El Pollo Tapatio
4112 N High School Rd
Indianapolis, IN 46254

I can say with a good amount of certainty that I have tried the majority of taquerias in Indianapolis.   El Pollo Tapatio has been on my list for a while, so I decided to cross it off on a rainy night, dining by myself.  I kind of chuckled at the name as it basically means “A Chicken from Guadalajara.”  Tapatio is also a brand of hot sauce as well.

I walked in about 35 minutes before closing, but they said they were open.  The waitress spent the majority of the time talking to her boyfriend which was the only other person in the restaurant at the time.  Chips and salsa were provided.  The chips were straight out of a bag and I found the salsa to be good for a taqueria as I usually dislike taqueria salsa.  This one had a hint of dried chile de arbol which I didn’t love, but overall it is better than the majority I have had.

The menu is straight forward.  A good amount of seafood which I wasn’t 100% trusting, so I decided to stick to what I know.

What I Ate: Super Burrito $4.00. Mixed meat, carnitas and carne asada, lettuce, pico, sour cream,

The waitress advised that I could combine up to three meats in a burrito.   I went for the above mentioned two.   I would think that they would split the burrito half and half, however they put the meats side by side in the burrito.   I can’t say that I enjoyed this and it was difficult to tell the difference between the meat.  Both meats were shredded, but they neglect to fry the carnitas before putting it in the burrito to achieve a little bark on the outside.  Basically, they were pulled out of a roasted pan, grease and all and sat the meat in the burrito.

The pico, sour cream and lettuce were really non-factors.  It was a very meaty burrito.

Would I Buy It Again?  No to the burrito. My problem is that this burrito was really greasy.  The grease made the shell transparent and when you squished the grease out of the meat, it just wasn’t that flavorful.   However, maybe to El Pollo Tapatio. Four tables after me ordered the same thing, Whole Chicken for $10.95.   It appeared there were two whole roasted chickens accompanied with tortillas and fixings.  I saw a few families eating just this and loving it.

All in all, it wasn’t a horrible meal, but I literally had to stop and get a few napkins to wipe off my steering wheel because or residual grease on my hands…and yes, I washed them after I was finished.

-wibia

On The Border
http://www.ontheborder.com/

I approached On The Border like I did watching the movie “Titanic.”  You know how it is going to end, but there has to be more to the story, right?  Not always the case.

OTB is a Brinker restaurant (Chili’s, Maggiano’s), although they are currently in the process of being sold to a private investor and that sale should close by the end of 2010.  It is casual Mexican, family environment, right by a mall, you get the drift.

What I Ate: Lunch Burrito.  $8.99  Filled with steak, cheese, pico de gallo and topped with queso.

I always call this gloopy-glop mexican.  Cheese everywhere.  The burrito was bland and the steak that filled it was flavorless as well.  The queso had skin on top from being heated too long.  Black beans and rice were pretty bad as well.  Flavorless, straight out of a bag and box.

Would I Buy It Again?  No, absolutely not, never ever again.  Indy is a great city for Mexican food and this is about as bad as it gets.

However, I think that the On The Border Tortilla Chips in the grocery store are pretty good.

-wibia

El Taco Torro
79th and Michigan
Indianapolis, IN

My first review/visit was a mixed bag.  I liked the burrito, but some of the tacos were filled with low quality meat.  At the end of the review, I didn’t think that I could give it a wibia-yes or no.  I decided to give it another try thinking that a second visit would help me make up my mind.

The chips and salsa are still pretty bad.  They give you a red salsa and a green salsa and cold chips.  At Mexican restaurants, I commonly eat so many chips that I don’t have room for my entree.  Here, I just push them aside, not worth the calories.

I ordered two chicken tacos, an al pastor taco and a carne asada burrito.   The tacos are served with cheese, lettuce and sour cream…not an authentic preparation of just cilantro and onions.  However, I liked the chicken more than the al pastor and I would say that both meats were of average quality.  They use a full-fat sour cream and it makes the tacos a little too rich for my taste.  With the sour cream and cheese, I tasted more dairy than I did meat.

Mirrored from my last visit, the burrito was slightly above average.  This version had a lot more pinto beans.  The shell was warm and there was a good meat ratio to the beans and rice.  They throw a little lettuce in for crunch.   I wouldn’t say that it is significantly better than surrounding taquerias, but for $4.99, it is a great value.

Would I Buy I Again?  I hate to say it…Yes and No.  Overall, I would give this meal a 6/10…slightly above average.

Yes: A solid burrito alternative (to Chipotle and Qdoba) on the NW Side.  Cheap.

No: All the meats are average.  I prefer neighboring El Pastorcito for tacos (directly across the street).  Chips and salsa are horrible.

