bean cylinders in your town as if it is something to be proud of.

Wow, Burrito King may have had a heyday I don't remember, but today it is truly awful. It's a travesty to waste money there when the Taco Zone truck is usually parked like 900 ft. further down Alvarado. It's also a travesty to waste money on burritos in LA generally, when you could be eating tacos.

did somebody say Taco Zone?
I resent daylight because Taco Zone doesn't open until 8pm.

as for burrito rivalry, it's great entertainment, and kudos, JG, for stoking the fire.
I like the giant SF burritos when I visit, but am happy to live near the smaller, more econo, LA ones. (Yuca's makes a pretty solid LA burrito, IMO.)

Of course, Sacramento's taco trucks serve food better than any of the places mentioned in LA or the Bay Area. Although San Diego comes pretty close for good, authentic mariscos: http://yumtacos.com

Alls I know is that I can walk three minutes up the block, order a bean or carne asada burrito from Yuca and be delivered simple perfection a short time after that. After a lifetime of Midwestern burritos full of beans and topped with sour cream and shredded cheese, I fall in love all over again with Yuca at least once a week.

Damn. Seeing as it is lunchtime, I might have to make that quick trip ...

Al & Beas is pretty damn great, as is La Fonda in NoHo On Vanowen & Victory, but for a damn good burrito you must go to San Diego. Santana's, Los Panchos, Coxitan, Lolita's, by far surpass anything I've ever had in L.A. or S.F. S.F. burrito's are right there with Chipotle.

This is the first time i've been moved to argue with Mr. Gold.

LA burrittos are soggy, wet, shriveled, loveless things. SF burritos are a party in the mouth. I've lived in both places. I know.

Thanks for so eloquently dissing the gross Mission burrito and other ridiculous over-stuffed burritos. Traditional burritos de guisado are a fabulous snack, shouldn't be a 2000 calorie meal.Giant burritos are for teenagers.

Sorry, JG, but you get a F for this answer. Your stereotypical description of Mission burritos reveals your lack of familiarity with the cuisine. And your characterization of "authentic" burritos as vehicles for leftovers explains perfectly why they're an afterthought in LA. Face it, the real burrito towns are SF, Chicago, and SD. Heck, I had better burritos when I lived in Cambridge, MA!

I lived in San Francisco for 10 years and Los Angeles for 10 years.

For me, hands-down, the best burrito to be had can be found at Pancho Villa on 16th St. in the Mission. Nothing I've had in L.A. compares. I bring them home in my suitcase when I visit.

I think they put crack in them.

Having lived during my college years in the Mission in SF, I have extremely fond memories of the burritoes bought for a song & eaten in the streets walking home from the Muni. I adore the LA taco truck scene, food & culture. But I adored the SF burrito experience just as much. Apples to oranges, my friends, or tacos to burritos. Really, not a contest.

Having grown up in LA, and eaten far more than my share of burritos through the late 1980s, it's absurd to claim that the overstuffed burrito is an "SF" thing vs the pure, Savonarola-approved "LA" burrito. The burritos at my local establishment in LA made what comes off of El Tonayense's truck look like a taquito.

Just goes to show that even God occasionally churns out a third nipple: JG is just plain wrong here. I'm a La Cumbre man myself, but there is simply no burrito in L.A. to compare to the Mission.

Yuca's, yes... but it is an apple to the Mission orange.

SF burritos are disgusting, especially the kind with the gummy steamed tortillas. Totally bland and messy. People who say LA does not have burritos need to get out of the westside and try burritos in East LA.

If the friend wants the American invented monstrosity known as the SF style "burrito", take her to Taco Bell for the 7-layer burrito. Lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, guacamole, orange cheese and rice: the exact ingredients in an SF style "burrito".

Let's see.. 21 years in the SGV, eating Mexican food.
12 years in the SF Bay Area, East Bay, eating Mexican food.

Not ever have I seen orange cheese in a burrito from a good taqueria in either place.

The standard burrito in most Bay Area taquerias (and I'm not talking that High Tech Burrito crap) doesn't even come with cheese, unless you're ordering a super burrito, which comes with jack or queso quesadilla.

Every "mission style" burrito I've had in the Bay Area hasn't involved lettuce, and the only tomato involved is in the salsa.

In all honesty, there's not THAT much of a difference between a mission style burrito from a GOOD taqueria, and the ones I got off of the roach coaches and hole-in-the-wall Mexican places in the SGV.

I think bloging is the future dont you just love i