User Review
Taqueria Pancho Villa (16th St) (San Francisco, CA)
Score: 9.5 / 10 Reviewed by: spidra
The best burrito I've ever had. I've tried "Best of the Bay" winner La Cumbre and they sucked. Cancun? S'okay. Castillito? They frickin' use pre-sliced cheese as the cheese on their burritos, man! But this is what a burrito should be and the only way Pancho Villa could be better would be if they had so many outlets that supply equaled demand and you never had to wait in line or for a seat.
They have an extensive menu, but I've only ever gotten the Carne Asada Deluxe Burrito (even before they had the "Deluxe", then I just got a regular with cheese), and the Carne Asada Quesadilla Suiza when I'm eating low-glycemic. This place has the freshest ingredients around (they couldn't help but have it given that they get so much business they have to grill their marinated skirt steak every hour or so). The carne asada is marinated in a tasty elixir and then grilled. They were the first taqueria I know of to offer choices between refried pintos, whole pintos, and whole black beans. Other places have now followed suit, so it's a common choice, but Pancho Villa was doing it 20 years ago. Actually, I first visited it 19 years ago, but who's counting? Though other joints have caught up to the choice of beans and choice of salsas Pancho Villa's has long offered, they're still the head of the pack because the quality of the ingredients is superior. Beans seasoned with tasty things, meat likewise.
The service is very good and the staffing levels aren't skimpy. They produce as fast as one possibly could in the space they've got. This location is clean and always has an interesting art exhibit on the walls. Unfortunately, it's very loud but it's getting rarer to find a place to eat that isn't loud.
I'd give Pancho Villa a 10 but every once in a while you'll get some skirt steak that has more gristle or a burrito that falls short of their usual. If they could somehow ensure 100% consistency instead of the 95% they've got going right now, they'd get a 10.
