85 taquerias in 10 weeks. (Pause.) Unbelieveable!

We bow before San Francisco Chronicle writer Bill Addison, who completed this incredible personal odyssey in search of the Bay Area's best burrito.

His description of dining at El Farolito, La Taqueria and La Cumbre in the Mission District brings back fond memories for me (I had my first super burrito at La Cumbre in 1985.) I also note that Cactus Taqueria on College Avenue, where I had the ecstatic chile verde burrito experience, made his top 20 list, as did Cancun on Allston Way in Berkeley, which is a favorite I haven't visited recently. He did a good job of establishing his benchmarks for burrito excellence (including proper heating of both the tortilla and the fillings, freshness of ingredients, texture of the beans and rice, and a proper amount of saltiness). And I'm curious now about some of the specialty burritos he mentions, like the plantain one available at Cuco's in the lower Haight.

My biggest complaint about his research is that he only seems to have made it to two taquerias in the Fruitvale District, Taqueria Otaez and El Farolito, neither of which made his cut. (In comparison, he visited six taquerias in Berkeley.) He also didn't make it over the hill into Concord, Pittsburg or Martinez at all, and his North Bay selection was heavily weighted toward Marin, probably reflecting his paper's circulation.

But, holy crap: 85 taquerias, ordering at least one burrito and taco in each, and often more. Dude! You are amazing!