One of the staples in San Antonio is the taco. We eat them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Tacos can be found in mobile food trucks, hole-in-the-walls, lobbies of where we work, and high class restaurants.
But to paraphrase the Bard, would a taco by any other name taste as sweet?
Recently there was a discussion at my workplace about the difference between a taco and a burrito. This launched a huge discussion between the nuances of each item.
I have experienced this conundrum firsthand. Growing up on the South Plains, I always referred to the breakfast meal of eggs, bacon, and cheese in a tortilla as a “breakfast burrito.” Coming to San Antonio, many of my coworkers kept asking me if I would like a bean and egg “breakfast taco.” I kept declining because I could not understand why anyone would want a crispy taco shell with beans and eggs first thing in the morning.
It took several months before I realized that breakfast tacos in San Antonio did not come in a crispy shell but rather a soft tortilla. After becoming enlightened to this fact, I have happily ordered breakfast tacos ever since.
Be sure to read The Great Taco Debate on SA Flavor for my own breakfast taco story.
This led me to develop what I refer to as the I-20 Taco Theory. Interstate 20 more or less cuts Texas right in the middle as the road travels East to West passing through DFW and Midland before swooping down South to El Paso. People who live either side of this line have drastically different views on tacos.
San Antonians and people who live South of I-20 cannot imagine calling the tortilla wrapped treat anything other than a taco. To them, a burrito is anything that comes in a larger tortilla, a la Freebirds. By default, anything purchased in the morning is in a normal sized tortilla so they logically refer to it as a taco. If they want a hard shelled taco, they will always specifically ask for a “crispy taco.”
The contingent who lives North of I-20 referred to the morning item as a breakfast burrito. This group feels that by default the word taco implies a crispy shell. Folks North of the line refer to anything in a tortilla as a burrito although there are some factions who deviate and call the smaller tortilla item a soft taco.
Tacos or Burritos? Weigh in with you thoughts on the comments below!
You then have the people who live right on the line who are confused on whether to call an item a burrito or taco. There are tons of places in the DFW Metroplex that serve tacos and an equal amount that serve burritos. These Texans have adapted and just call it by the name that is at the restaurant. The only exception might be in El Paso where it seems that it more often than not referred to as a taco.
While I am not advocating for either the use of the word “taco” or “burrito,” it is my hope that this article can at least provide some insight to those travelling to Texas or within Texas to understand what the heck they should ask for depending on what city they are visiting.
Being in San Antonio for the past six years, I have adopted “breakfast taco” into my vernacular. However, when I use this term while visiting my parents I often get funny looks and quickly say, “I mean, I’d love a bacon and egg breakfast burrito.”
What are your thoughts on the differences between tacos and burritos? Do you agree with the I-20 Taco Theory? Let me know in the comments!
I currently live in Denton Tejas just up a bit north from Dallas but I was raised and born in South Tejas. Denton Tejas is above Interstate 20 line. I have had no trouble with people around here understanding the difference between tacos and burritos. No trouble so far and I have been here 6 years. Breakfast tacos and burritos up here mean the same thing as they do in McAllen or Corpus Christi for the most part. Hard taco shells tacos formats are called "chingaderas" I don't consider them real tacos. I didnt know there was much of an issue between understanding the difference between tacos and burritos until I read this article certainly not from living above I-20 .
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