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The Definitive Ranking
Ranked by locals. #1 is a California burrito from a National City taco shop and no, it's not close. Prices, neighborhoods, what to order.
Last updated
What is a California burrito and where do you get one? A California burrito is carne asada, french fries, cheese and guacamole in a flour tortilla, and it was invented in San Diego. The best versions come from 24-hour taco shops rather than sit-down restaurants.
Source: Sandi Spots — Last updated
The Winner
Carne asada, fresh-cut fries, cheese, guac, pico. $10–12. Every location. Answer settled.
The California burrito — carne asada, fresh-cut fries, cheese, guac, pico — was invented in San Diego, and Lolita's is where the platonic ideal lives. Crispy fries, well-seasoned asada, no fillers. This is the answer to 'best San Diego burrito' from 90% of locals born here.
Local tip: Get it 'wet' with red sauce and add sour cream. Cash gets you out faster.
The best premium burrito in the city — lobster, carne asada, cheese, guac, rice. Been on national 'best burrito' lists for a decade. Tiny walk-up window with a line every weekend.
The surf-shop California burrito — enormous, cheap, open until 2 AM. Widely considered the tie-breaker with Lolita's; Point Loma locals will fight you on it.
Local tip: Add machaca if you're hungover. Drive-thru moves fast.
South Bay's answer. Adobada (marinated pork off a trompo) is what to order — sweeter and more complex than most al pastor in the county.
The other South Bay contender. Slightly juicier asada, softer fries. Half the price of Instagram-hyped taquerias uptown.
The move: order a California burrito but sub adobada for asada. Sweet-spicy pork + fries + cheese + guac. A stealth top-5 answer among food obsessives.
The chain that spawned every 'Berto's' (Alberto's, Aliberto's, Filiberto's). Machaca — shredded beef with eggs, peppers, onions — is the OG SD breakfast burrito.
Since 1933. Handmade tortillas, chorizo, beans — nothing else. Cash only, closes at 3 PM, closed Sunday. A San Diego institution.
The birria burrito done right — stewed beef, consommé for dipping, quesadilla-style crispy edges. Line out the door on weekends.
24-hour SD taco shop staple. Not the flashy one, just consistently good asada. The 3 AM answer for a whole generation.
Tijuana-style adobada off a trompo. Tourist-heavy but the meat is legit. Best for a coastal weekend lunch.
North County's best burrito — shrimp, fish, or lobster options with tropical salsa. Post-surf staple in Cardiff/Enc.
The best fish burrito in the county — actual grilled swordfish or wahoo, not fried, over rice and cabbage. Not cheap; worth it.
Diner-style breakfast burrito with hash browns inside. 24 hours. A drinking-town institution since 1949.
Baja-style smoked-fish burrito with chipotle crema and pickled onion. The one non-asada answer you'll get from serious eaters.
A real San Diego burrito is a California burrito: carne asada, French fries, cheese, guacamole, pico. Rice and beans do NOT belong.
Order at the taco shop, don't sit down. Real ones don't have table service.
Cash speeds up your order at every OG spot on this list.
Ask for it 'wet' if you want red sauce on top — it's a real move at Lolita's, Nico's, Roberto's.
Adobada beats al pastor 9 times out of 10 in San Diego; the trompos are better here.
Breakfast burrito ≠ California burrito. Breakfast = eggs, potato, machaca/chorizo/bacon.
Weekend line at El Zarape or Salud! is 20–30 min. Go Tuesday lunch.
Lolita's Taco Shop California burrito. Invented-here dish executed as well as anywhere in the city, at every location, for around $10. Nico's in Point Loma is the credible #2 and the answer if you ask a Point Loma local.
A San Diego invention: carne asada, French fries, cheese, guacamole, and pico de gallo wrapped in a flour tortilla. No rice, no beans. Created in San Diego in the 1980s (attributed to Roberto's or Fresh MXN Foods depending on who you ask) and now the city's signature dish.
In San Diego in the mid-1980s. Roberto's Taco Shop is the most commonly credited originator, though the exact origin is debated. What isn't debated: it's a San Diego dish, not an LA or Bay Area one.
Nico's in Point Loma (open until 2 AM), Rigoberto's (24-hour multiple locations), Rudford's in North Park (24-hour diner burrito). All three deliver a real burrito at 2 AM.
Roberto's machaca burrito, Rudford's diner-style with hash browns, and Cotixan's chorizo & egg. Add Kono's in Pacific Beach for the ocean-view version.
Vallarta Express in Encinitas for a surf burrito, Cotixan Miramar for a California, and Taco Stand La Jolla if you're on the coast.
El Pescador Fish Market in La Jolla for grilled fish. Oscar's Mexican Seafood for Baja-style smoked fish. Both are top-tier and completely different styles.
Not in San Diego it isn't.
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Written and fact-checked by the Sandi Spots Editorial team — San Diego residents publishing under Sleep Coast LLC. Every place we recommend has been visited in person or verified against an official source, and no business can pay for inclusion or a higher ranking. Last updated .