Can of Worms — Episode 3: The Burrito Bonanza

(Graphic by Sydney Stam | The Daily Utah Chronicle)

By Theadora Soter, Elle Cowley, Oliver Jones, and Cambria Thorley
March 3, 2023

In this episode of Can of Worms, the podcast team is on a mission to find Salt Lake’s best burrito. This episode features some burrito eating, some talk of pepperoni pizza and lots of the podcast team saying the phrase “mouth feel.” Enjoy!

Transcript:

(Intro music)

Oliver

Hello. Hello, everyone. Welcome back to the third episode of Can of Worms. I’m Oliver.

Cambria

And I’m Cambria.

Oliver

I’m sure you guys have been longing for this episode since the last.

Cambria

We teased it in the last episode.

Oliver

We did tease it. So for those coming here for burritos, that’s what we’re going to talk about.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

So, Cambria, I want to first ask: What’s your relationship with burritos?

Cambria

Pretty good. I like to eat them.

Oliver

Yeah?

Cambria

Yeah, that’s the whole relationship.

Oliver

What do you like in your burritos?

Cambria

Um, all the things. I love all the things. I love everything in a burrito.

Oliver

I’m gonna shoot some ingredients your way and you tell me if you like it in the burrito?

Cambria

Yeah, okay.

Oliver

Cheese?

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

Sour cream?

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

Guac?

Cambria

Yep.

Oliver

Meat?

Cambria

Meat? Yeah.

Oliver

Beans?

Cambria

Love beans.

Oliver

Rice?

Cambria

Mhm.

Oliver

Cilantro?

Cambria

Yeah, sure.

Oliver

Onions?

Cambria

Yes.

Oliver

Pico?

Cambria

Yep.

Oliver

Salsa?

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

So you like all of the above?

Cambria

All of the above. I thought you were gonna start being like, kettle chips.

Oliver

Skittles.

Cambria

Skittles.

Oliver

Don’t bring up kettle chips.

Cambria

I wouldn’t like Skittles, because that texture would be too hard to chew through and then it would ruin the texture of the burrito, but I would try it once. I’ll try anything once.

Oliver

Okay, so that was my first question. And you seem to like a lot of stuff in your burritos.

Cambria

I just like things.

Oliver

That’s your jam.

Cambria

Love food.

Oliver

You love food. You love things.

Cambria

Love things.

Oliver

Do you like to make your own burritos or do you like to get burritos from places?

Cambria

I like to get burritos from places because I simply don’t have a lot of time or energy to make my own burritos and I’m not really great at it.

Oliver

Fair enough.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

You can’t make homemade tortillas?

Cambria

Well, I don’t have money. I’ve never made or tried to make a burrito before.

Oliver

WHAT?

Cambria

Listen, well that’s not true. I’ve made breakfast burritos a lot.

Oliver

Okay.

Cambria

But that’s different. That’s different for me.

Oliver

You could eat a breakfast burrito for breakfast and then a burrito burrito for dinner and be like, I’m very satisfied with my food choices.

Cambria

I do love a breakfast burrito. Yeah, that’s the only kind of burrito I’ve made.

Oliver

Get in. Love a burrito.

Cambria

Love a burrito.

Oliver

Okay, well you say you like to go out for burritos, where do you like to go out and get burritos?

Cambria

So, I’m not well-versed in like the locations, but usually when I’m craving a burrito it’s like when I’m out with friends in the wee hours of the morning, and so we go to like Del Taco.

Oliver

Okay.

Cambria

And get their like crispy chicken. So, it’s not like gourmet burrito food.

Oliver

No, no, no.

Cambria

I did really like, down I think on 9th & 9th, Barbacoa.

Oliver

I love Barbacoa.

Cambria

I love that place. I went there once and I got a burrito there and it changed my life.

Oliver

Nice. Well, I would say my favorite place to get burritos used to be Hector’s.

Cambria

Used to be?

Yeah used to be because Hector’s — I don’t know if you know Hector’s.

Cambria

I don’t.

Oliver

That’s crazy to me.

Cambria

I don’t know a lot of things, you’re gonna learn. This is a podcast based in Utah. I know almost nothing.

Oliver

That’s fair.

Cambria

And I’ve been here for a while.

Oliver

Yeah, but you haven’t been here your whole life.

