Review: Boloco’s Limited Edition Cheeseburger Burrito
At the counter, I made the game-time decision to order it as a burrito bowl. This way, I reasoned, I could best acquaint myself —up close and personal — with the ingredients of what I was about to ingest.
The Cheeseburger Burrito proved to be a prime example of the old mantra, “it’s what’s inside that counts.” Had I judged this creation by its first layer alone, I’d have been shocked at its failure. When I looked down at the bamboo bowl in front of me, I didn’t see anything cheeseburger-y or burrito-y at all. What I saw was lettuce. Lettuce, lightly pickled cucumbers and the occasional tomato, tossed in the creatively titled “burger sauce.” But the leafy exterior turned out to be merely the tip of the dark, beefy iceberg.
I realized why they used so much lettuce. It had been an attempt — noble but, in the end, futile— to balance out the monstrous portion of ground beef. The steamy, seasoned beef, coupled with crisp lettuce and sweet, tangy sauce, took me all the way back to the last time I’d eaten the American favorite in sandwich form. Admittedly, I had eaten a burger for lunch, but that’s not important. The authenticity was there.
I marveled that, after taking bite after bite of my cheeseburger “Big Bowl,” I could hardly see it diminish in size — the Cheeseburger Burrito is not exactly light fare. This is not a criticism so much as a word of warning for those looking for a more manageable portion. Not to be defeated, though, I finally finished the bowl. I came. I tasted. I conquered.
After giving myself a few hours to reflect on — digest, you could say — my feelings, I arrived at my conclusion. There’s not a lot to the Cheeseburger Burrito, but then again it doesn’t claim otherwise. Boasting only five ingredients — including the burger sauce — the burger is the epitome of simplicity. Isn’t that what we want after all? Americans crave simplicity — things with names like “Big Bowl,” ingredients that can be listed on one hand, colossal portions of ground beef and perhaps most of all, the opportunity to march down the street to a restaurant that claims to serve burritos with ingredients from around the world, only to order something that’s already 100% American. The Boloco Cheeseburger Burrito checks all these boxes — 4 out of 5 stars.