Something to keep in mind here: I’m focusing on the quick takeout variety of burritos, not sit-down restaurant ones.

As far as I’m concerned Chipotle is the be-all-end-all of burritos. Unfortunately, the closest one to Charleston is three hours away in Charlotte. This means that many of you may never have had the joy of experiencing one of their massive creations. So the below list is really just the best of what Charleston has to offer.

Alright, rankings:

1. Barberitos (pictured) - 1739 Maybank Hwy (in the Piggly Wiggly shopping center)- James Island: As close to Chipotle as you can find in the Lowcountry. Barberitos makes huge burritos that will satisfy you no matter how hungry you are. If you’re a girl, one of these will probably get you through two or three meals. You start with one of three types of wraps to choose from (Spinach, Chipotle, or traditional white) and either steak or chicken for meat (you can also get tofu, but I have no idea why anyone would ever want to do that). For $5.99, you get meat, rice, beans, cheese, salsa, lettuce, guacamole, and whatever other extra veggies you would like from basics like olives, onion, and mushrooms to fresh jalapenos and parsley (you can subtract .50 if you don’t want guacamole, or add .50 if you want sour cream). Their steak and chicken are good quality and I’ve never had either overdone. It’s a good value, giving you about 50% more food than Moe’s for the same amount of money and tasting better by far. If you live downtown, it’s well worth the trip over to JI for a quick dinner.
2. Qdoba Mexican Grill - 4930 Centre Pointe Drive (near Tanger Outlets) - North Charleston: A huge chain, like Chipotle, that surprisingly does a pretty good job. They have a lot of pretty interesting “Signature Burritos” like the Poblano Pesto Burrito and Ancho Chile BBQ Burrito. Their cilantro-lime rice is great and everybody loves their queso. Price wise it will run you about the same as Barberitos, but you don’t get quite as much for your money and some of the extras will cost you. This is the problem with big chains, they nickel and dime you to death. If you’re out at the outlets and looking for lunch I’d definitely stop here over most of the other quick places in the area, but it’s probably not worth a trip from downtown by itself.
3. La Cocina - 2013 Folly Road - Folly Beach / James Island: A tiny little place off on the right as you’re heading down toward Folly that makes a pretty quality burrito. Their motto is “Roll’em Big” but I wasn’t particularly impressed by the size. That point aside, anybody who knows me well knows that I generally give non-chain places an edge over big corporate franchises, and La Cocina is the antithesis of a big chain. The chicken burrito I had was pretty good and reasonably priced (just a bit more than the first two), and if I was hungry on my way to or from the beach I’d probably stop back in again (especially given the overpriced alternatives for food the closer you get to the beach). It really seemed like beach goers were their target audience as well, a place for locals who hang out on Folly all day to come get something to eat and a beer after the sun starts to go down.
4. Yo Burrito - Wentworth/St.Philip - Downtown: Yo Burrito is much less of a burrito focused place than Barberito’s or Qdoba, operating mainly as a bar. The steak burrito I had there was good, but the smallest of the ones mentioned so far and the most expensive. If you’re downtown without a car and desperate for Mexican it’s not bad (and certainly better than what you’ll find at La Hacienda), but if you’ve got other options then you should probably take advantage of them.
5. Taco Bell - Spring St. / Folly Rd. - Downtown / JI: The only reason I mention T-Bell is for the Steak Grilled Stuft burrito, for $2.99 you can’t beat the price. Sure it’s probably not the best quality ingredients, but if you’re considering Taco Bell, you’re probably not also considering McCrady’s. It also tastes pretty damn good, and you can put the money you save on dinner that night toward getting something better the next day.
6. Moe’s - King/Calhoun - Downtown: Moe’s is pretty much the definition of mediocre. About the same amount of food as Yo Burrito, for a slightly smaller price tag. I’m not a big fan of their rice and I’ve had extra chewy meat on a few occasions. The one exception for when I would recommend going there would be Mondays if you are strapped for cash, because you can get any burrito and a drink for $5.

Ok, that’s it for now, I’ll probably do the Greek burrito equivalent tomorrow.

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