On Fourth St. between Garden and Park is a Mexican takeout and delivery place that’s perfect for the college crowd. With a larger menu than Chipotle and Qdoba, a bit more of an authentic experience can be had for a lesser price than Charrito’s. Hoboken Burrito is the type of place I imagine every college town to have.
With the temperature a tad brisk, I decided to try out this “Cali-Mex” joint’s delivery service. Being the college student that I am, I got the craving for Mexican at an ungodly hour of the morning. Even though they weren’t open, I was able to use Delivery.com to schedule my delivery to arrive the next day between classes.
Leading up to the time of expected arrival, I was slightly nervous. I had used a third party delivery site to request food from a tiny little place that, from the outside, looks as though their computers might still be running Windows 98, if they even have a computer at all. However, no worries, because 10 minutes before my requested delivery time my food arrived without an issue.
I chose to order some of their most popular items on the lunch menu according to Delivery.com which included a steak burrito, chicken tacos lunch, guacamole and chips, and the Cali bowl with beef. I would definitely recommend ordering lunch, as their specials offer some pretty nice deals. The burrito was quite large, comparable to the size of a Charrito’s burrito. The steak was juicy and tender, and there was a good amount in every bite which mixed with the rice, black beans, and cheese. It hit the spot.
Next up, the soft chicken tacos. Though they are traditionally served on corn tortillas, these were on flour tortillas— their only downfall. The shredded chicken had good flavor and wasn’t dry at all as can be the general tendency. The lettuce and salsa fresca tasted and looked very fresh. The lunch plate comes with two tacos which are sized more like mini burritos, that is to say larger than your average taco.
The Cali bowl was also a nice size and included a choice of ground beef or shredded chicken, rice, black beans, cheese, and sour cream all for $5. The ground beef was moist and flavorful with a good amount of spice while not being spicy. I’m more partial to the shredded chicken, so the next time I order (yes, there will most likely be a next time) I will probably get the bowl with the shredded chicken.
Each of the meals came with a container of salsa which had some bold heat while still helping to develop the flavor of any of the entrees it topped.
My favorite part of the meal though, was the guac. Not only was the portion a hearty size, but this guac was so smooth and creamy with just the right splash of lime in the aftertaste that I was putting dollops of this avocado dream on everything.
Now, please don’t get me wrong: this is not a five star restaurant, nor is the chef worthy of a James Beard Award. What this restaurant has that sets it apart from most of the other places in Hoboken is the knowledge of what it is and what it is not. Sure they use fresh ingredients, but they don’t tout that fact in an effort to attract the locally-sourced, all-natural bandwagon crowd. They are just a small Cali-Mex joint keeping it simple.
