When it comes to burritos, one thing seems pretty clear: no one can agree on anything. Boston is full of restaurants serving up burritos, and everyone seems to have an opinion.
I called up two of my friends, Jimmy Risolo, a middler communication studies major who is also my roommate, and Lee Ellis, a junior music industry major. As far as burritos are concerned, I trust these guys more than anything: Risolo is from California and claims to have been eating good burritos since he could chew, and Ellis probably consumes his weight in burritos each month.
When I spoke to both of them this weekend, and told them I was having a blind burrito taste test and I needed them to participate. We agreed to meet on level one of the Curry Student Center Tuesday night, and I gave them specific instructions to leave their stomachs empty. They had some serious eating to do.
Tuesday evening, I picked up burritos from the three restaurants closest to campus that served them: El Pel’oacute;n, at 92 Peterborough St. in the Fenway; Qdoba at 393 Huntington Ave.; and Boloco in the Marino Center. At each location, I picked up chicken burritos, served however each restaurant offered them.
Before the burrito binge could begin, I asked my tasters for their opinions on burritos in the area. Both, right off the bat, identified El Pel’oacute;n as their favorite local burrito.
“El Pel’oacute;n really is just the best” Ellis said. “It’s the gold standard for burritos.”
Boloco: “The Classic” with chicken, $5.24
The first burrito served was from Boloco, and, without being told what they were eating, both Risolo and Ellis identified it based on the burrito’s smaller size.
“I’m not supposed to know this is from Boloco, but this is, right?” Risolo asked.
Ellis pointed out that he didn’t like the tortilla the burrito was wrapped in.
“This is a wrap, not a burrito,” Ellis said.
Risolo pointed out the bland taste, and the lack of any noticeable spice.
“It’s not a bad burrito, but it will never be my favorite burrito,” he said.
El Pel’oacute;n: Pollo (grilled chicken) burrito, $4.65
The second burrito served was from El Pel’oacute;n, the undeniably popular taqueria both testers identified as their favorite before the taste test started.
“It’s completely different [from the first burrito],” said Risolo. “There’s personality.”
That “personality” was the spices used in cooking, including a noticeable dose of cilantro.
Neither loved the El Pel’oacute;n burrito as a whole, but appreciated that the tortilla had been toasted.
“It might be a one-night stand,” Ellis said, his mouth full of burrito. “I’d spend the night with her, but I wouldn’t want to date her.”
The El Pel’oacute;n burrito, which cost less than the Boloco burrito, was almost twice as big, the testers noted.
Qdoba: Chicken burrito, $6.09
The last burrito Ellis and Risolo tasted was from Qdoba.
“This has a fuller body,” Ellis noted. “Not just physically, because of all the rice, but because of the taste.”
Risolo, who later admitted he thought he was eating a burrito from El Pel’oacute;n, said the Qdoba burrito tasted better. The chicken tasted home-cooked, he said.
“The previous two tasted like fast food. This one does not,” he said. “The chicken is just the most flavorful [of the three].”
“I just got to the chicken, and this is glorious,” said Ellis.
The tortilla wasn’t Risolo nor Ellis’s favorite.
“It’s very shiny,” Ellis said. Unlike El Pel’oacute;n or Boloco, Qdoba steams their tortillas, which made the tortilla moister, causing a shiny luster.
The Verdict
In the end, Ellis and Risolo agreed that the final burrito they ate–from Qdoba– was the best one. Both were surprised by where it came from.
“I honestly thought that one was from El Pel’oacute;n,” Risolo said.
Neither taster wanted to completely shun any one burrito, but acknowledged that some were certainly better than others.
“The Boloco one was not bad, just not the best,” Ellis said. He said that in the future he wants to go back to Qdoba and try some different burritos, something he probably wouldn’t have considered before.