Cambria

No, no.

Oliver

See, I have lived in Salt Lake my whole life and I lived close to Hector’s for a long time. And it was my jam. They had really good burritos.

Cambria

That’s awesome.

Oliver

I used to work at a climbing gym close to Hector’s and I would go with my coworkers every Friday. We’d do a little burrito Friday. We’d all get in the car. It felt like they knew us. The people at the window were always like, “Hey, welcome back!” It was awesome. And it like warmed my heart.

Cambria

That’s so cool.

Oliver

But then Hector’s closed down recently, like in the past two months.

Cambria

That’s why the “used to” was on that sentence.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

I was wondering if something tragic happened there.

Oliver

That is tragic.

Cambria

That is tragic.

Oliver

I’ve been kind of sad every time I pass Hector’s now.

Cambria

Is it just an empty building now? Or is it being replaced by something else?

Oliver

It’s been replaced.

Cambria

With what?

Oliver

Beto’s.

Cambria

What’s that?

Oliver

It’s another burrito place.

Cambria

Oh, okay.

Oliver

With multiple locations.

Cambria

Sure.

Oliver

But basically, Cambria, Hector’s used to be my favorite.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

They still are my favorite in my mind. But now they’ve closed.

Cambria

They’ve gone away.

Oliver

So I wanted to use this podcast as a way to go on a mission to find my next favorite burrito.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

You know.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

So that’s today’s mission.

Cambria

To fill the burrito-sized hole in your heart.

Oliver

Exactly. Yes. To fill the burrito-sized hole in my heart.

(Intro music begins)

So, our burrito journey begins. To decide which burrito to try, we went out and asked students at the U who sells the best burritos. So, me and producer Elle, who likes to join us for podcast related missions, went on campus with a microphone to see what people would say. So, we began in the union.

All right, so we’re here on campus, me and producer Elle. Elle, you wanna say something?

Elle

I don’t have anything to say.

Oliver

Okay. They’re just coming along. Um, so what we’re doing today is gonna go and just talk to people and see what they have to say about the best burrito. That’s how we’re gonna start our thing. So I’m gonna talk to someone right now. Hey, can I ask you something? What was your name?

Union Student

Rayon.

Oliver

Say that again?

Union Student

Rayon.

Oliver

Hi. We’re asking people the best burrito in Salt Lake.

Union Student

Best burrito?

Oliver

Yeah.

Union Student

It’s a food truck.

Oliver

Okay.

Union Student

I don’t know the name.

Elle

Is it on State Street?

Union Student

No, it’s on 500. I’ll just look it up.

Oliver

Okay. Thank you.

Union Student

She has the best taste and it tastes like home. I don’t know why it tastes like home. El Tropicana.

Oliver

El Tropicana.

Union Student

It’s on 2300 East and 500 South. El Tropicana.

Oliver

El Tropicana. You said it’s a food truck?

Union Student

Yep.

Oliver

Okay, well, it was good meeting you. Thank you.

This mission was getting exciting. A new taco truck I’ve never heard of before? Come on? So, me and Elle continued our mission to hear about some more places. As we made our way through the union and outside, we chatted with a fellow named Dimitri, who was hesitant and nervous but recommended another taco truck.

Dimitri

I don’t know if I can do this.

Oliver

State your name?

Dimitri

Dimitri.

Oliver

And your last name?

Dimitri

Blot.

Oliver

Oh, yeah. Okay. So, locally, not like the Chipotles and the Cafe Rios, but would you say it is the best local burrito in Salt Lake?

Dimitri

Well bang for buck it’s Tacos Don Rafa, the taco cart.

Oliver

On State Street?

Dimitri

On State Street.

Oliver

Okay.

Wow, our first two recommendations are taco trucks. At this point, I’m getting hungry, but we must continue our interviews. So, we kept walking through the union.

How about this person over here? They seem to eat. They’re getting food right now. Hey, do you mind if we asked you a question? We’re asking people what they think the best burrito in Salt Lake is?

Person in Union

I don’t know. Um, I’d say probably Lone Star Taqueria.

Oliver

Okay, in Cottonwood Heights?

Person in Union

Yeah. They have a good burrito.

Oliver

Why do you like Lone Star?

Person in Union

It’s just like a really good burrito. It’s huge.

