Chabela's - Chile Relleno Burrito

Chabela's used to be another restaurant, also Mexican.  It is still a Mexican place, only under another name, so you would think they'd know what a chicharrone was.  Apparently, no.  The relleno had heat (a plus) but the breading was typically soggy (a minus).  In all fairness, keeping breading crispy when wrapped up in a tortilla is a difficult feat.  The taste and heat of the chile elevate this to 'pretty good' territory, without it though it would likely sit firmly with the 'mediocre' tier.  Our history comes back on us as we diverge almost immediately into talking about burritos from Santa Fe Grill.  But we are consummate amateurs and get back on topic eventually.  Of course, that mostly results in us complaining about the burrito crapping its ingredients all over the place; a common occurrence with refried beans as an ingredient.  We also bitch more about the same shit as last time.  Enjoy!

Ingredients - Relleno, Beans, and Cheese

Ratings:
Ben - Sledgehammer, I really like sledgehammers, I don't know if a sledgehammer is a real practical hammer all the time, but if I had one I would show it to people.
Daniel - A digital camera, I like them when they are conveniently small, not when big and bulky.
Isaac - Shotguns, shotguns are good, they're a terrific standby, but sometimes they are not the coolest, and I think everyone should have a shotgun.

BQ2 - Episode Fourteen

Taqueria Chavez - Carne Asada Super Burrito

Our first taco truck burrito experience.  A bit on the dry side, they are pretty tasty with ingredients we rarely see in other burritos.  Not that their not in there, we just can't make them out from the general mush.  Lesson one for taco trucks, if you visit them after their busy time (read: probably lunch) they may be out of some of their food products.  As a result we ponder what 'al pastor' means.  Turns out it means "Shepherd Style", which we would imagine relates to something dirtier.  In burrito news, Princess Tacos, the oldest establishment our quest has visited, has apparently closed down.  It is a sad day for sketchy food establishments.  We wonder whether people like this bullshit enough to actually contribute money to buy burritos.  We may never know.  Also, we are rapidly running out of burrito establishments that are a) open after 6 and b) open on Monday.  We see Saturday burrito lunches and/or breakfasts in our future. 

Ingredients - Carne Asada, Lettuce, Onions, Rice, Cilantro, and Salsa.

Ratings:
Ben - Free couch, I liked getting a free couch at one time, but now that I can get my own couch I don't want anymore couches.
Daniel - A Big Wheel, for some reason it's a little nostalgic, then the tire splits and it all kind of falls apart.
Isaac - A chair, it's about that exciting, but it serves a really good purpose.

BQ2 - Episode Thirteen

Alice the Burrito Lady - Red Chile/Green Chile Burritos

Our first guest in some time, Jenni joins us for these footlong burritos.  Tasty, big, and cheap, we can see why this place was able to expand out of Canutillo into the surrounding market.  The construction was mildly disappointing as it made for a mess, but the homemade tortillas made up for it.  Two good burritos in a row; if this keeps up we shudder at the eventual burrito-tastrophe.  This sparks a conversation about why at least one of us generally found more faults in more of Santa Fe Grill's burritos.  We discuss the blog's 'spike' in traffic after Isaac posted a link on Facebook.  Also the comment from The Hot Sluts.  Thanks for the interest, The Hot Sluts, and keep the "hard" questions coming.

Ingredients: Red Chile, Beef, Potato, Beans, and Cheese/Green Chile, Pork, Potato, Beans, and Cheese

Ratings:
Ben - Stacks of tiles at hardware stores, where you think 'You know I could tile something with those' and then you don't.  Wistful.
Daniel - Having a robot in your pocket.  But a smartphone, not a real person-shaped robot.
Isaac - Bears, brown or tie-dye, they're pretty badass, and high-quality apex predators.
Jenni - Book burning, satisfying, but I kind of regret doing it.

