Casa Latina

So I have been really lagging on my burrito consumption. Living in Berkeley is fully not conducive to successful burrito reviewage as you may have read in the past. When finals ended I went and drank beer in the forest during the daytime and decided to embark on a mission to Casa Latina on San Pablo which came highly recommended.

Quality of meat (1-10): 5.5
So I didn't like the meat here but almost everyone who recommended Casa Latina to me is a vegetarian, so take that into account. The meat was very chewy and "fresh" tasting, but in a bad way, like sort of stringy and more like beef than asada. Another place with "fresh" tasting meat like this was that place Andalé in SFO. The problem I have with this faux-fresh tasting meat is that it's sort of tasteless. It is meat, but it might as well not be, since it doesn't add the necessary flavor to the burrito. Maybe I just like super greasy burritos, or something?

Quality of house salsa (1-10): 7.3
Okay, to be honest, I don't really remember how good the salsa was since it was a few weeks ago, but the score comes from exactly that. I'm pretty sure it was nothing special. 7.3 is an overapproximation, if anything.

Quality of guacamole (1-10): 8.2
Great job!

Quality of chips: (1-5): ?
We were so incredibly hungry when we arrived at Casa Latina that the chips we got right after ordering tasted like God's toenails. I have no idea how good they actually were. If I ever go back to Casa Latina I'll put a real number score. I guess it's not like chips will sway your decision to go there one way or the other, mm?

Size/diversity of menu: 4.4
Well, I am pretty sure the menu was really general and standard, but this is where it's worth mentioning that Casa Latina has supposedly great flan and all sorts of Mexican pastries. It's actually more of a bakery than it is a taqueria. If you find yourself down on San Pablo near Hearst you might just want to go in for some pastries because they are super good.

Size of burrito: 3.6
Coming back to blogging, this is maybe the hardest part, because I can't remember how big my previous burritos ACTUALLY were, and my stomach is smaller since I don't eat as many burritos. This is my best guess.

Approximate price (for a standard burrito) : ~$9

Locally owned?: Yes

Satisfaction factor (1-10) : 7.7
This is based on the circumstance, really. We were HUNGRY.

Overall taste (1-10) : 6.0
I wouldn't go back here. If you're veg it's worth checking out, I guess, but you might just want to trek up University and go to Monte Cristo. If anyone knows where in Berkeley or even Oakland where I can get a burrito better than a Taqueria Monte Cristo burrito, please let me know!!

Casa Latina
1805 San Pablo Ave
Berkeley, CA 94702