Oliver

Lone Star, located the base of Big Cottonwood Canyon and a favorite among the ski community. We’re adding it to the list.

Beto’s — a college favorite. Close to campus and open late, but we needed more places to compare. So, we made our way to the library where we ran into some fans of the podcast.

We’re recording our podcast episode right now.

Josie

Oh my god how exciting.

Oliver

It’s on the best burrito in Salt Lake. Do you guys have opinions on that? First you have to state your name.

Nate

Yes. My name is Nate Seibold. And my opinion on the best burrito in Salt Lake is the chili verde burrito from Alberto’s.

Oliver

Okay, that’s a new place for us to try.

Josie

So, I’m Josie Burke. It’s controversial. Well, I don’t know.

Oliver

We’d love a bit of that.

Josie

I loved Hector’s but it closed?

Oliver

Yeah.

Josie

I used to always get breakfast burritos. So, now I go to like Rancherito’s.

Oliver

Not as good?

Josie

Not as good.

Oliver

Interesting.

Josie

My heart will always be with Hector’s. I’m excited to hear everyone else’s thoughts on it.

Oliver

So sad. You can still feel the grieving of Hector’s closure within the community, but we can’t let the sadness bring us down. There are many, many more burritos to try.

Okay Cambria.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

We’re back. After some extensive research — intensive? Extensive?

Elle and Cambria

Intensive.

Oliver

Intensive research — we’ve narrowed it down to five burrito shops. Are you ready to hear them?

Cambria

I’m so ready.

Oliver

Are you excited?

Cambria

I’m really excited.

Oliver

Tacos Don Rafa.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

A burrito truck.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

And then another burrito truck called El Tropicana.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

Lone Star. Have you heard of any of these before?

Cambria

No.

Oliver

Exciting. Beto’s.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

And Alberto’s.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

So, now we have these five places to try burritos. But we don’t really have much experience with food reviews.

Cambria

You don’t have a criteria that you go through?

Oliver

Yeah, like, I’m sure you’re wondering how we’re going to rank these burritos, what the criteria is gonna be. So, we tried to find someone who had done this kind of thing before.

Luke

I really like food. I think it’s really fun. And I really like crappy food, bad food, like fast food. I don’t know. I just think it’s like a really fun way to experience a meal. It’s not supposed to be good. And so I just thought it was fun. And I was doing Yelp reviews at the time. And my Yelp was kind of blowing up. So, it was fun.

Oliver

That’s Luke Jackson. As I’m sure you can tell this guy knows food. Luke is the Assistant Arts Editor here at the Chronicle. Luke has quite the history of food reviews, and is pretty well known on Yelp. He also wrote a story called “Pizza Wars: Searching for the Best Slice,” and it’s a great read. So, he seemed like a good person to talk to.

Luke

The thing is that you want to have your baseline, right? Like that’s what I did for pizza is I made sure I knew what I was looking for in terms of like, I’m just doing a slice of pepperoni pizza.

Oliver

Here’s the winner for those wondering where the best slice is. If anyone knows the correct pronunciation, please let us know.

Luke

And the place that I actually found that I thought had the best slice just closed down a couple of weeks ago.

Oliver

Nuches? Is that what it’s called?

Luke

I don’t know if it’s Nuches or Nutches. It might be Noches because like buenas noches. I don’t know. I called it Nutches. It worked for me.

Oliver

It’s a shame another big name in local foods such as Nuch’s also closed down recently.

Cambria

Oh, no.

Luke

I don’t know. I looked for just the ratio of sauce to cheese. If the pepperoni was overpowering, how greasy it was. Crust structure. But, honestly, I just kind of went based on very basic — just like if I thought it tasted great. I don’t know, it’s very subjective, right? Because like, I might like a piece of pizza that you don’t like. I made sure to be like, I don’t know what I’m talking about. I’m just having fun eating pizza.

Oliver

I would also like to state that we are new to food reviewing. So, we’re also just planning on going out and having fun and sharing new places to get burritos. Our reviews are also subjective. So, don’t get angry when we rank things the way you wouldn’t like.

Cambria

When we rank things the correct way and you disagree for some reason.

Oliver

Yeah, exactly.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

Anyway, more pizza talk.

