El Burro Picante

Reviews

• Mr. B.

  star star star star star 17 June 2026

  **Updated Review - June 2019**
  
  I am pleased to say that this place has become one of the best places in Berkeley for a solid, classic burrito. Under the new management, they have corrected previous errors in my last review. The burritos are now:
  
  - Huge, filling, fresh and tasty.
  - Affordable -- less pricey than other places and more goodness inside.
  - Lot of freshly fried nacho chips and salsa. The salsa is the real spicy deal -- not Americanized.
  - The staff makes it exactly how you want it. No cutting corners or shoddy wrapping. In spite of a long line! This was probably the nicest thing about this place -- thoughtful service.
  
  For the vegans out there: The new management assured me that the rice and chips are fried in a separate oil from the meat, and are vegan.

• Sannidhi S.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 13 June 2026

  This is hands down the worst food I have ever paid for in my life. I came here on a recommendation from a friend and to be honest, based on this experience alone, I am not sure if we should be friends anymore.
  
  Not sure what the meat options are like (although I've heard alternately that they're phenomenal and that they're bland and leave a lot to be desired), but you'd be better off just drinking a bottle of hot sauce to fill up than you are ordering their vegetarian options.
  
  I ordered their vegetarian enchiladas which they fill with falafel bits, cover with a bit of sauce and cheese, and then literally microwave before serving. The falafel was cold and incredibly dry when it got to me. I tend to not be a very harsh critic when it comes to restaurants and I always try to find positives but there is honestly nothing about this experience that I would ever want to repeat.
  
  There are literally a dozen restaurants within just a 2 block radius of here and any one of them is going to be a better choice than this place. Unless you're for some reason legitimately curious about what truly awful food is like steer way clear of here.

• Michael I.

  star star star star star 12 June 2026

  Friendly service, super clean dinning room and the best chicken burrito in the Bay.
  PS - ask for the "off menu desert burrito"
  Stupid good!

• Elesia S.

  star star star star star 31 May 2026

  Wet Burritos are always a go!! El Burro was on my list of places to visit and they did not disappoint. Staff was friendly, vibrant, and put together a picturesque plate without knowing I was there to take photos.
  
  I was especially delighted to find that they created an Elote Cup (a guaranteed good time)! The sauce walls are so bomb, I plan to make many more trips in hopes of trying them all

• Serena J.

  star star star star star_border 24 May 2026

  Needed a new place to fulfill emergency taco cravings since Soy y Luna closed. Was pleased with this find.
  
  The tacos come with a huge amount of meat. Actually, possibly a bit too much - next time I'll probably ask for extra onions or something to balance it out. I'm not really complaining though, because the meat that fell off the tacos went pretty well with the chips.
  
  Some people might think the meat is a bit bland, but I'm all for those natural flavors, so it's chill. There's a salsa bar if you need it as well as a ton of hot sauce. I recommend the al pastor since it has a bit more flavor already.
  
  Tacos are $1 from 2-3pm! Definitely need to cash in on that deal. They're $2 normally, which is still solid. There's also a student discount.