La Choza Burritos
Nowadays, all the kids love talking about how great Chipotle is, but let me tell you that Chipotle will never come close to holding a candle to the one and only La Choza Burritos on Martha's Vineyard.
I love La Choza with all my heart. They opened when I was a junior in high school and was the only food establishment my friends and I could afford to eat at on a regular basis, and the only place open past like 7pm in the winter. I have so many awesome La Choza related memories. A favorite is when a friend of mine ate two full burritos (these burritos are no joke the size of a small child) and went to run a track meet. He booted during the 2-miler, but he still won like a total legend. Needless to say, La Choza was a prime food joint for broke, reckless, teenagers. #YoungDumbandBroke
La Choza isn't only important to me because of all of my late night memories of getting burritos with my friends in my distant youth, but also because those burritos are unclockably great. You start out by deciding if you want a burrito bowl, or a traditional burrito, then every burrito includes delicious Mexican rice and perfectly cooked black beans (unless you don't want any of that yummy goodness). From there you can upgrade with a variety of meat/vegetarian options (beef, chicken, portabella, etc.) and then add as many individual toppings as you desire. Even the most loaded burritos I've ever gotten have never cost me more than $10.00.
When I worked a block down from La Choza a few summers ago, I would gleefully eat lunch there at least three times a week. While they began to recognize my regular orders, there are so many options on the menu that you can customize your burrito to be a completely different experience every time you go in. From hot sauces to veggies to more untraditional options, La Choza has plentiful burrito ingredients for the whole family! Even if burritos aren't your thing, they also serve chili and a couple of other new Mexican inspired menu items.
I think it can also be justified that burritos can be a healthy meal! When eating there regularly, my go-to order would be a burrito bowl with rice & beans, diced tomatoes, jalepeños, and cheese. That honestly might as well be a salad. I've actually probably had less healthy salads than a La Choza burrito and they probably cost me way more money.
When I first visited a Chipotle, I expected to be blown out of the water. Upon biting into my burrito, however, I could only find myself thinking "is there cilantro in this?" La Choza provides incredible quality fresh ingredients, unmatchable customizability, and is ultra friendly on the wallet. I've never been disappointed by a La Choza burrito—they can always be counted on to fill me up and improve my day.
At the end of the day, La Choza is all about the experience. The people that work there are super cool, the closet from which they serve top notch Mexican cuisine is decorated with all kinds of cool posters and old license plates, and the entire venue just has a terrific sense of humor and community about it. If you want a burrito that'll make all other burritos pale tragically in comparison, hit up La Choza on your next trip to Martha's Vineyard.