Not bad, but still deciding…read more
As an American expat in Amsterdam and a fan of Chipotle-esque, cafeteria-style, foil-wrapped burrito joints, I had high hopes for The Original California Burrito Company. I've been here nearly 3 years and have yet to find a suitable substitute for my burrito love, but this place may have moved into the top position on my "next best thing" list.
I ordered the "Original" burrito, the top item on the menu, but (huge caveat) I prefer my burritos bean free (blasphemy, I know). The burrito was nice and large, the same size that you'd find at a Chipotle in the States. This is an improvement over other burritos I've found here. The wrap was warm and soft, another plus. However, the ingredients, while delicious, were not warm. They were cold, even? This may be because the storefront has no door - it's open to the street, and the cafeteria-style ingredients are then subject to the cold Amsterdam air.
The temperature of the ingredients - which in my case was pico de gallo, cheese, guacamole, grilled chicken, spicy sauce and rice - is my only major complaint. I had mine spicy, which - while not eye watering - was at a healthy level. It was very gooey with cheese and runny with sauce toward the bottom - but nothing I'm not used to with foil-wrapped burritos. The guacamole seemed lumped at one spot in the middle. I would have liked to see it spread around a bit more.
They offer some unique sodas, brand colas, bottled water and Corona. I asked for a Corona but they were out, so I had a soda. Fine, whatever, but a Corona would have been nice. My burrito came with a handful of chips, which was a nice garnish, but nothing more.
The establishment itself is pretty small, even for Amsterdam. There's maybe room for 15 people to sit either at a table or at a stool along the wall, and thankfully the place was relatively empty when I went there at 8:30pm on a Thursday. Take-away might be a good idea. The location is pretty good, in the south Jordaan not far from Dam Square. Staff was nice, and asked me if I enjoyed my burrito after finishing - a nice touch in a region of the world not known for warm customer service :)
Verdict time: I give it 3 stars because while I enjoyed it, the ingredients were cold, but that could easily be remedied and make this a 4. But I'll definitely be returning!