When I was young I loved bean and cheese burritos. My mom would take me to the Campos on Wilshire blvd in Santa Monica every Friday after school for a bean and cheese burrito and a coke(I think that location is a Pick up Stix now but back in the 80's that was the OG Campos). I remember one time my mom took me and this kid Joey to Campos for bean and cheese burritos and Joey and I started to eat our burritos in the backseat of the car on the way home. About half way through Joey turned to me and said "these burritos suck" . Being that it was my favorite bean and cheese burrito I tried to convince Joey that we ordered the wrong bean and cheese burritos, that they have better burritos if you ask for them. I think Joey believed me.
After awhile the Campos bean and cheese burritos did start to suck. Maybe they always sucked or maybe they slowing started to suck. Maybe Joey was right.
I think because of those early years eating bean and cheese burritos there's always a part of me looking for a great bean and cheese burrito. It's such a nostalgic food . It's so simple yet so difficult. It has to have enough cheese, the frijoles have taste a certain way , it can't be filled with too many beans or it will all spill out the bottom. If you grew up around Mexican food the first bite of a good bean and cheese burrito should always remind you of when you were a kid. I like the King Taco bean and cheese burrito with the jack cheese, onions, and salsa verde but it says nothing to me about my life.
But the Al and Beas burrito does. After the first bite of the green chile bean and cheese burrito I feel like I did when I would eat bean and cheese burritos as a boy. It does not remind me of any particular burrito it just breaks in to those collective memories of eating bean and cheese burritos when I was young. .Maybe that is what is so comforting about Al and Bea's bean and cheese burrito. It neatly ties those memories together and makes them all real.
The food at Al and Bea's is not true authentic Mexican food but it has authenticity. Order the taquitos, the combination burrito, the red and green chile burritos, sip on your orange bang. This is a Los Angeles burrito, this is comfort food. Lean up against the wall or sit on the tables where loyal customers have been rubbing elbows for five decades and count yourself among them.
Al and Bea's
2025 E 1st St
Los Angeles, CA 90033
(323) 267-8810
Hours:
Mon-Fri. 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