Luke

I would pick two places and I’d go head to head. So, I’d go get a pizza from each place and try them on the same night. My wife and I would do it and we would decide who had the best pizza.

Oliver

Sounds like we’ll try to compare burritos against each other.

Luke

So are you doing like handheld burritos or like a smothered?

Oliver and Elle

Handhelds.

Luke

Okay. Hell yeah. Okay.

Oliver

What would be your opinion on the best local burrito?

Luke

Oh man. I love Alberto’s.

Oliver

Okay.

Luke

It’s close to Temple Square. I can’t remember the street it’s on. It’s like right by the Crystal Inn.

Oliver

Yeah.

Luke

And they have a burrito. It’s called the nacherito, and it’s nachos inside a burrito.

Oliver

Oh wow.

Luke

It’s like a carne asada burrito. It has fries and guacamole and sour cream.

Oliver

This conversation with a well respected food reviewer such as Luke was preparing us quite well for this burrito-a-thon or one burrito king to rule them all. I’m still thinking of the name. Luke also explained the importance of mouth-feel.

Cambria

Mouth-feel is very important.

Oliver

Very important.

Cambria

I wish more people would do mouth-feel.

Luke

Because it’s important. That’s where Alberto’s, the nacherito, that’s where it struggles because the chips in there hurts your mouth sometimes. Bad mouth-feel.

Oliver

Yeah, but it’s still an excellent burrito it sounds like.

Luke

It’s an excellent burrito, but that’s where it struggles.

Oliver

So, Cambria, after this interview with Luke, who was just a wonderful person to talk to, we spent the afternoon talking about burritos and Sundance movies. It was a great time.

Cambria

Some of the best topics.

Oliver

Some of the best topics. We felt much more confident about how he planned on going about this burrito bonanza. So that’s what I’ve come up with. The title is going to be burrito bonanza.

Cambria

I like it.

Oliver

It’s gonna be incredible. It really is.

Cambria

I’m so excited.

Oliver

And for this burrito bonanza me and producer Elle are gonna split a carne asada burrito based on Luke’s recommendation, because he had pepperoni pizza and he did pepperoni pizza across the board.

Cambria

Like a staple.

Oliver

Yeah, exactly. So we thought, what’s the staple of burritos? Carne asada. We’re going to be doing carne asada burritos across the board and rate them based on this criteria.

(Music fades in)

Since we’re judging carne asada burritos, we’re going to rate the quality of the carne asada. Is it juicy and is it flavorful?

Elle

Contents of burrito: What other ingredients are used? Are they fresh? And do they show through? Or do they shine through?

Oliver

Bang for your buck. We’re college students, where can you get a decently sized burrito for a good price?

Elle

Mouth-feel: How are the textures of the burrito?

Oliver

And lastly, overall taste. I want the flavors to all work together in harmony to create a good mix of salt, acid, creaminess and fat.

Elle

Each category will be ranked between one and 20 for an overall score of one to 100.

Oliver

We will then bring the top two high scoring burritos back to the Chrony offices to be blind taste tested by you, Cambria.

(Music fades out)

Cambria

All right.

Oliver

So, who’s excited?

Cambria

I’m excited. I’m so glad you brought me food to try.

Oliver

Five burritos, taste test them all. All right, then let’s begin.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

And so our mission begins.

(Gentle music interlude)

So, we’re back in the studio with Beto’s on our right, and Alberto’s on our left. I’m going to try Alberto’s first.

Elle

Okay me too.

Oliver

And they both have I think just pico, carne asada and guac — the standard.

(Eating noises)

So, our first impression of these two burritos was that Alberto’s had more spread out ingredients and Beto’s seemed to be very meat forward.

I would say the main difference is that in Alberto’s, other flavors come forward. This one is a really good meat.

Elle

Yeah but nothing else. No there’s guac in here, just not a lot.

Oliver

Like you were saying earlier, you like when it’s spread out.

So, although Alberto’s is winning with its spread out ingredients, it’s really lacking in the taste of its carne asada.

For meat, I would say nine.

Elle

Yeah, I agree. Like a nine. Because it wasn’t seasoned and it was like dry.

Oliver

Yeah. I’d even say eight.

Elle

Eight? You know what? I agree. Like an eight.

Oliver

So how did these burritos compare in mouth-feel? Alberto’s, we decided, had an overpowering guac that made the burrito mushy.

