Machismo Burrito Bar, Norfolk

One of the things Alex and I enjoy about working downtown is that you can walk just about everywhere you need to go. On days we are up for bit a longer lunchtime stroll, we find ourselves heading out to Machismo Burrito Bar, located at 409 W. York Street. This is a stripped down joint with one purpose, getting a burrito in your hand as quickly as possible. No one greets you when you walk in (thank goodness). There are only six tables and 4 window seats inside. The patio, which is essentially in a parking lot, has three more tables and a door that opens the wrong way. So why bother walking out there? I love this place! Definitely makes my list of top 5 lunchtime favorites. The food is consistent. I always get a burrito. I love that they have pork as a meat option. The chips are just OK, so I usually pass, but who needs them? These burritos are big! Lunch is under $10 for a big burrito, adding guacamole and a soda. I am a spice wimp, but for fans of the burn, they boast stocking 100's of Hot Sauces from around the globe. There are plenty of vegetarian and vegan options available too, like vegan cheese and vegan sour cream. My only complaint is that they are a mess to eat. Most of the toppings are sitting in pans with sauces which tend to make the end product watery. DO NOT UNWRAP THE BURRITO! It will fall apart and end up all over your lap, making you the butt of co-worker jokes for the remainder of the day. Other than that...chow down!

Laine


I second Laine's review. I enjoy the walk. It gets us slightly out of downtown and gives us a new 'crew' to people-watch, which is half of the enjoyment of eating out. I always order a 'bowl' at Machismo. You can choose chicken, beef or pork or just go vegetarian. I am not a vegetarian, but I enjoy just the vegetables. I ordered the chicken one time (at band camp). It had a slightly odd taste, so I abandoned that going forward. You can then choose your type of rice (brown or white) and your type of beans (black and some other varieties). I forgo both because guess what, I don't like rice or beans. That is the best part of Machismo. You can customize it down to the type of salsa. For someone who is like Sally from 'When Harry Met Sally', this is super important. I then ask them to LOAD this bowl up with 'my' stuff, corn, sprouts, guacamole, sour cream, mushrooms, peppers, chunky salsa, olives, lettuce and spinach. Sodas are only $1.50 - a deal around this town, where restaurants like to sock it to you with the drink cost (not even an alcohol drink, I'm talking a soda or tea). This is our field trip for the week usually. We tend to go on Fridays and look forward to it. Machismo is the spot-yo. Try it out.
~Alex