California Tortilla

California Tortilla is tucked away on a little corner in Arlington on Wilson Boulevard.  I nearly drove right past the restaurant because the sign is hidden behind a large tree.  Once I located California Tortilla, getting there was another story.

Finding parking in Arlington on a Saturday night was an ordeal.  There were no open spaces on the street but luckily I caught someone as they were leaving.  Make sure that you bring quarters to feed the meters.

Since it was my first time going to California Tortilla it took me a while to decide what I wanted.  There is a large selection of specialty burritos so I took my time reading the description for each one to decide which one I wanted.  Burritos are available in small and regular sizes which is different from most burrito joints.  The menu also offers quesadillas, tacos, burrito bowls, salads and fajitas.
Eventually, I decided on the Fajita burrito, which turned out to be a huge mistake.  The “fresh salsa” wrapped inside tasted like it had been sitting out for days.  I was more like a bland tomato mush than a salsa.  The messy salsa turned my burrito into a disaster because it made the tortilla soggy.  The “grilled marinated chicken” did not taste like it had been marinated at all.  Then, to top it all off the poorly tasting burrito was also poorly wrapped and completely fell apart all over my plate.  I was left with a soggy, bland mess of a burrito on my plate.

One thing that makes California Tortilla stand out is the wall of sauces, cleverly named the “wall of flame”, you can choose from to add to your burrito.  Most burrito joints simply offer Tabasco sauce while California Tortilla had a wide selection of 75 hot sauces.

The highlight of my meal was the queso dip that came with my side of chips.  But even the chips were not up to par.

If California Tortilla wants to compete with the more popular burrito joints, it is going to have to improve its burrito making skills.