Wednesday, March 12, 2008

An Ode To El Burrito

Hello All,

We were in Redlands for a short time Saturday and had the chance to go to my favorite burrito place in the world...that's right! I said "WORLD!" The name says it all: "El Burrito!" That's all that it's about. I have been going there since Pastor Aaron "The Crawdad" Hale introduced me to it. From then on out, we had our Junior High Meetings there as often as our Junior High budget or personal budgets would allow!

I write this, first, as a rebuttal to this thread here. It's a long time in coming, but I had to get it off my chest. Both Josh and Charlene have been good friends for many years, Josh through my relationship with Wildwood, and Charlene from our C.C. Redlands days. In fact, I will say that I've known Charlene most of her life. Her parents were my Sunday
School teachers. As you might have ascertained from their blog, Josh and Charlene are planting a church in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. Ministry, love for Jesus, and lives devoted to the Lord aside, our choice of burrito might be radically different!

In fact, even Lela and I are divided on this topic! Lela is more of a Cuca's fan, a burrito which I believe belongs on the Pope's New 7 Deadly sins!! I will need to revisit this unequal yoke with my wife when we attend the Kingsfield Couples'
retreat this weekend. To be honest, I am not sure that her love for Cuca's is not more connected to the drive-thru aspect of Cucas...anyway, I digress!

All this to say, that in a world of "eat what's good for you instead of eat what's good," El Burrito stands in the gap, flying high the flag of homemade taste, preparing you with a burrito that rightly apportioned, should take a man a few meals to eat! My son is able to finish them off in one meal!

Caleb is a stud!! "He loves his burritos!!!" Burrito not actual size, but you will notice that it's roughly half of Caleb's size!

So, thank you El Burrito for existing to bring pleasure to burrito lovers in Redlands! I hope someday that you come to Orange County and reveal what a true burrito is all about, for as of yet, there is none that can hold a candle to you!

Blessings...To Our Friends,
Frank Sanchez

40 comments:

Jason said...

cuca's all the way baby, BRC!!

Frank And Lela said...

Jason...Kris...

How could you defile this page with a shout out to Cucas!? This grieves and sore vexes my spirit!

I pray that you will try El Burrito, and then you will move from darkness to light...

My prayers are with you!

Anonymous said...

Frank, I love it!

I can just imagine all of us getting together dressed up as our favorite burrito and smashing it out in the ring.

Yeah, we all have our own favorites. Good thing we can “agree to disagree”.

thesix

Frank And Lela said...

Josh/Charlene,

I am all for "favorites" as you call them. But what I am speaking of is totally objective truth!!

As far as getting in the "squared circle," I believe that we would both agree that one of the burrito places would pile drive the other...wouldn't you say? Hey, we should start a thread or two about our favorite finishing moves in the ring...just a thought!

LuvToRekord said...

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNKKKKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!

My long lost friend, I have much to catch you up on the stirrings at The Packinghouse and shall do so very soon but until then.....

.....


.....


I side with.....

.....


.....


.....

YOU!!

EL BURRITO ROCKS THE SOCKS off of ALL the other Mexican fast food places here!!

Oh man, even as I type this, having just recently consumed an entire portion my bro's EXCELLENT BBQ chicken I am actually salivating slightly at the thought of their Chile Verde or Garbage burritos!

Miss you all!! I'll write or call soon.

God bless!

Frank And Lela said...

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!

Oh my friend!! Such great love to you, a) just because you are you, but b) because we are so EQUALLY YOKED!!!

Thank you my friend for "representin" the E.B. in the I.E.!

I'll look forward to hearing from you!

Carrie Allen said...

you have such a hard life ;)

Frank And Lela said...

Carrie,

Yes, it's true. I have sacrificed a great deal to live in the OC, where nothing but relatively healthy food exists. I miss the old days of eating an El Burrito BRC (that's bean ,rice & cheese) and feeling "full" (glutted) for somewhere near a week!

As yet, I have yet to find such an equivalent!

Thanks for your concern and understanding! ;)

Kindra said...