It leaves like that fatty-ness on the roof of your mouth.

Elle

I know. I’m not a huge fan of that. I feel like that takes away from the experience. I feel like it’s kind of mushy. But like, what burrito without rice in it isn’t? You know what I mean?

Oliver

Yeah.

However, Beto’s mouth-feel was nothing to write home about.

Elle

I like the mouth-feel of this one better, probably because it’s just not as like, mushy.

Oliver

Yeah but it’s nothing special.

Elle

Yeah, it’s like nothing special. So like 12?

Oliver

Yeah.

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

And now, for overall taste starting with Beto’s.

The taste of the meat’s good. But I mean, for a carne asada burrito you want a lot of ingredients working together, I think.

Elle

Right.

Oliver

And with that, that’s not really happening.

Elle

Okay. I agree. Okay, so maybe like 13?

Oliver

Yeah.

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

And now for Alberto’s.

It was nice having more than just a meat bite.

Elle

I agree. Yeah.

Oliver

And you do have a little bit of acidity from the pico but you need more. I think they could have done more, especially with the guac. So, overall, I would say like 11?

Elle

11? Yeah, I think I agree.

Oliver

After quite intensive review and dissection of each burrito, here are the final scores for the first two burritos of this burrito bonanza.

Beto’s with an overall score of 69.

Cambria

Nice.

Oliver

Thank you, and Alberto’s.

Elle

13 plus 13 plus eight plus seven plus 11 is 52.

Oliver

Right in the middle.

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

Nothing really stood out.

Elle

I agree.

Oliver

Okay, everyone. Let’s do a little recap on these first two burritos. Beto’s had a strong flavorful carne asada, but was lacking and other fresh ingredients. Alberto’s had a good variety of ingredients but didn’t have a tasty meat which dropped the score, and an overpowering guac. Now, it’s time to try the first taco trucks of this burrito-bonanza.

Hello everybody. Welcome.

(Laughing)

‘Kay Elle where are we going today?

We arrived at Tacos Don Rafa on State Street where you could smell the meats cooking as soon as we got out of the car.

Elle

Um, yeah pico

(Unintelligable speaking)

No thanks.

(Unintelligable speaking)

Yes, green please.

(Unintelligable speaking)

Yeah, that’s it.

(Unintelligable speaking)

To go!

Oliver

Elle, what burrito we’re trying today?

Elle

We’re trying the one from Tacos don Rafa on State.

Oliver

Okay. Um, to be honest the battery died and we’re already like halfway through the burrito?

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

Fire.

Elle

It is really good.

Oliver

Much fresher. Better ingredients, better layout throughout the burrito.

Elle

Mhm.

(Rustling noises)

It is to be noted that they did not have guac so this is the one without guac but it has rice and beans instead, so I’m not really that mad.

Oliver

And Pico!

Elle

Mhm.

Oliver

And salsa!

Elle

Mhm. For six bucks.

Oliver

Great tortilla homemade. Has that like… it’s thin but it has a little bit of fattiness?

Structure of burrito is good. In my mouth I have fat, I have acid, I have salt.

Elle

Fat, acid, salt? What’s that one show called?

Oliver

Heat!

(Overlapping chatter)

Elle and Oliver

Salt Fat Acid Heat!

Oliver

But that’s that’s the foundation of good food. And you know like the mouth-feel like what’s left in your mouth? Its that like little bit of fat that keeps you wanting to come back for more.

Tacos Don Rafa did deliver with a good variety of ingredients all fresh and delightful on the tongue, and was actually a good bang for your buck?

Elle

The cost is great. That was six bucks for like a good size burrito. What would you give that?

Oliver

That we split between both of us?

Elle

Yeah

Oliver

I feel like I feel full.

Elle

Mhm.

Oliver

20.

Elle

20? Yeah I agree.

Oliver

I think bang for your buck. Tacos Don Rafa really is.

Elle

Agree.

Oliver

Wow! A whopping score of 20 for bang for your buck.

I would say really good meat. Good size. Good flavor alone in the meat.

Elle

What would you say?

Oliver

A 16. I think 20 would be like wow, this meat —

Elle

I think Beto’s is 17 for meat.

Oliver

We did?

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

17. 20, it’d be like it blows me away. Maybe 18 then.

