Burrito Fresh, Not So Fresh
When I moved to Toronto from New York, one of the first things that I noticed was the lack of Mexican food available. I had previously lived within a ten minute walk of five Mexican restaurants - not including the local Taco Bell. And here I was in downtown Toronto without a burrito in sight. It made me regret all of the pettyness about burritos in New York. Two taquerias down the block from me used queso blanco instead of a jack/cheddar combination, the stringiness of the queso blanco gave great texture - in my opinion - but was shunned my my Californian peers who believed that their state was the only one that could produce a decent burrito. The Mexican bar & restaurant near my campus was not "authentic enough." And when the Chipotle franchises hit New York, we loved it for the quick service and assembly-line style of fixings, but despised the fact that we were eating Mexican food from a chain. At least there was choice.
I also came to Toronto at a time when many of the restaurants on Bloor between Avenue and Bedford street were closing. Mr. Sub, Harvey's, Swiss Chalet, Booster Juice and Crepes-a-Go-Go all closed in late August to make room for the future site of a new condominium across from the new Varsity Stadium. Despite the nearby Intercontinental Hotel and Hyatt, and the enormous amount of foot traffic in the area, there are few places to sit down and eat. So when Burrito Fresh (208 Bloor Street West) opened above the brunch spot Over Easy, I was excited. I ran up the stairs just days after it opened and ordered burritos for my friends and I. After eating them, we decided that we would probably never return. But I did.
There is nothing that is, per se, blatantly wrong with Burrito Fresh. The decor is pretty nice - bold greens, yellows, and reds are painted in patterns along the wall and most of the seating is in cushy red booths. There's a Gallaga/Pac Man machine with free play. And the menu is small but simple enough. That's where I felt the good ended. When I returned for a second time, last week, I had about forty minutes to eat and head to my next location. There were four people ahead of me in the line, where an employee would build their burrito, quesadilla, or taco assembly-line style. Two people ahead of me were receiving their quesadillas and were ready to pay, when the employee asked them to wait in order to take the orders of those of us in line. With a "humph" the went to the washroom. Though the assembly-line service style should make burrito-making more efficient, I have never waited so long for such an easy dish. I mean, everything is prepared ahead of time, all that had to be done was to slop on some rice, beans, and toppings and roll. Yet it took me twenty minutes to get my food.
At Burrito Fresh, you get a choice of having your burrito filled with: chicken, steak, pork, soy meat or grilled vegetables. Since I don't eat meat, and the vegeterian options looked less than fresh and waterlogged, I opted for the simple rice and bean burrito. While this is often the least expensive order at most Mexican restaurants, the cost was the same for this dish as if I had meat inside. I ordered my burrito alongside a combo, which included chips and a pop for an extra $1.85. I received a small handful of tortilla chips, and was informed that if I preferred to have pico di gallo instead of their salsa, I would be charged an additional sum. Guacamole? Extra. A little more cheese? Extra. I was surprised when the customer with a bulging burrito in front of me paid $10 for the item, but was even more surprise that my puny burrito, handful of chips and a pop rang up to about $8.50 - and didn't have any extras.
Aside from the lengthy wait to get my food, I had a hard time finding a place to sit. Although the restaurant was relatively empty, most people had not cleaned up after themselves, leaving dirty trays with wrappers and empty pop cans strewn across the table. There were no signs displaying where to leave your waste, nor was there a staff member cleaning the tables and gathering the garbage. I found one moderately clean booth and sat down. The pico di gallo inside my burrito was overly acidic, and the rice had what looked to be limp, canned vegetables inside. The salsa that came with the chips was clammy and would have been better substituted by a shelf-stable chip dip from the grocery store. The food was not horrible, yet it reminded me as to why I didn't want to go back after the first time.
Burrito Fresh is still new and perhaps it will improve with time. Upon leaving the store I noticed a "help wanted" sign, implying that they may have been short staffed upon my visit. Nonetheless, with a prime location and little competition, it is a shame that Burrito Fresh is not - at the very least - fresh.