I wouldn’t have any reservations visiting El Taco Torro, but at the same time, it is not my go-to taqueria in the area.

-wibia

Taco Bell 5-Layer Burrito

What I Got

:  Taco Bell Beefy 5-Layer Burrito 89¢

I was looking for some food late at night recently and some friends and I decided to make a stop at Taco Bell.  I had eaten the Beefy 5-layer burrito before but had forgotten to take a picture to do a review, so I figured I’d make up for my mistake on this visit and get one to go.   And being that I am a champion of the Taco Bell value menu, this was right up my alley.

They introduced this one with the past few months, so it is relatively new to their menu.  On this burrito, there are naturally five layers, as the name would imply.  These layers include “layers of seasoned ground beef, beans, real cheddar cheese and cool reduced-fat sour cream all wrapped in a flour tortilla with a special layer of warm nacho cheese sauce.”

I have gotten it with sour cream before, but for the purposes of my visit this time, I had them remove the sour cream because I am not a fan.  That said, with/without the sour cream, this thing is still good.  It’s the perfect Taco Bell menu item.  It’s sloppy, tasty and cheap.  Also, unlike a lot of their menu items, this thing is quite filling.  Honestly, the size surprised me and I was quite delighted.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, definitely, especially when you consider that they have got this thing on their value menu.  If I wasn’t such a glutton, one or two of these would serve me well for an entire meal and any “meal” for under $2.00 is naturally a winner.  Combine the cheap price with the fact that this tastes well and Taco Bell has got a real winner here.  Hopefully they don’t rotate this one off the menu like they do with a lot of their food, because this one deserves to stay on there.

Oh, by the way, this one packs 550 calories, so be smart with how many of these that you eat.

-IndianapolisEater

La Bamba – Burritos as Big as Your Head
8320 North Michigan Road
Indianapolis, IN 46268
Website

La Bamba started in 1987 on the University of Illinois campus to cater to the late night crowd looking for a burrito fix.  They are mostly in college towns, but they have a few locations in big cities for when you need your fix from your college days.  There are twenty locations in the Midwest.  Funny part is that on their website, they say they are not a franchise, but then again there is a tab for “Franchise Info.”  Hmmm…either way, let’s talk about the food.

What I Got:  Steak Burrito, about $6.

Burrito size is comparable to Chipotle/Qdoba.  It probably is as big as my head, well, at least my face.  This burrito option has lettuce, cheese, refried beans and hot sauce.  The tortilla was slightly grilled to give it warmth and to make it pliable.  It was very different than the steamed gummy tortillas that you would get at Chipotle or Qdoba.

As far as that taste, I was pretty unimpressed.  The hot sauce was not all that hot or even flavorful.  I would give the steak a 5/10 as far as quality and taste.  It could’ve used a little salt or something.  The burrito was packed with iceberg lettuce which made the burrito crunchier and dryer than I would’ve cared for.

Would I Buy It Again? No. I highly doubt that they have updated anything about their menu in the last 23 years and it shows. I can’t say I know anyone that goes to La Bamba without a few cocktails in their system and I think I figured out why.  It wasn’t repulsive.  I mean, I ate the entire burrito, but based on the local competition in the area (El Taco Torro and El Pastorcito), La Bamba struggles to find their niche.

-WIBIA

The Burrito Joint
3359 W Morris St
Indianapolis, IN
317-243-8516

First review is here:  The Burrito Joint Review.

In my first review, I really liked The Burrito Joint.   A lot of good things going on here and I had one of the better Al Pastor burritos that I have ever tried.   On my revisit, I had to have a burrito again.  Based on a reader recommendation, I tried the Carne Asada.

Honestly, it was good, but not as good as the Al Pastor.   I found the meat to be a little bland.  It could’ve used a little salt, lime, pepper…something!  The quality is still on par and it is a huge burrito, but they have not perfected the Carne Asada preparation.   Still an awesome value for $4.50 for that huge of a burrito.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, and adding it to our Recommended: Independent List. This burrito was solid, A+ on value and it was pretty tasty.  On my 3rd visit, I am either going to go back to the Pastor, or they have steak milanesa as an option (Pretty rare to find around here on a burrito.  Basically, it’s country fried steak and it could be tasty).

-WIBIA

El Pastorcito
7876 Michigan Road (Right across from El Taco Torro)
Indianapolis, IN 46268
Website

There is a ton of competition in this area for taco joints.   Head down to 71st and Michigan Road and there is a Pancho’s.  El Pastorcito is one of those places I knew existed, yet never heard anything about and after about 8 months of knowing that it is there, I made the decision to stop by.   You can get take out here or you can eat in with table service.   The staff is friendly and during my visit, there was a young kid running around that I would assume is the owner’s grandson.  Even though it is a little unorganized and has loud music, we found it to be pretty welcoming.

