El Charrito

This stinkin’ place has nowhere to sit. It’s more like a grocery store than a restaurant or fast food joint. We went out of our way to visit for lunch, and had to leave with nothing.

This place has theeeee best burritos ever! They are small so order at least 2 maybe more if you are hungry! I usually get their bean and chess with rice and sour cream and the asada with mild salsa. What makes these amazing is the TORTILLA … They are homemade!

No words. Just go eat. Inexpensive, delicious burritos. Amazing tortillas. Eat everything.

So amazing! We come to salinas to visit family and leave with 15+ packs of flour tortillas to take home!
Highly recommend

Friends have been telling us to try this place. So we came in for lunch today. We both had the chili Verde burrito, no rice with Pico de gallo. I must say this is the best we’ve ever had! Just like your grandma would make. The chili verde was very flavorful and had just the right amount of heat. I like that you have your choice from their salsa bar. There are no tables in this place and that’s ok. Food here is cafeteria style and that’s ok too. It’s very clean and the ladies are very helpful. I also like that they have fountain drinks (Coke products) and a large cooler filled with other drink options. For 2 delicious burritos a fountain drink and an imported bubble water less than 10 bucks! You can’t beat that anywhere. We’ll definitely be back to try other stuff!

— by far the best burrito place in Salinas! The remodel they recently did is great and has really helped the line flow a lot quicker. For breakfast I absolutely love the huevos con salsa… You can’t go wrong here, the burritos and tortillas are to die for.

Everything is so damn good. EVERYTHING.

Torta, torta, torta. Oh, did I mention the TORTA?!? Carne asada con todo, por favor! If you want fresh tortillas, or some nice masa for homemade tamales, this is the place!!! Got a burrito one time, almost couldn’t finish it, and for me? That’s saying something, I can eat!!!

Hands down one of the best Mexican food places in the Monterey county. Every Sunday, my sales crew comes and gets food by the buckets from here! Fair prices and the best home made tortillas outside of my home! I look forward to Sunday’s because of this place! Keep up the awesome work!

Best burritos in town!
These burritos are not like the standard huge burritos you would buy at a taqueria. Its smaller but packed full of flavor. The flour tortillas are made fresh here and are so good that I always grab a pack to take home. Once you taste these tortillas no other tortilla will do!
Lines are usually long so call and pre-​order. And, there are no tables or chairs so be prepared. We usually take the burritos out to Monterey to enjoy the beautiful beaches. The kids love it!
Try the Chile Verde or the Chilli Relleno burritos — you won’t regret it!

Best burritos in town! When there is a line, it moves fast and always worth the wait. Family owned and a local favorite!

This is without a doubt one of the best burritos in California. And I don’t say that lightly. There’s something about their ingredients that makes El Charrito special — they are always unbelievably tasty and fresh. And the the tortillas are freshly made all day! PRO TIP: make sure to grab a bag of the tortillas at the end of the counter on your way out. Their usually still warm and are worth the trip alone.
My favorite is actually the breakfast burritos they have in the morning, especially the egg and nopali (cactus). It’s something that I haven’t seen offered anywhere else and has great taste. Otherwise the chile verde is to die for and I’m a sucker for carnitas.
Only warning I have is that these are not your normal big, fat burritos from Chipotle. What they lack in size, they make up in flavor and quality. And for $ 3.5 each, I get at least two. Can’t beat that.

You’re reading the reviews because you’ve heard about this place .and you’re probably the last few who haven’t tried it yet.
Let me make it simple, get over there now! .You’ll thank me later.
The food is amazing (especially their burritos). it’s a good price. And if you can get them soon enough, get their infamous Churros, made in house, but don’t tell too many people about the Churros. because then I won’t have any.

I’m not afraid of change, anything that can be done to make something better is good, right? Not so in this situation.
Prices have gone up with almost each visit and for what? Flat screen menus? Really? (Plus the burritos seem to get smaller and thinner and I’m not even comparing them to say, Chipotle)
While I’m glad that they have expanded the hot food service counter, they are still slower than molasses in the morning and lunch hours. Plus they now charge for «xtras»…really? Just cause I asked for xtra beans in my burrito?
I come in wayyy more times than I check in and have been for years but maybe the next change should be to a new place where they appreciate those who have been with them since they were the cute lil’ family market.