Ok Ok I can not be silent anymore. The ultimate burrito would be El Burrito'r tortillas with Cuca's BRC filling. No offense, Frank but Cuca's beans are out of this world but E.B.'s tortillas...nothing like them around!!
Good to see that you and Lela are doing well. I found your blog on Kris and Jason's blog. It seems like ages since I have seen you guys. Your kids are adorable!Love, Kindra

Frank And Lela said...

KINDRA!!!!

WOW!! So glad to have you visit us here in the blogosphere! I'm going to have to check in on the Crandall 7 sometime soon! So glad you weighed in on this life changing debate!

Now, I like your style here, in that you neither fully chose El Burrito, or __________'s. (I WILL NOT give them more advertising time!!) But I will say that EB's approach to cheese might be the kicker here. _________'s puts the cheese on top of the beans, melts it in the pan and then puts it into the burrito, making a slimy, greasy mess. EB puts the beans into the tortilla (Very reminiscent of my grandmother's tortillas BTW!) and then puts the cheese, UNMELTED, on the beans! Oh yeah, recipe for success right there!

Anyway, I am so glad that you guys have a blog. I'll come visit after the Couples Retreat is over and we can all catch up!

Blessings,
F.S.

Jeff and Aimee said...

Having eaten at both Cuca's and El Burrito, I'm an expert on this topic. Cuca's burritos are pretty good. El Burrito's burritos taste great for the first 5 bites, but suddenly the grease hits your gut like Nicaraguan guerille warfare and you realize you need to just put the burrito down and walk away. Kindra has proposed that you take the filling from one restaurant and put it into the tortilla from the other restaurant. Well...you don't have to because there is a place in Yucaipa and they have the best filling AND the best tortillas. I don't even care that they had a B rating for a while. (They're back up to A now.) They could have a C rating and most of Yucaipa would still risk a night of non stop vomiting for the unparalleled taste of a garbage burrito from...ROSIE'S! Oh, yeah...

Brandy said...

Oh my...no! *butting in here* Carmels in El Toro has the best burrito in the WORLD! Haven't you been there, Frank? It's on the corner of Rockfield and El Toro Avenue. I grew up in Orange County and found Carmels as a teen. I won't tell you how many years I've been going there, but.... Calling Redlands our home for the past 9 years hasn't kept us away from Carmels! Will you at least TRY it? Notice how confident I am that you haven't already.... :-)

Frank And Lela said...

Aimee & Brandy,

I appreciate your love for these alternative places. In fact, I will say that it's better than liking _____'s!

Aimee, the grease hitting your gut like Nigerian Guerilla Warfare...I know, you wrote Nicarauguan... is actually a POSITIVE thing!! Now, is Rosie's the same as Rosa Marias? Because, since EB is THE #1 burrito place, that necessitates a #2 and I am of the opinion that Rosa Maria's is DEFINATELY a distant, but HIGHLY RESPECTABLE #2. Is that the same place?

Brandy, I just had lunch yesterday on Rockfield and El Toro, at Chipotle, which while they have burritos are in an entirely different category. That's more the Southwest Burrito. What we are discussing here in what is becoming a veritable BURRITO SUMMIT, is the Mexican Burrito. Anyway, I digress.

Our Church is off of Lake Forest, so Rockfield is very familiar to me. Believe me, I will definitely try anything (once) that resembles EB! I promise that I will take one for the team and hit Carmels this next week. Thank you for the recommendation.

Thank you both for checking in.

Btw, this is now the longest thread of involvement that I have seen in the 2+ years I have been blogging! It's very telling that the thread with that distinction is Burrito Centric!

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

Rosie's (aka Rosa Maries) definitely all the way! Sorry Frank but 1. Rosie's (original on Sierra Wy) 2. Cuca's (Redlands) 3. El Burrito

Jeff and Aimee said...

