Why the Mission-Style Burrito Defines the Bay Area

KQED's Forum

KQED

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.6 • 656 Ratings

🗓️ 30 May 2025

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

New York has the pizza slice, Philly has its cheesesteak, and Chicago its hot dog. In the Bay Area, our iconic and passionately argued-over staple has long been the Mission-style burrito. Its origins are obscure, but one thing agreed on is that those enormous, foil-wrapped burritos are a culinary anchor that were perfected in San Francisco decades ago. But, just because it’s a classic doesn’t mean Bay Area burritos haven’t evolved or are not pushing into new frontiers. We’ll talk about the legacy of Mission-style burritos and the people putting a new spin on them. And we want to hear from you: What is your burrito spot and what do you order? Guests: Cesar Hernandez, associate restaurant critic, The San Francisco Chronicle Dominica Rice-Cisneros, chef and owner, Bombera - Mexican restaurant in Oakland Ricardo Lopez, owner, La Vaca Birria - Mexican restaurant in San Francisco's Mission District Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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1:20.4	New York has the pizza slice, Philly has its cheese steak, and Chicago, the hot dog.
1:27.4	In the Bay Area, our iconic street food has long Chicago the hot dog.
1:27.6	In the Bay Area, our iconic street food has long been the Mission-style burrito.
1:33.1	Its origins are obscure, but for decades, these enormous cylinders of food have been a
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