Elle

18. So I feel like this meat was better than Beto’s.

Oliver

Tacos Don Rafa did truly check all the boxes.

(Overlapping chatter)

Elle

90?!

Oliver

Wow 90!

Elle

Which for reference from our stuff yesterday, Alberto’s was a 52 and Betos was a 69. So —

Oliver

Wow.

So Tacos Don Rafa is winning this race so far. But how will the other food trucks compare?

Elle

(Faint music in background)

— your phone? Are we just driving?

Oliver

It’s State Street! Is the State Street?

(Unintelligable)

Elle

Oh, just is on the right or the left side?

Oliver

It’s gonna be on the right side.

Elle

Okay.

Oliver

Okay. So what we formerly thought was El Tropicana is actually Tacos Don Nico. It’s the same address, so we’re gonna assume it’s the same place but just a little bit of a name change.

Cambria

Gotcha.

Oliver

Also, I guess producer Elle has never ventured out to 33rd before.

(Laughing)

(Car sounds)

Elle

Um, I’m not 100% sure exactly where we are. I’ve never been out over here.

Oliver

This is 33rd man.

Elle

What’s on 33rd?

Oliver

Yeah, there used to be a high school, you know, East High School. This used to be South High.

Elle

Really?

Oliver

Knocked it down and then did these buildings here and the library.

Elle

Huh.

Oliver

So after educating Elle on the history of 33rd South —

(Laughing)

— we ordered from what was formerly known as El Tropicana and is now Tacos Don Nico. Now we’re on our way to Lone Star in Cottonwood Heights for our last burrito of this burrito bonanza.

(road sound)

Can we do a half size carne asada burrito and a bean and cheese burrito?

Drive-Through Employee

Alright will that be it for you?

Oliver

Yes.

Drive-Through Employee

Thank you — (unintelligable)

Oliver

Thank you!

Okay, now we’re back in the studio with a burrito from Tacos Don Nico and Lone Star. Time for the comparison. Here’s me and Elle making final scores. Starting with the contents of burrito Tacos Don Nico is similar to Tacos Don Rafa.

Just like 16 for contents.

Elle

Yeah, I agree.

Oliver

Actually I’m gonna say 15, because the rice and beans was a little bit much —

Elle

It was a little bit much.

Oliver

And now Lone Star which had a sauce I couldn’t stop talking about.

I would say just because of that extra sauce. I really enjoyed that sauce.

Elle

Mhm, me too.

Oliver

18.

Elle

18? I agree.

Oliver

The rice is overpowering in Tacos Don Nico, bringing the mouth-feel down.

Elle

It’s too much rice.

Oliver

Yeah, that really brought the mouth-feel down.

Elle

Agree.

Oliver

So we’re gonna say what?

Elle

12?

Oliver

I gonna say 12.

Elle

12? Yeah.

Oliver

The secret sauce helped Lone Star’s mouth-feel.

The cream adds mouth-feel.

Elle

It does.

(Unitelligable)

Oliver

17?

Elle

17. Agree.

Oliver

Lone Star had a great carne asada with a score of 19.

(Shuffling sound)

Probably say 19?

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

Okay.

Time for overall score starting with Tacos Don Nico.

This is for Tacos Don Nico.

Elle

Mhm, let me get my calculator out.

Oliver

Tacos Don Nico drumroll please! The score —

(Laughing)

Elle

15 plus 13 plus eight plus 12 plus 13 … 61.

Oliver

And now Lone Star …

Elle

88.

Oliver

Okay! Tacos Don Rafa is in the lead and I’m happy with that — I’m happy with that.

Elle

Yeah, I’m good with that. Lone Star being close second as well.

Oliver

So we’ll have to get Lone Star and Tacos Don Rafa. Again.

Now that our taste testing is complete, I just want to let you listeners know that the burrito tasting process was taken over the course of three days, and we split a burrito in half. We did not eat five burritos in a day. I just want to make that clear.

Now to choose our winner. We’re going to get burritos from Lone Star and Tacos Don Rafa, our two highest-scoring burritos and have our lovely host Cambria blind taste test them and choose her favorite.

Cambria

Are you gonna blindfold me? Be honest?

(Laughing)

Like am I — is this like a full secret? I don’t even need to look at it.

Oliver

You can look at them.

