I’ve already gotten some flak for my declaration that Taco Salads > Burritos. But wait! Before you issue any anti-TS rhetoric, hear me out! I don’t dislike burritos; in fact, I’m trying to learn to like them more. I realize that they and Taco Salads have a number of common ingredients, but the burrito’s physicality is the singular obstacle in my ability to develop a true love for this food.
Nostalgic charm aside, the Taco Salad has a more honest form. How so? It enables the eater to see the ingredients used. For me — and for most of us — presentation is a vital aspect of the enjoyable eating experience. Its ingredients concealed in a paper-pale wrap, further concealed in a shroud of foil, the burrito is not one of the prettier foods available to us.
Consider the Taco Salad: a fluted, gold-brown shell piled high with lettuce (shredded), diced tomatoes, olives, shredded chicken or ground beef (your pick), pickled jalapenos, and a pristine dollop of sour cream. Though the components are much the same as its competitor’s, the Taco Salad offers inherently more interesting plating options (and better formal balance) than the burrito. I should also mention that the Salad’s shell can be broken into small pieces and used to scoop up the salad proper, allowing the eater to prepare more balanced bites. (One of my pet peeves about burritos is that, in many cases, the interior ingredients aren’t evenly dispersed throughout, resulting in hella uneven bites.)
I’m not trying to deny anyone’s burrito love, but give Taco Salads a chance — you’ll thank me someday.
Garky Eats. 
But, what burrito has lettuce and diced tomatoes and pickled jalapenos and olives?? Gurrrrrl, you live in California now!
Now, I’m more of a taco girl myself (two corn tortillas, meat, diced cilantro and onions, and that’s it), but I know SF’s devotion to their eponymous burrito, and I know they don’t share a single one of the components listed in your taco salad!
True, some burritos only share the meat, beans, sour cream, and salsa (as veggies) with the Taco Salad. (I forgot to add that Taco Salads also have beans, didn’t I? Well, it was early and I still haven’t had my coffee!) Many of the burritos here are available with veggies aplenty, but many are also just meat/beans/cheez. Still, I was trying to stress the commonalities between the two foods, rather than continue their apparent rivalry 🙂
Maybe in the interest of neutrality, I’ll switch to tacos. For the time being, of course — nothing can shake my devotion to the Taco Salad!
Also, I should note that I have a solid appreciation for Papalote’s burrito — their Carne Asada is the best(!) AND, Papalote will soon be selling their hot sauce (at locations other than the restaurant). EXCITEMENT!
I just remembered one warmish fall day in 2006 eating taco salad with you at the Blue Wall after, probably, a Friday of teaching in JA. : ) It was during the time when people were scared of spinach because of the e. coli nonsense and the lady asked me if I wanted my crunchy taco salad bowl to be “spinach,” and I cowardly turned her down. Ha!
YES: the Blue Wall. How could I have failed to mention the Blue Wall’s Taco Salads? Their chicken was solid, but I always found it strange that they added canned corn to the salads…
Also: the Blue Wall’s Pho was tasty — I loved the huge bread pieces they used to top the soup.