The Search for Denver's Best Burrito: Bocaza

This is the third installment of this series that I explained fully here.

Denver Burrito #3: Bocaza
1740 E 17th Ave

Boca means mouth. Bocaza means big mouth. If I place were to open up in say, Iowa, called Big Mouth Burritos, I would probably think it a bit lame. But Bocaza as a name works just fine by me.

There is a method to my madness. I started an authentic hole-in-the-wall that allegedly served a California burrito. Then I tried a smothered burrito. One of my strongest recommendations, I've saved for the #4 spot, so I could have a better foundation to judge.

#3 however, is the only mission-style burrito I could find at a semi-authentic place. Not only that, but they offer a fajita burrito with peppers and onions in place of beans. The place itself is not a hole-in-the-wall but also not as pristine as a Qdoba. It's clean, simple. They had one television on Univision playing the Netherlands-Australia highlights. I learned that in Spanish, Netherlands is "Holanda."

In addition to burritos, they offered tortas and other more authentic specialties. But I'm here for the burrito. They offered three kinds of tortillas (I chose the simple flour) and two kinds of rice, spanish and cilantro-lime. I went with cilantro-lime but perhaps spanish would have been better. I debated between barbacoa and carnitas, and was swayed by their menu board that seemed to highlight the barbacoa.

I chose medium salsa (which was green, same as Chipotle) and cheese and sour cream. In short, this is an exact replica of my order at Chipotle. Same size, same shape, same foil wrap.

I had high hopes. My previous two experiences had shown me that authentic places make better meat than Chipotle. So if I found a place that serves the same ingredients, but they can make them better, than this would trump Chipotle, no?

Well. As it turns out, the barbacoa was not up the standards of the previous two Denver burritos. Nor was it as good as Chipotle's. It was a little bland. Likewise, the peppers and onions weren't as good. They weren't cooked as much, which did give them a good crunch, but they didn't have hardly any flavor. The rice was about as good, but still maybe lacking a bit in flavor.

I swear I saw her put sour cream in the burrito, and yet it seemingly disappeared into the ether. Or more realistically, into the rice.

The one thing that Bocaza's burrito did better than Chipotle's was the tortilla.

This is a fantastic tortilla. It wasn't too thick yet still held together. It was soft yet had a bit of delicious crunch to it. Probably the best tortilla I've had anywhere.

I would be interested in going back some time, trying the spanish rice and something other than the barbacoa.

So now we get to ratings. I know it wasn't as good as Chipotle. I think it's proabably on the same level as yesterday's, just a completely different style.

Chipotle 8.5
Bocaza 7.5
El Tepehaun 7.5
Tacos Rapidos 7