Oh my goodness this is a hidden gem. Doesn’t look like anything form the outside I would have never found this without Unilocal.Fresh made tortillas, chili verde was awesome as was the green salsa and the churro. The price was right too. Will do this again while
I’m here!

The BEST find ever! I recently moved from San Diego to the Bay Area and have been craving REAL Mexican food… None of this wrapped in tin foil B.S. you find in SF or the East Bay… Granted I know Salinas is not in the Bay Area, but we stumbled across this place on our way home just off the 101.
The TORTILLAS are the freshest tortillas I’ve ever had from a taco shop. You can tell they are made on location and would be satisfying even on their own without any meat, cheese, or salsa.
The MEAT was marinated and cooked to perfection. We had the carne asada, canitas, and castillos all were fantastic… Wishing now we would’ve tried ever meat option.
We also tried the beef and potato tacos… They were to die for as well.
This will always be a way-​point for us on road trips to and from San Diego to the Bay Area!!!
Sorry, NO photos… It was enjoyed way too quickly to snap any!

I can’t seem to remember the reason for this bookmark… in Salinas? Which I came to find out is the state capitol of bad driving.
2 – 3 minute drive off of the 101, the restaurant has parking around it’s building in upside down U format. Lot’s of it but dirt road.
Walking in you will notice it’s chipotle style ordering and the line can build up. Music playing in the background for order inspiration. a mix of older and younger hispanic ladies prepping your food.
I came in here twice, one on the way up north one on the way back south and had the chance to have:
Burritos–
First and foremost, the tortillas used for the burritos are made here. These are some of the best I have ever had. They are thin and fresh, with a texture that doesn’t make you pull as a lot of flour tortillas make you do at the bite. I actually brought a pack home and now wish I would have taken 2. THE PERFECT FLOUR TORTILLA.
Eggs with chorizo and potatoes: Thank the the chicken that laid these eggs for not giving me digestion problems. Apparently not so cheap eggs and the chorizo used was a good out of momma’s kitchen choice. I added cheese to it (queso fresco) which did not appear to be cacique… it was «fresco» and with the beans gave it the taste I look for when I’m having a breakfast burrito. Excellent. 4.5÷5
Carnitas: The lunch burrito was just as good. Made the mistake of forgetting to tell them no rice but it didn’t hurt in the end. El charrito proved to me that they could handle the big responsibility of being able to make flavorful rice and beans… and that’s not sarcasm. The meat was clean, no fat and with the red sauce provided a good burrito that would be hard to imitate. 4.5÷5
It would of been nice to know that the burritos are small, but didn’t matter because the price matches the size at 3.19 $ for the breakfast burrito, it gives you the golden chance to critique 2 or even 3 if you really wanted.
Torta–
Asada: As the picture proves, the ingredients are so nicely topped and organized that you can taste the masterpiece when you dig into it. The bread was fresh and toasted in front of my eyes. 4.25÷5
Tamales–
Pork: Terrible. As someone below said «hella dry.» It was just dough with a ball of meat in the middle. The sauce was just soaked in color. 1.5÷5
Churros: Warm and soft. First one lacked sugar though but when it did have sugar they were a jumbo version of Fernando’s Churros here in Santa Barbara but without that bitter aftertaste. 4.25÷5
Customer service was kind of like their tamales, except for this younger sweet girl at the register who meant well but lacked some coaching. People around here are not the nicest, so buyer beware. This is a stop worthy restaurant though. wait I forgot to say. no tables inside, so it’s a dine in your car thing but without the box in n out would give. anyways try it, you won’t be disappointed, well unless you try the tamales.

