By: Kyrie Sismaet By: Kyrie Sismaet | April 7, 2022 | Food & Drink, Culture,
Aside from all the culinary innovations and modern additions to San Francisco’s diverse food scene, there is one staple fare that remains unchanged, and that is the Mission-style burrito.
Now this is not your ordinary burrito, as the Mission-style variation is one that was created solely out of San Francisco, specifically its historic Mission District, and helped to put the city on the coveted map of culinary capitals.
Highly delicious and highly contested, this tinfoil-wrapped cultural delight is one that is served with a side of debate and deep history. We’re peeling behind the layers of the Mission-style burrito and elucidating on its jam-packed history, influence, and future.
See also: The 10 Best Mexican Restaurants In San Francisco
Walk around San Francisco’s lively and bustling Mission District, and you will see a wide array of burrito shops, immediately followed by the irresistible fragrances of their freshly grilled meats, in the typical protein choices of chicken, pork, or beef, or even with more resourceful parts like lengua.
One visual cue that its Mission-style? The oversized proportions.
As Charlie Hodgkins of Burritoeater emphasizes, “A Mission-style burrito stands apart from its stripped-down cousins for its often outsized proportions.” Alternatively called a jumbo or “super” burrito, a large tortilla begins as the base for the overstuffed fillings of classic accoutrements like cheese, sour cream, etc. before being wrapped and grilled on a press to achieve those distinct toast marks.
Another factor that denotes a Mission-style is less overt.
The surprisingly humble but divisive ingredient in these burritos which signify it as strictly Mission-style is the inclusion of rice. While not initially a dealbreaker, there are passionate burrito-purists who critique the inclusion of the short grain. For former San Francisco Chronicle food critic Michael Bauer, after sampling all the neighborhood taquerias that had rice, he still remained steadfast in his distaste for this burrito choice. “As far as I'm concerned,” he asserts, “you can leave the rice out of the burrito. Rice dulls the flavor of the other ingredients, adds unnecessary calories and makes the burrito messier to eat."
Whichever side you fall on, the large burrito with seasoned rice is now synonymous with San Francisco’s culture and the Mission District, and there are two thoroughly trusted, yet also debated, places to thank.
Taqueria La Cumbre, on 515 Valencia St, and El Faro on 2399 Folsom St in SOMA, are both credited to being the birthplace of the Mission-style burrito in the 1960s, and the two continue to dispute it.
La Cumbre owners Raul and Michaela Duran defend their creation’s origin by knowing the exact date on September 29th, 1969, even emblazoned across their storefront.
Conversely, the owner of El Faro claims to have sold the real first one earlier on September 26th, 1961, two six-inch tortillas together before becoming one large one.
Through the rivalry, the popularity of these quick-serving taquerias owned and operated by new immigrants propelled throughout the 1970s and 80s, with popularity demanding the freshest ingredients and low costs to maintain their statuses. Today both are still extremely popular, with even more delicious food options for longtime locals and tourists alike. Al pastor and carnitas are must-tries.
The growing SF taqueria scene solidiies that not only is there is room for both places and more, but also for both rice and no-rice lovers. The addition of avocado though? Now that debate may be bigger than our burritos.
Photography by: Lasse Diercks/Unsplash
