Burritoeater
 Should you ever motor west, you'll see that the burrito is the signature food of San Francisco. While the city is home to a number of trend-setting chefs and a wide variety of ethnic cuisine, the humble burrito is the common food that unites folks throughout the Bay Area.
With San Francisco's prolific taqueria scene and its bountiful burrito offerings, one man has made it his duty to impose some order on the carne-based chaos. Charles Hodgkins is that man. We first wrote about his site back in late 2005 and he had roughly 150 burritos reviewed on his site. Today, his review total stands at over 500 whopping slabs of tortilla-wrapped goodness. We recommend reading his extensive FAQ for an explanation of his innovative moustache-based rating scale and the key elements behind his detailed ratings. However, we were curious about how he was bitten by the burrito bug and the site's origin story, so we posed a few questions to the salsa-slathered mind behind Burritoeater... Hey Charles, when did you start Burritoeater? What was the impetus? I began working on the project on New Year's Day, 2003, but the site itself didn't see the light of day until June 24, 2005. I wasn't all that into the idea of creating a website around my taqueria data until I was laid off from my job at CNET in October 2004. I was sitting around with two of my colleagues that had also been laid off, and we were discussing what our next steps would be. John's an author and was going to publish his next book; Tim's a musician and was going to finish his next record. I shrugged and said, I'll do the taqueria website. Fast forward three years later: International notoriety is now mine. What were your goals when you started? The goals of the site are the same now as when I launched it: To cover San Francisco's prolific taqueria scene like a blanket, and to have a bunch of fun doing it. When did you know that your site had "made it"? I knew I was onto something even before the site launched, because everyone knows how popular taquerias are in San Francisco. I knew I'd be able to research and present all this information in a concise and entertaining way. Making it entertaining is one of the most important elements of a site like mine, and I think I do pretty well with that part of it. It's also important to keep the database accurate and current, and given the shelf life of certain taquerias around town, sometimes that requires more legwork than you might expect. I knew Burritoeater had hit the big time when it spread like some kind of word-of-mouth wildfire within the first week. The New York Times mention and San Francisco Chronicle Magazine piece didn't hurt the cause, either. But I suppose I knew it had really made it a few months before the NYT thing, when I overheard a couple people at the table next to me at a taqueria talking about "that weird site that rates burritos in mustaches." Did you have another site or blog before Burritoeater? No. I had a lot of experience working for online-based companies—music websites, specifically—but I never had my own show on the Web until I created Burritoeater. Did you have any previous experience in the world of restaurant criticism? No, although I have a long history of grousing about La Taqueria's burritos off the record. I just didn't have an audience for that until Burritoeater. What's been the most gratifying thing about running Burritoeater? No contest—the limo rides. Man, that sort of star treatment is no joke. I never knew how comfortable a limousine could be. I can't go back to driving a car at this point. What's been the most surprising thing about running Burritoeater? The fact that someone will read my answer to your previous question and think, if only for a split second, "Wait, he only rides in limos now?" Come on. I walk, I ride the MUNI, I drive a Volkswagen Golf. Are you a native of San Francisco? I'm originally from the swine country, Napa. Graduated from Berkeley after that. I've been in San Francisco since the late '90s and don't plan on leaving anytime soon. I've traveled a fair amount, and every time I return home, it only confirms that I wouldn't be better off anywhere else. I mean, how many cities of three-quarters of a million people can you criss-cross on foot in a few hours? And how many would you want to criss-cross on foot? San Francisco is a singular spot on the map in so many ways. It's hardly perfect, but it sure beats Pensacola. When did you have your first burrito? When did you have your first authentic taqueria burrito? I probably had my first burrito at Taco Bell on Jefferson St. in Napa when I was a kid. As for my first más autentico burrito—Tio Alberto's, San Luis Obispo, February 1991. I was onboard for life from that day forward. Why do you love burritos so much? What's not to like? They're designed to be eaten by hand, they're often delicious, they're mighty filling, they're cultural flashpoints, they're excellent weapons of defense when frozen, and they're generally pretty affordable. No two burritos are the same, which I'm thankful for, considering I've reviewed well over 500 of them on Burritoeater. Are you into all varieties of the Mexican food experience? Or are you laser-focused on burritos? Obviously, the scope of my site is burritos. Hopefully I've conveyed that in a clear way from the site's name. But I just like food, you know? So, yes, I hit other high points on the taqueria menu on off-days. Just over the last few weeks, I've had tacos, quesadillas, flautas, and tortilla soup at various points and places. Where do you stand on burritos vis-a-vis tacos? Tacos are rad. I enjoy a finely produced taco. I just have to eat several of them to equal the food content of one super burrito. I even like hard-shelled tacos with ground beef... you know, the kind that scream "Ortega" in aisle 14 at your local supermarket. We had taco nights at home on occasion when I was growing up. Good grief, I can just see the Latino community out there right now, shaking its collective head. Do you have a favorite food blog besides your own? Burritophile.com. It's a terrific user review-site managed by my friends Aaron, Dan, and Cate. It covers taquerias nationwide, which is no small task. I get e-mails from time to time from people who want to write for Burritoeater, but since I'm never in a collaborative mood with the site's content, I send them over to Burritophile. Is there an area outside of S.F. where you're dyin' to check the burrito scene? I don't get to San Diego too much, but I'm a fan of fries and really want to try one of those fries-inclusive burritos down there. I'm serious. It sounds like the kind of thing you'd get in Pittsburgh, not San Diego. Maybe I'll just go to Pittsburgh instead and get a ham sandwich with fries in it. That sounds pretty good, too. What's the most unusual burrito filling you've ever had? I had sesos [brains] in a torta a couple years back. I'm not so into the variety meats scene, but a certain amount of drinking had occurred earlier that evening, and liquid courage was rearing up big by 1:00 a.m. munchy-time, so I ordered up a brains sandwich at El Farolito on Mission St. I was with my friend Tyler, he was sitting across the table from me, and every time he'd look away from his plate, I'd pinch off a piece of sesos from my sandwich and stuff it into his quesadilla. After three or four times doing this, I finally got a stern and well-deserved, "KNOCK THAT @#!% OFF!" Sesos is even more disgusting than you'd expect. Its taste, its appearance, its texture... I only recommend it to people I don't like. Do you prefer a sit-down taqueria or a taco truck? No preference. San Francisco's got plenty of trucks at this point, and it's OK with me. Eating informally is fun sometimes, and there's really nothing more informal than eating a burrito while sitting on a street curb. I'm an awesome date, I know. You're going to have a final meal. Money is no object. Intestinal difficulties are inconsequential. What do you order? I know you're expecting me to respond: Super burrito, pastor, extra spicy, refried beans, no sour cream, and that would be a very reasonable response from someone like me. But really, I'd probably just want about 15 of my mom's Toll House (chocolate chip) cookies. My word, those things were the greatest things ever. I was the most popular kid on the playground at lunchtime at Browns Valley Elementary. You're still popular with us, Charles! We raise a hefty horchata in honor of your diligent work on the burrito beat.
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