Frank--
As far as I know, there is no relation between Rosie's and Rosa Maria's. However, I did eat at the Rosa Maria's in Highland recently and the burrito I had there was not of the same caliber as the food I ate at Rosie's today for lunch. (Just recalling today's lunch is causing me to drool on the keyboard--hold on, let me get a paper towel.) Actually, now that I think about the definite ramifications of you sampling a Rosie's burrito, I wouldn't recommend that you try one simply because if you did, you would be sorely tempted to no longer seek God's will for your life. Rather, you would begin to seek after the will of your tastebuds and would move to Yucaipa. Therefore, for the eternal good of many OC residents, remain in blissful ignorance about the TRUE #1 burrito in the IE.
Mee :)

Frank And Lela said...

Jeff,

Alright, now I almost don't mind there being a close runner-up situation in your mind about Rosa Maria's. But what is inexcusable is for you to put ____________'s in between!! Jeff, I was pretty sure that you were a man of God!

Aimee,

I am really intriqued by your belief that I might abandon GOD's mission for the sake of yet another burrito place...hmm...you see, I respect you and might just be tempted to try one, but then in my attempt, there will be the knowledge that my very usefulness in the hands of God will be on the line...ohh, I love it!! "When burrito love has gone WAY overboard!!"

Thanks guys for chiming in...every new comment is now a frank&lela.com record! WHO KNEW!?

Blessings,
F.S.

Carrie Allen said...

wow, I just wanted to be the 17th comment...this is a sign for a new blog needed by Pastor Frank.

Also, yes, Carmel's is amaaazing. Go there for a breakfast burrito...they are yum yum!

Frank And Lela said...

Carrie,

Apparently, I need an entire blog devoted to Burritos! I can't tell you how surprised I am by this very polarizing topic, and I am not sure what the ramifications are, let's say, if George Barna were to statisize (Is that even a word? I smell a new blog entry: "Is this even a word" where we test the latest and weirdest words we have heard lately!) this information!

I am truly intrigued by the possibility of an awesome burrito place in the O.C. I hope to investigate or in this case, "INGESTICATE" this week! Hey, is that even a word!?

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

sorry frank, but the grease from el burrito didn't sit right with me, i gave it a few tries, but it was a no go.

so another blog by frank? devoted entirely to burritos, that is an amazing idea.

is the rosie's that was being discussed in yucaipa?

speaking about good burritos in the OC, Pedro's Tacos in San Clemente has the best carne asada burritos. but it has been a little while since ive been there.

Frank And Lela said...

Jeff,

I believe that the Rosies that was being discussed was in Yucaipa somewhere...perhaps Aimee, can give us the location if she is still reading this comment roll...which at this comment is 20! UNBELIEVABLE!!!

I am so glad to be getting the recommendations for OC burritos though and Lela and I shall try Pedros!

And Jeff, I admire that you have tried EB several times. Maybe just a few more and your stomach will become immune from any ill effects!

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

haha, i might just do that frank. aimee let me know that the rosie's is in yucaipa. oh and frank if you find yourself down visiting chris and torie, you should look up juanita's in encinitas/leucadia they also have great food, its a little pink building on the coast hwy. i guess the best way to tell if a little mexican food joint near the beach is good, is to look for an insane amount of surf/skate stickers covering the place.

Frank And Lela said...

Jeff,

I smell yet another blog entry: Great food up and down the coast!! I wonder how many comments I would get if we talked about steak?

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

i do believe that would attract johnny love and krista b.

Carrie Allen said...

"Ingestigate"...that's a good one Frankie...you're always on top of things aren't ya?

;)

Frank And Lela said...

Alright, is it possible that this thread could get all the way to 30 comments! That would just be unreal!

Jeff,

Alright, next month, we will unveil the greatest steak place on earth...first, I have to do some research!!!!

Carrie,

Thanks for noticing the "ingestigate!" I really felt that that was very clever!

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

yessss! someone else that loves frankisms. but have they heard any of the austin powers references?

frank, if you happen to be doing any steak research up here in the IE let me know.

4 more posts to go, we can do it!

Frank And Lela said...

Jeff,

What's crazy is that you can almost feel that somehow, some cosmic way, this thread will reach 30...it's very bizarre!

Steak in the IE? I will say that in my years of living there, I enjoyed one steak above them all, but I am mostly convinced that it had to do more with the cut than with the preparation. It was at...

