The Best Burritos in Los Angeles

Described by Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic Jonathan Gold as "one of the greatest of the Eastside’s classic burrito palaces," Al & Bea's is a Boyle Heights institution that dates to Nov. 15, 1966, when Albert Carreon and wife Beatrice opened their casual open-air stand. The brown building features brick, painted concrete and green umbrellas to shield diners from the sun. Order at the window from a wall-mounted menu. Simple, effective burrito options include a steaming tortilla filled with oozing refried pinto beans, molten yellow cheddar and green chile for kick.

In his LA Times review of Burritos La Palma, the late Jonathan Gold described the Birria Burrito as "captivating" and months later named it one of the five best burritos in LA. A spotlight in the burrito episode of Netflix's Taco Chronicles (Season 2) re-ignited the fervor for Burritos La Palma.

The Zacatecan-style birria burrito is elegant in its simplicity - spicy shredded beef is wrapped in a handmade, buttery flour tortilla and crisped to a golden brown. That's it. The compact burritos are smaller than the behemoths typically served around town, so two or three is a typical order. You can ask for the burrito "con todo," which adds refried beans and cheese. The Platillo Especial features two Birria Burritos covered in green chile pork sauce and cheese, served with refried beans, lettuce and tomato on the side.

Renowned for the chorizos and meats he supplies to restaurants across SoCal, fourth generation chorizo maker Humberto Raygoza - aka The Chori-Man - opened his brick and mortar San Pedro shop in 2017. Made with quality ingredients - no fillers, no nitrates - Raygoza's famed chorizos are sold raw and frozen in one-pound packs: Zacatecano Red Chorizo, Tolucan Green Chorizo, Argentinian Chorizo and Maple Habanero Chorizo. There's also Chipotle Braised Beef, which is cooked and ready to eat.

Select a meat (or the vegan Zacatecano Red Soyrizo) for The Chori-Man Breakfast Burrito with diced russet potatoes, two fried eggs and cheese in a flour tortilla. Other burrito options include the Chori-Bean & Cheese (Mayocoba beans simmered in chorizo spices) and the Chile Relleno with Tolucan Green Chorizo, Chori-Beans and crema.

Opened in 2014, the Dodgers-themed Cofax Coffee shows off its LA pride with a Dodger blue awning and bobbleheads galore. Start your day with the breakfast of champions - a Chorizo Burrito with smoked chorizo hash, potatoes, bell peppers, onions, scrambled egg, jack cheese, pico de gallo and crushed tortilla chips. House-made salsas are served on the side: tangy salsa verde with smoked tomatillos, garlic and charred Serrano chiles; and punchier salsa rojo with pan-fried chile de arbol, garlic and charred tomatoes. Cofax also offers Veggie, Bacon, Pastrami and Bludso's Hot Link versions, but the OG Chorizo Burrito is still the one to beat.

A sequel opened in Culver City in September 2023, featuring the six signature burritos along with six-packs of frozen burritos to-go.

The Burbank, Del Rey and Glendale locations of this LA-based coffee chain feature a standout Brisket Burrito for breakfast. Fatty brisket is braised for 12 hours before its griddled a la plancha, forming a contrasting outer crust. Two sunny eggs, avocado, cheddar and pico de gallo join the meat in a flour tortilla. The Angeleno Burrito is made with two scrambled eggs, bacon, guacamole, micro cilantro, tater tots, habanero hot sauce and grilled cheddar. A veg-friendly burrito includes two sunny eggs, fried potatoes, pico de gallo, avocado and cheddar.

This East LA institution near the intersection of Cesar Chavez Avenue and the 710 freeway dates to 1945. Candy Villa and husband Juan, who hail from Michoacán, took over in 2010 and daughter Cynthia is now involved. The dining room is notable for its mural of an Aztec woman holding a basket of maize, with a pyramid in the background. House-made tortillas are key components in the prepared items they serve, including delectable quesadillas and burritos.

Their signature burrito, La Azteca centers on a cheese-filled chile relleno with grilled tomato, refried beans, onions and cilantro in a sturdy, griddled flour tortilla. For an extra $2, you can level up with a protein like carne asada, al pastor or grilled chicken.

Lucky Boy debuted in 1961 and now has two locations in Pasadena. The Arroyo Parkway outpost features a brown structure, elevated patio with tan tables and benches, dining room with aqua and purple striped booths, and back patio with green umbrellas. There's a sprawling wall-mounted menu, but most people are there for the Famous Breakfast Burrito, which is served all day and comes with a choice of meat, egg, potatoes and cheddar in a smoky grilled flour tortilla. Ingredients from the entire menu are available to customize the massive burrito.

The late Adeline "Tuchie" Portillo opened her beloved burrito stand in 1972, and Lupe’s Burritos has remained family-owned and operated ever since. Located a short walk from the Maravilla station of the Metro E Line, the open-air East LA destination features speckled Formica order/pick-up counters and bright red covered picnic tables in back.

The menu touts 20 burrito options - to start, there's a deluxe Bean & Cheese with larded refried beans and molten yellow cheese. But even better is the Red & Beef, featuring tender beef chunks slathered with a fierce red salsa. There's also a relatively mild Green & Beef, fiery Chicharron, and the California Burrito with steak, beans, cheese, fries, guac and sour cream.

Barbara J. "Sky" Burrell’s Mid-City restaurant dates to 1992 and features “Mexican food with a splash of soul.” Her space touts colorful neon signage, a dining room with salmon-hued walls and a portrait of Sky’s father, jazz bassist Charlie Burrell. Sky’s Gourmet Tacos is locally famous for well-spiced Mexican food. In Burrell’s world, a taco, quesadilla and burrito are variations on the same thing: tortillas with choice of topping, shredded iceberg lettuce and cheddar, sour cream, tomato and cilantro and "Sassy Sauce." Available open-faced or wrapped, the Super Shrimp Burrito has double the shrimp, which all luxuriate in that sassy sauce of chiles, cumin, garlic and oregano. The flavorful, aromatic sauce coats the burrito’s core ingredient, the flour tortillas, and even comes on the side if you like.

Sonoratown was a hit from the moment Teodoro Diaz-Rodriguez, Jr. and Jennifer Feltham opened their Fashion District taco counter in 2016. Inspired by the small border town in Mexico where Teo grew up and Downtown LA itself, Sonoratown became wildly popular for its carne asada, which was featured in Season 1 of Netflix's Taco Chronicles. In May 2022, Teo and Jen opened a second location in Mid-City (5610 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles 90019).

The tacos and caramelos rightfully get plenty of love, but the Burrito 2.0 is a must - made with a choice of costilla (grilled steak), pollo (chicken), tripa (beef intestine), cabeza (beef head), poblano chile or Sonoran-style chorizo (pork sausage) from The Chori-Man; chunky guacamole, Monterey Jack cheese, pinto beans and spicy chiltepin salsa wrapped in a housemade flour tortilla.