BQ2 - Episode Twelve

Miguel's - Green Chile Pork Burrito

One might say that one could throw a rock in this town and hit a burrito place.  The resulting burrito, in this case, might just be delicious.  Miguel's is some small place that none of us had ever heard of, and that provided us burritos when Go Burger failed us with it's breakfast/lunch only service hours.  Good on ya, Miguel's!  A tasty, spicy burrito, they also serve up some tasty, kind of vinegar-based salsa.  And they are apparently open 24 hours-a-day (but only on the weekend).  Burrito Quest enthusiastically recommends!  Also, the quest goes international as a random web hit from Brazil excites us all.  We doubt it is Shakira, or even that she's Brazilian.  We wonder whether burrito lovers would appreciate a burrito automat.  Daniel relates a story about a fish burrito with coleslaw he had in Tucson.

Ingredients: Pork, Green Chile

Ratings:
Ben - Giant squid, they're kind of remote...giant tentacles, they're really smart and can control technology and fight whales; I like giant squid, who doesn't?
Daniel - Drinking beer on the porch in the summertime, in the evening, I like the simplicity and the flavorfulness.
Isaac - Cadbury egg, they're pretty good but there's bad things about them too.

BQ2 - Episode Eleven

Roberto's - Burrito Banadero/Potato Burrito

Well, last week was a bust.  The hiatus went on longer than any of us wanted.  There was a slim chance for a breakfast burrito from a donut place, but no.  Instead we come back at ya with a quest to a Las Cruces landmark(?).  Roberto's has been providing cheap Mexican food to the masses since, well, a long time.  And they are renowned for making the world's biggest enchilada.  We wish they were renowned for making the world's most delicious burrito.  This is not the case.  All in all what they really excel at is making cheap, mediocre Mexican food.  The banadero was a bit spicy and tasty, and the potato burrito was bland as hell.  Eating both of them back to back was somewhat like a throwback to the uneven burritos of OBQ, when all the potatoes would get jammed on one side of the burrito; it would start out great and get awful by the end.  Isaac tries to bait Ben into making racist comments.  We all decide a little more ethnicity is needed back on the quest.

Ingredients: Banadero - Green Chile, Beef, Cheese, and smothered with Green Chile sauce; Potato Burrito - Potatoes.  Yeah, just potatoes.

Ratings:
Ben - Someone else's dog, you get to meet a dog, and see it, and you think, "This is a cool dog," and then it goes away.  The potato one though, used napkins, someone else used them, and you have to clean them up.
Daniel - Instant mashed potatoes, for both burritos together, I used to eat them with bread after high school while watching Star Trek, kind of a nostalgic memory, but the reality is not that great.
Isaac -Thanksgiving, for the first burrito, because I'm thankful it's not the second burrito.

BQ2 - Episode Ten

Hiatus Schmiatus

So we're on break again.  We had hoped to be able to cram a burrito into the beginning of last week, but alas, this was not to be.  So let's talk about t-shirts instead.

I got the first one in the mail last week and it looked like ass.  The orange colors completely washed out Ben's face and there were other color/contrast issues as well.  Before I could warn folks about it, Ben and Sage both ordered shirts.  Their's were fine.  Or better, anyway.  I put in for a replacement and should have it soon.  So the link is back up in the merchandise post.  Buy t-shirts for everyone you know!

Next week, burritos or bust.
-Daniel

Hiebert's - Steak Finger Burrito

Oh, Hiebert's, we had such high hopes for you.  This burrito is apparently misnamed.  One would think that Steak Finger Burrito would mean a burrito filled with steak fingers.  One would be incorrect.  Instead, we got a burrito filled with steak, without batter of any kind.  Disappointment abounds!  And it tastes like Hamburger Helper.  Behold, Ben wears a Burrito Quest shirt featuring himself as he quests!  It is a magical thing.

Ingredients: Steak, Green Chile, and Cheese

Ratings:
Ben - Forgetting to put the trash can out on trash day.
Daniel - Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve, if I didn't know any better I'd say it's really good.
Isaac -Cat or dog food, you look at it and think "That looks good" then you pick it up and put it in your mouth and it's not good.  I end up feeling just a little confused and stupid.

BQ2 - Episode Nine