On the Richmond Burrito Trail: Masa Tamales & Taqueria
Masa Tamales & Taqueria has a Point Richmond location and another on San Pablo Avenue that is also in the City of Pride and Purpose.
We received several requests to visit Masa and chose the San Pablo Avenue location with a drive-thru. They call it Masa Tamales & Taqueria El Cerrito (thanks to crazy city boundaries), so you can look at El Cerrito while you eat your tamales and tacos, maybe.
We always take our burritos to go so we can weigh them and cut them open for photographic purposes.
We ordered a pair of burritos, one with carnitas and one with grilled veggies. Masa burritos are Mission Style and come with rice, beans, pico de gallo, guacamole, and sour cream.
The Spanish rice was fluffy, and the beans were refried–perfect! The Carnitas Burrito had a lot of porky goodness. The pork was flavorful and tender and the star of the slab show, but it was missing the crispy bits.
What a welcome departure from last week’s Taco Bell experiment, where we struggled to find the promised chicken and steak. We still don’t think The Bell makes much sense. Gram-for-gram, our Taco Bell meal costs about the same as Masa.
Soren Hemmila
We don’t just eat burritos; we try to be scientific as we contemplate the nummyness of the slabs. Is the burrito filled with quality ingredients that, when combined in the appropriate mix, elevate the tortilla-wrapped meal to another level? Does the cheese melt into the beans? Does the sour cream meld with the rice? Does it taste good? Are we eating, or are we enjoying an experience? This is how Grandview approaches burrito reporting.
Masa’s Grilled Veggies Burrito is a solid choice for those who don’t eat every moving thing that liveth. The carnivorous-less slab comes with lightly grilled but still crunchy bell peppers, green and red, zucchini, red onion, and carrots. Masa avoids the cold and gummy vegetarian burrito trap of overloaded sour cream and cheese many burrito dealers fall into. When we receive one of those sad slabs, we don’t even write about it.
Both Masa burritos were on the small side. The Grilled Veggie Burrito weighed in at 501 grams, while the Carnitas Burrito did a little better at 544 grams. One member of the Grandview team couldn’t finish, while another finished and was still kind of hungry, but probably couldn’t eat another. The slabs come with delicious chips and salsa for a total price of $27.42.
Fully Automated Luxury Carnitas
Masa’s “El Cerrito” location is housed in a former Jack In the Box restaurant near the El Cerrito Natural Grocery Store. We did feel a little odd ordering burritos through a speaker and weren’t sure how they could make not one but two burritos in the time it took to get to the window. But when we rolled up and paid, our order was ready.
We were not sure we liked removing the face-to-face interactions. We appreciate seeing a skilled burrito artist at work. Anyhow, the burritos were warm by the time we got back to Grandview headquarters.
In addition to the drive-thru, Masa has a covered patio out front with umbrella tables and chairs and a small parking lot.
Let us know where to eat next, and check back next week for another stop on the Richmond Burrito trail.
The Grandview Independent has been embarking on a culinary adventure to explore every taqueria, food truck, and restaurant in Richmond. This initiative, dubbed the “Richmond Burrito Trail,” aims to showcase our city’s diverse and delectable burritos.
Click to become a Grandview Supporter here, or make a one-time donation here. Grandview is an independent, journalist-run publication exclusively covering Richmond, CA. Every cent we make funds reporting from Richmond's neighborhoods. Copyright © 2024 Grandview Independent, all rights reserved.