Cambria

Okay, great. So I don’t need to take my glasses off or anything?

Oliver

No. Okay Cambria. Me and Elle spent our week eating —

(Laughing)

Cambria

Here’s the thing. I’m so sorry to interrupt you but I looked at Elle’s bag — as reasonable and as I often do, every time we come into the office and they pulled out — I was looking at where the yarn was coming from — because they’re working currently on a beautiful little alligator, little guy, and I just was trying to find where the yarn came from, and they saw what I was looking in and said pulled this out.

(Overlapping Chatter)

Cambria

Listeners it’s some sort of a dragon horse —

Elle

It’s a dragon.

Cambria

No it’s a dragon but it has horse features.

(Overlapping Chatter)

Elle

I always have at least one beanie baby in my bag at all times.

Cambria

Okay, that’s awesome. I’m really glad because this brought me joy. I did not mean to derail your episode.

Oliver

No you’re good.

Thea

This is an important sidebar.

(Overlapping chatter)

Cambria

This giraffe dragon horse —

Elle

This is a new acquisition, I normally have an iguana in my bag.

Cambria

Love that.

Elle

But he came with today.

Oliver

I like that.

Cambria

I’m obsessed with that forever. Anyway, taste test!

Oliver

Okay. So Cambria.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

So me and Elle spent a week eating lots and lots of steak. And we’ve chosen the top two highest scoring burritos for you to try.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

Not gonna tell you where they’re from. We’re just gonna give you them.

Cambria

There’s no no labels on this tin foil.

Oliver

No labels on these tin foil mounds.

Cambria

Gotcha.

Oliver

But we’re gonna give you this first one.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

If you wanna unwrap that —

Cambria

I do.

Oliver

This is a burrito.

Cambria

This is a big guy. This is a big burrito.

Oliver

And this is the first burrito — you don’t know where it’s from.

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

Just live taste test.

Cambria

Okay. I’m gonna unwrap it.

(Crinkling sounds)

Don’t mind me.

Okay. I’m ready. It’s so heavy.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

This is great. I’m very excited. Okay, we’re ready — first bite.

(Eating noises)

That’s in the microphone for you, dear listeners. Okay, I like this one a lot.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

The rice sticks out. It’s really really good. It’s got meat. It’s got rice. You know, classic burrito. It’s so big. I like that it’s just a burrito to have for days. If you don’t finish it, you just have leftovers forever.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

It’s good the tortilla is good. I don’t know how long it’s been in this tinfoil.

Elle

Two and a half hours.

Cambria

Two and a half hours? Just sitting?

Okay. Well, it’s still good while just sitting.

Oliver

Still warm.

Cambria

What you can’t say about every burrito place. So that’s a win.

Oliver

How’s that tortilla?

Cambria

Tortilla is good. It’s soft. It’s nice, cooked through.

Oliver

Nice.

Cambria

if I get food poisoning later. I’ll tell you. I don’t think I will.

Oliver

So the rice is the rice shines through —

Cambria

The rice shines through a lot. I really liked the rice.

Oliver

How’s that mouth-feel Cambria?

Cambria

You know, the mouth-feel is pretty good. It’s a lot. It’s a big mouthful because there’s a lot going on, but it doesn’t detract from the overall flavor and taste.

Oliver

Good. Okay.

Cambria

I like it a lot.

Oliver

Now we’re gonna hand you the second burrito.

Cambria

Another indistinguishable burrito on a vague plate.

(crinkling sounds)

Oliver

Perfect. Okay. Take a bite of that guy.

Cambria

This one is smaller. Yep, smaller, but it doesn’t feel like it has any less content. Okay, okay, we’re going in.

Oliver

What do you think? Okay, second burrito? What’s shining through?

Cambria

Ooh, this one’s good. It’s got like a little sauce in there that I really like.

Oliver

Sauce in there?

Cambria

There was little sauce on there.

Oliver

Describe the sauce, Cambria.

Cambria

Yeah, well,

(Laughing)

I don’t know how to describe it — it just seems it’s just it just adds a little extra little something-something. I’m not a food critic.

(unintelligible)

A little je ne sais quoi, you know, a little something-something that’s in there —

Oliver

What else is in there?

