Is this the third or fourth time this week? I’ve lost count. What I’ve dedicated the last four … five? … days to consuming is a dense group of stew-like dishes wrapped delicately into hand-made, fresh-pressed flour tortillas. These dishes aren’t pretty or even well-organized. They’re messy affairs, dripping with fluids, moistening hands and mouth. Beneath their delicate wrappers, though, lie dense black holes of compounded flavor. I’ve tasted every single thing on Burritos Guisos de el Canelo’s menu. (It’s pretty easy, since there are only 12 items.) Every single one is beautiful in its own right.
Take the rajas, a crema, green pepper, and corn concoction that tastes like a more mature creamed corn. Or the pollo, wood-grilled chicken with an intense chipotle sauce capable of weakening the knees. The chilorio (my fave) is a pork and potatoes dish delivering hearty satisfaction without weighing you down. And, of course, Burritos Guisos serves birria, the super-trendy tomato and beef dish that no one’s been able to get enough of lately.
Have you noticed the rise in foods like birria during our continuing pandemic? It feels like a collective yearning to feel comforted, safe, cared for. Where a burger or a pizza might satisfy some animalistic craving, and fine dining may intrigue a more analytical palate, the food served at Burritos Guisos de el Canelo dives deeper. This is true soul food.