Cada ano los burritos estan mas chicitos y los precios suben, pero el sabor todavia es lo mejor.
They have the best Chile Verde in Monterey/​Santa Cruz Counties. Hands down. Lot of other good stuff to.
You know it’s good when you see people from all walks of life. Anything from the guy in business suit who may work at the county buildings to a gangster looking guy sporting hood colors and tattoos standing side by side to order something savory.

This place is Legit. When you drive in… the parking lot surrounding the market is full of trucks (first clue of legitness!!) Once inside I was almost overwhelmed to see nothing but men in line! I felt a little out of place! I didn’t even know what they had but I figured I should get in line. All the guys were getting breakfast burritos. They had a stack of tortillas and a huge steam table full of choices of fillings! I saw the price and I was shocked… wtf 3.19 for a burrito… growing up in SF those prices were from the 80s… so then I noticed… they are not standard sf/​sj size!!! These are really burritos compared to BURROS in SF and SJ!!!
So I got a carne asada burrito and asked for cheese… they asked if I wanted Monterey Jack or queso fresco… I picked the Jack. In retrospect, the fresco would have been awesome. They have a stack of handmade flour tortillas which they use for burritos. Inside there was refried beans (I usually hate refried beans), rice, carne asada, choice sauce… I picked red and the cheese. I got it to go.
I also picked up a case of pork tamales as well to go. So when I get to the office, I started eating the burrito and decided to swap my home made green smoothie with burrito… I couldn’t wait. This little f’ing burrito was soooooooo amazing and boy I’ve had many a burrito in my day… maybe too damn many to be exact… but boy was this good! It was so simple yet had amazing flavor and texture!!! The meat was soft and no gristle! The combo of the rice and beans was superb… they know what they are doing up in this joint!!! It wasn’t greasy either no weird drippings of fat to stain my royal blue dress!!! Excellent and I am so glad I didn’t get two, cuz the second would’ve been disappeared before lunch time!
Now about the tamales, I had one for dinner just now and I was not impressed… I’m thinking I overmicrowaved or the thing was old! I don’t know!!! It was spicy which was ok with me… it was dry!!! I’m gonna warm a couple up for my man and I will see if it was me that messed mine up or if they just not that good…
All in all, I’m going back possibly at lunch time to try other things on that menu…

We were making our way down from Oakland to SLO. I Unilocaled and found this place. Thank you, UnilocalERS! This place is amazing. I love places that make their own flour tortillas. Flour not corn… must get that, right. This place is about a mile off the fwy and so worth it.
We arrived to a market and you stand in line. There are these ladies that take your order and makes the awesome burritos in front of you. The line was almost out the door but it moved really quickly. I ordered a carne asada and chile verde burrito. My hubby decided to just get one carne asada burrito. The carne asada was just diced skirt steak and the chile verde was their most popular dish. The chile verde are tender cubes of pork simmered in a mild green chile sauce. YUMMMMOOO!
The lady takes a fresh baked tortilla and filled it up with beans, rice, meats, and salsa. She does this whole process in less than thirty seconds. She is super fast. My hubby skipped all the beans, rice, and salsa and instead gotten an all meat burrito. The burrito size was okay. Not too big not too small.
We took it to our car and ate our burritos, since there are no seating area. My hubby loved his burritos. All i heard, for the next 50 miles to SLO that he regrets not getting a second one. I ended up eating the second burrito in SLO and it was okay. The burritos are meant to be eaten right away. I think the fresh tortilla harden and doesn’t have the same great flavors and textures.
Overall, if i’m ever in the area again. It is a MUST stop!
I was not a fan of the churro… I would not suggest to get it.

Love local hole-​in-​the-​wall places. So authentic.
This is take-​out only, not a sit-​down place.
Their meats and fixings are right on the spot but what stands out is their homemade flour tortilla. The texture reminds me of crêpe or roti. Sizes are small compared to typical Cali sizes; but for me, it is perfect size. Add a churro and it is a complete meal. From now, whenever I do a road trip down 101, I will be sure to stop by for a burrito fix. Forget golden arches.
$ 1.99 taco
$ 3.19 burrito
$ 0.85 churro