Cambria

There’s meat. There’s also rice. There is some pico de gallo. You know, good stuff. I like how this one mixes all together. And if you notice about it, I love it. I love a full combo burrito.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

I gotta say I do like kind of a mushy burrito.

Oliver

Interesting.

Cambria

I want to just be all in there. Love guac.

Oliver

Okay,

Cambria

Neither of these have guac but that’s okay, that does not detract from it.

Oliver

So would you say the second burritos a little bit more of a combination of flavors. The first burrito you tried —

Cambria

Yeah, this was the second one — number two that I’m currently eating has definitely it’s all combined in there more than the first one. First one, you can clearly see the separation of rice and meat and everything in there, but this one is definitely more an amalgamation of flavors and stuff. They’re both very good. I can see why these were made the top two.

Oliver

Yeah!

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

So now for what we’re we’ve all been wondering, out of these two burritos in front of you, what would you say is better?

Cambria

The big question of the night? Well —

Oliver

Yes.

Cambria

From the information that I’ve been given, and the information of my mouth, I would say the number two wins out for me. I like

Oliver

Number two?

Cambria

I love that little sauce. I love a sauce you guys if any any place has like a special sauce. I’m always getting it because I love a sauce.

Oliver

Giddy for a sauce.

Cambria

Love a sauce, giddy for a sauce — make it a t-shirt.

Oliver

Yeah, I get lost in the sauce.

Cambria

Lost in the sauce all the way I think — first one I really really liked the rice. I think it’s good. Like the only thing that wins out is I love a little combo. Okay, and I love a sauce. Those push it above —

Oliver

That second you tried, Cambria, Lone Star!

Cambria

gasp

Oliver

The first burrito you tried, Tacos Don Rafa.

Cambria

Oh.

Oliver

Yeah.

Cambria

Which one did you guys score higher?

Oliver

We scored —

Elle

We scored Tacos Don Rafa higher —

Oliver

But —

Cambria

Okay.

Oliver

Tacos Don Rafa was a $6 burrito.

Cambria

Oh, for that day?

Oliver

The one in your hand Lone Star was 8.99.

Cambria

Ooh, okay, that does make a difference.

Elle

Yeah so we rated Tacos Don Rafa like a 20 for bang for your buck.

Cambria

Yeah, for that for that amount of burrito for $6 100%.

Oliver

Taste they’re both very similar. They are, but we ranked Tacos Don Rafa a little higher for bang for your buck.

Cambria

Okay, so talking about rough is higher for bang for buck, whereas this one okay, I can see that then, I can absolutely understand, because if I’m looking for bang for buck I would choose Tacos Don Rafa because that’s way more burrito. I love a lot of burrito.

Oliver

So we have to decide the best burrito now.

Cambria

What’s the best burrito: special sauce or bang for your buck?

Oliver

For me? I love a sauce but also like bang for your buck, so I’m gonna go Tacos Don Rafa is still number one.

Elle

Yeah, I have to agree I think like — also, not that we ranked this part, but Lone Star is kind of far out for me on a regular basis.

Cambria

Was gonna say, you guys brought this to me, so if I was going to rank these just on these two —

Thea

Lonestar was past 33rd, as one might point out.

Elle

Yeah.

Oliver

And 33rd’s far out there —

Cambria

Past 33rd, that Elle doesn’t know about.

Elle

Especially for me.

(Laughing)

Oliver

So I think the final — Tacos Don Rafa might be the winner

Cambria

Tacos Don Rafa with the all the information now together? I think that one is the winner.

Oliver

Okay.

Cambria

Yeah.

Oliver

Well, you heard it here folks, Tacos Don Rafa is the winner.

(music)

Oliver

Anyway, this story, this great burrito bonanza, all started with a saddening in my heart for Hector is closing its doors.

Cambria

Which is tragic.

Oliver

And lots of other local businesses, like we mentioned with Nuch’s and Hector’s are also closing down recently. So you know, it was fun to go out and try lots of different burritos and to support local businesses ourselves, but I think the key takeaway from this episode is just to go out and support local businesses.

Cambria

Even beyond just burrito spots.

Oliver

Even beyond burrito spots.

Cambria

Book stores places like the Legendarium that we mentioned last episode.

Oliver

Exactly!

Elle

Central Book Exchange is also great. If anyone wants to check out that place.

Cambria

Yeah.