Cancún Taqueria

It is worth noting that there are many taquerias by the name of Taqueria Cancún. I know of one in Berkeley, one in San Francisco, and one in Santa Cruz. Today I went to the one in Berkeley, though I have been to the one in San Francisco and it rules. Entry forthcoming.

Anyway, Cancún is another one of those Berkeley taquerias that has the distinction of being the "best burrito in Berkeley," according to generic student who is convinced he or she knows everything about everything. Let me tell you something. So far, by my experience, and in my own humble opinion, this is the best burrito in Berkeley.

Quality of meat (1-10) : 7.6
The carne asada was flavorful, I suppose, but not enough to stand out. It was definitely above-average, and not standing out means the meat was about on par with the rest of the burrito's contents, which were excellent. I also hear great things about the carnitas here, by the way.

Quality of house salsa (1-10) : 7.5
Cancún Taqueria has no less than fifteen distinct kinds of organic salsa. They limit you to two salsa cups. Can't have people stealing their precious to-be-burrito-juice ingredient. Unfortunately, none of the salsas really stood out to me. I don't think I have tried all of them and some of the salsas I had were even tasty enough and unique enough to recommend (cucumber salsa, pineapple salsa), but their staple salsas (original salsa, avocado salsa, garlic salsa) were let-downs. However, they do give you some very good pico de gallo in your burrito. No more than that.

Quality of guacamole (1-10) : 7.3
The guacamole was good, but not great, and $1 extra. It was somewhat runny, but it did add precisely the right flavor to the burrito. It was probably somewhat fresh, too. I am tempted to inflate the guacamole score because, unlike almost every other burrito I have paid extra for guacamole on, Cancún gives you your damn money's worth. I have never had more guacamole in a burrito than this one, which is a huge plus. The 7.3 reflects the guacamole in quality, not quantity.

Quality of chips (1-5) : 4.3
Chips almost always do not stand out. If you have read my other blog posts, you'll notice that the number associated with chips hovers chastely between 2.5 and 3.5. However, Cancún has excellent chips and they give them to you with your order. And they don't skimp, either. I'm pretty sure the idea is that they're more proud of their salsas than anything, and want you to try as many as you want in the hopes you'll find one you really like...that you can't find anywhere else. Accordingly, bomb chips. In light of recent burrito excursions, I'm tempted to say, "good on you for not charging for chips, Cancún," but they don't deserve recognition for that. The ones that do charge for chips deserve the attention.

Size/diversity of menu (1-5) : 4.1
Taqueria Cancún has a somewhat extensive menu. It's big enough for them to print their menu on pamphlets rather than post it behind the register. The reason Cancún Taqueria scores high in this category is that they have burritos and Mexican dishes I haven't seen anywhere else. They're pricey, (as is everything else, but I'll get to that later), but you aren't going to find nopales or mole anywhere else in the immediate vicinity. I don't know why I haven't thought of doing this sort of thing before: http://www.themenupage.com/cancuntaqueriamenu.html

Size of burrito (1-5) : 3.1
The burrito's pretty average-size. I ate it and felt somewhat full afterwards. I wasn't bursting at the seams or anything. Don't expect a big burrito, but don't expect to be disappointed, either.

Approximate price (for a standard burrito) : $7-9
Yeah, the prices on that webpage up there are wrong. I paid upwards of $8 for mine today.

Locally Owned? (Y/N) : Yes

Satisfaction factor (1-10) : 7.4

Overall taste (1-10) : 7.6

Cancún Taqueria
2134 Allston Way
Berkeley, CA 94704