First the bad news about Taqueria La Tapatia in Guerneville: All those Negra Modelo and Tecate signs in the windows? Ignore them. La Tapatia had its liquor license yanked and it won't be serving beer till December 2005.

I found this out after a Friday-before-a-holiday drive that left me in serious need of some mood-altering beverage. But we were already standing in line, and my blood sugar was on "Don't mess with me unless you want to pull back a bloody stump instead of a hand."

I can report that the burritos, served wet by default, are quite passable. The tortilla chips are real. The salsa bar was excellent, and I would particularly note the La Tapatia special sauce and the avocado salsa, which is kind of a thinned-out, peppered-up guacamole. (The pico de gallo was OK, but not on a par with these.) My Dining Companion had camarones en salsa de ajo, and for once, had little to say until the food was all gone.

Guerneville is a serious resort town, but La Tapatia looks as if it draws its main custom from locals. You will pay a lot less for your food here than just about any place else in town. (I think the shrimp plate set my dining companion back about $9.50, and it was the most expensive thing on the menu.)