HA! I'll save that for the steak thread...and how appropriate...especially with our first Steak & Study coming up in May, on the 15th...you, and all the men are invited of course! It was amazing having you and Patrick come down last year. Maybe a whole contingency could join us this year?

We move ever closer...

Blessings,
F.S.

Anonymous said...

well frank, looks like its up to you and i to make it to 30, haha. i will most definitely be looking forward to the steak and study season.

Frank And Lela said...

Jeff,

As I said, it will make it to 30...on the strength of you and me!

Thanks bro!

You know, technically, there are 3 posts on your blog that are directly related to this thread! That makes this post #32...technically!

However, on account of because, I am going to see 30 comments!

Blessings,
F.S.

Brandy said...

Don't forget to let me know what you think of Carmels.

30!!!

Frank And Lela said...

Brandy is the 30th Commenter!!!!

"yea! (loud audience response) (band strikes up!) ra-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta, ra-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta...

Brandy, thank you for playing the "Comments Are Right!"

Alright, I am a little too excited over here, even for cyberspace!

Yes, I was over in the Carmels area the other morning...I may even be stopping there for lunch after Good Friday service... I will let you know.

Blessings,
F.S.

Patty said...

Excuse me, but there is no burrito like a chili relleno burrito or a carne asada burrito at Alberto's. Not to mention they have the most amazing taquitos ever! It's a home-made, 24 hour delight. Steve and I would go there at 2am after gigs back in the day. yum.

Anonymous said...

oh no it's starting again!!! haha

Frank And Lela said...

...maybe we can make 40!?...

Patty,

I'll give it to you on this point: Their tacquitos might be as good, if not better than El Burrito, but when speaking about the BRC or Garbage burrito, EB is every burrito places' dream!

However, I will say that I have never seen a famous person at EB, like I did at Albertos, where I am still utterly convinced that I saw Mario Van Peebles. I am tortured by the fact that I let you Nievi and my wife, keep me from going over to the man and simply ask him if he was indeed MVP...wait, his initials are MVP...NOW I KNOW THAT IS A STAGE NAME!...anyway, I am left here wondering if I was indeed in the presence of...what just a little less than greatness?...

Blessings,
F.S.

Chris Fik said...

I actually just made a blog and one of the reasons was too make a comment on this post. Which i should start out by saying that i am a fan of both El Burrito and Cuca's. Who made these two mutually exclusive this isn't the DODGERS vs the giants, and they could both wipe the floor with almost anything else. Straight up El Burrito's tortillas simply the best better then all the rest. Cucas beans and rice are dominant. But what it all comes down too for me is value i am dutch and cuca's kills it with there daily special two good sized bean and cheese burritos with a coke for a litlle over 4 dollars. You will be hard pressed to finish meal and for 4 dollars. I am glad i have said my peace here.
p.s. This might sound like a white thing to do but trust me at cucas ask for fries in your burrito you will not be disappointed.

Chris Fik said...

Now if this was about taco shops........ it would be the market across from the redbarn. But you better brush up on you spanish.

Frank And Lela said...

Chris,

I can't believe this... "are you an angel...sent from above!?"

Chris, I see your vantage point, and I respect your decision. But when speaking of value, if I was offered filet mignon, I would expect that a certain value would be attached. How bout a Benz? You know that it's a Benz by the price...are you following me here...

I would be suspicious of the contents of any burrito that did'nt cost just that much more.

In my humble...alright, who am I kidding?...opinion, Cucas, based on this point alone...pales in comparison to the greatness that is EL BURRITO!!

YEA!

...is it possible that this thread will get to 40 comments?...We're just 3 away...hmmm....

Blessings,
F.S.

Chris Fik said...

I was just reading my earlier comment and would like to apologize for the, bad grammar, use of "too" when it should have been "to" as well as just straight up not finishing words.

Frank And Lela said...

Chris,

Don't apologize! It's difficult to spell when engaged in such a passionate debate.

Besides, this is now comment #39...

Blessings,
F.S.

Chris Fik said...

Go Dodgers!!!!

i thought it was fitting that comment #40 should be something all christians can agree on