The Burrito Digest

Friday, May 06, 2005

El Amigo



El Amigo
312 W. Lincoln Highway (Route 30)
Schererville, IN 46375 MAP
(219) 865-3022
Hours:
N/A

May 6th, 2005. 6:45 p.m.

I’ve been going to El Amigo since 1993 or so and have always enjoyed their food. My dad even won $100 from the pop-top of a bottle of grapefruit flavored Jarritos there. This restaurant also gave me the idea of the Burrito Digest and has what I considered a benchmark steak burrito. So it was with great anticipation that I visited “The Friend” with my wife on a Friday night to review one of their steak burritos.

El Amigo’s chips and salsa are always very good. However, their pico de gallo can sometimes be overly hot with too much jalapeno in it. It was fairly hot but not unbearable on this night. My wife ordered a side of guacamole and it proved to be on the spicy side for her, but I found it very good.

Our food arrived and I noticed the burrito looked a little smaller than I had remembered it. Measurements validated my initial thoughts although I knew I would still be stuffed at the end of the meal.

The burrito had a very good steak flavor as always and had a good mix of beans, cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Unfortunately I ran into the scourge of the steak burrito…gristle. Three pieces to be exact, one large enough to spit out. What the heck was happening? My benchmark burrito was no more.

We later ran out of water and chips for the guacamole and had to flag down someone to get more. That wasn’t that big of a deal considering it was a busy Friday night.

El Amigo has other locations in Portage at 3380 Willowcreek Road and in Valparaiso at 3022 West Calumet Avenue.

I’ll continue to visit El Amigo albeit with the knowledge that there are better burritos out there, and someday I’ll find The One.



Weight: 13.1 ounces
Length: Just under 7 inches
Circumference: 9 inches
Price: $3.50 or 26.7¢ an ounce
Beer availability: No

Flavor: 7.5/10 sombreros
Value: 8.5/10 sombreros

posted by John at 6:45 PM

5 Comments:

  • El Amigo is the single greatest Mexican restaurant I have ever eaten at, here, or in any other part of the country. I fell in love with it over ten years ago because of the burrito. The fact that you could get such a huge and delicious burrito for only $3 was mind boggling. They're not $3 anymore, though. I have eaten almost everything on their menu, and it's all good. Since I originally found it, I have been a very regular customer, and they are of course, very high priority on my speed dial. When a bunch of my co workers were in town from all different parts of the country, I had them all try El Amigo, and they all agreed with me. Best ever. My quest has been to find a better burrito than El Amigo. It has never happened. There have been a few that come close, but none have even matched. I highly reccomend the milanesa burrito. It's breaded steak, and even better than the regular steak. Also, the quality of the food does depend on the staff. You want to look for Fred, a large built (not fat) Mexican guy with a mustache and a low buttoned shirt with plenty of chest hair popping out. When he's there, the food's always great.

    Now as for the Cedar Lake location... I simply don't get how a restaurant that's so great in one town, while owned and operated by the same people, can be so disgusting in a town a few miles away. I always feel like I've eaten out of a toilet when I go to the one in Cedar-tucky. The Valpo one is pretty good, but my heart's in Schererville.

    By Blogger Awesome Jim, at 12:00 AM  

  • Went for the first time this week.What a value! A steak burrito out the door for $4.11! Not the best I agree and I found 2 pieces of gristle.I found it to be big enough and will be back for the bargain.
    11-4-10

    By Anonymous Dave Brickman, at 6:26 PM  

  • We go here 2-3 times a month for takeout, but lately the quality has been pretty bad. Our order has been wrong for the last 4 visits and needed to be corrected, and I'm starting to wonder why I even bother trying again. Last time I ordered a steak burrito with everything plus avocado. I got one of their "burrito swiss" instead, no avocado. They've omitted parts of the order, too, and calling back to complain doesn't seem to do any good. What a shame, because when they're good they're the best I can get around here.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 4:17 PM  

  • Would have to claim that with this particular burrito, "The Mighty Have Fallen". Once my benchmark as well to some of the best Mexican food I have ever found, El Amigo has made their peace with mediocrity as their popularity has widely grown around the tri-town area (Schererville, St. John, Dyer). They are aware that they have built a loyal fanbase that will regularly visit despite their lack of interest in producing the best product around. Having Freddy there is going to help your chances of a better burrito/meal, but this is not "The Friend" from yesteryear we who were all there at the beginning remember.

    By far the best pico in the area, and worthy of a large order to pick up and serve with tortilla chips at a get together.

    If you can order your food away from a busy time of their night (dinner rush or late night bar crowd spillover) chances go up for a good burrito!

    I just came across this blog and intend to spread the word as I know of many more enthusiasts that will think, "Why didn't I start this thing!" Happy hunting all for the 10!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 11:10 AM  

  • El Amigo is a great place to eat at for dine-in or carry-out. The succulent steak burrito.The best burrito by far, that I have ever tasted at El Amigo. The service is great but as said you get there early enough and you get a great burrito.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:45 AM  

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