Menu is mostly a taqueria (tortas, burritos, etc.), but there are house specialties as well.  They had about six seafood items on the list and 8-10 options that had enchiladas, menudo, etc.  Chips and salsa will cost you about $2.00.   I say skip the chips (straight out of a bag for $1.25) and get the three sauces and get ready for your tacos.

I enjoyed the sauces, but my wife strongly disliked the red.  I thought the pico was pretty fresh for this time of year and had the reverse opinion as she did.  I liked the red and didn’t like the green sauce.

I was in a taco eating mood (as I am almost everyday) and they had some pretty off beat stuff as well as the standards, so I thought that I would give a few a try.  They were $1.65 each.  Going rate in Indy is about $1.50, so this is a few cents more.

My first bite was of the pastor.  Really good, the meat was cooked to perfection.  The only part of it that I didn’t like is that the pineapple was left in the taco.  It is layered with pineapple and onion, but you usually just get the meat with a touch of sweetness to it.  Very good though, but I am being pretty picky.

Second, I went for the goat. Wow, this was a show stopper.  Really deep flavors, and again….cooked perfectly.  If you like lamb, then you will love this.  Honestly, it tasted just like lamb to me.   The red sauce was a perfect match and I could have eaten a ton of these.   Probably one of the better tacos that I have ever had.  A+++

Third, I dug into the carnitas.  Again, the preparation was dead on, IMO.  I like it when it is a little crispy on the outside of the meat because it holds in a lot of flavor.  Very lean pieces, very tasty and some of the best carnitas in town.

So I saw brain on the menu and thought, I have never had a brain taco, so I need to check it off my list.   The taco arrived and it smelled horrible.  Wow, a really strong stench.  I took a bite and I just couldn’t eat it.  I hate really soft meat, and brain is one of them.  I am sure that it is a good version of brain, but after one bite, I was done.

My wife had a chicken burrito.  It was good, but I didn’t love the burrito as I thought that the beans and glop took away from the meat.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, oh yes. I was pleasantly surprised here.  All three meats were prepared with such care and accuracy and you just can’t help but like it.  If someone told me that they think El Pastorcito has some of the best tacos in town, I really couldn’t argue with them.    This is a really nice find on the northwest side.

-WIBIA

Spicy Mexican Chorizo Breakfast Burrito

In the battle of the fast casual Mexican burrito joints, I have always preferred Chipotle over Qdoba, but based on a recommendation from friends and a request from one of our readers, I decided to head to my local Qdoba for a breakfast burrito. 

What I Got:  13″ Spicy Mexican Chorizo Breakfast Burrito $5.99

There are many different options for the breakfast burrito at Qdoba including both size (10″ or 13″) or primary choice of meat (Chicken, Spicy Mexcian Chorizo or just plain eggs; I do seem to recall my local Qdoba offering steak as well, but it is not on the Qdoba website…maybe it’s just a local thing).  Since I feel that chorizo is one of the most underappreciated breakfast meats, that was the way that I decided to go.

Also on the burrito as it comes straight from the menu are seasoned new potatoes, scrambled eggs and your choice of 3-cheese queso or ranchero sauce.  I chose 3-cheese queso and also added some Pico de Gallo to my burrito as since I wanted a little of the salsa taste to go with my eggs.

Taste-wise, I was VERY impressed by this burrito.  The chorizo was spicy, the scrambled eggs were done well and the potatoes still had a little crispness to the despite the fact that they had obviously been in the warmer box on the burrito line for quite some time.  The 3-cheese queso actually had a little kick to it as well, so combined with the spicy chorizo, this one had a little kick to it to give me a nice wake-up in the morning.  Because I got the large size, I was quite full.  This is definitely something that’s going to fill you up as well.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, I definitely would and I would recommend others to partake in it as well.  Like I said, I was always a little apprehensive about ever getting this thing despite the fact that I had heard several positive reviews.  But, those reviews were right on and this thing is awesome.  I’ll definitely be getting this on multiple occasions from now on.  My only complaint was that the chorizo was quite oily and was seeping out of the burrito onto my hands and arms.  I just wish Qdoba would do a better job of straining the oil out of the meat after they cook it and before they put it in the warmer box on the food preparation line.

Remember what I said about this being filling?  Well, I’d certainly hope it is filling because this thing clocks in at an astounding 970 calories with the way I had it prepared.  That’s certainly a big way to start off your day.

-IndianapolisEater