z-teca

Truly wretched. Tiny portions, disgusting food, high prices and inexplicably huge lines. My God: even on the veggie bowl, you have to pay extra if you want all three of beans, corn and grilled veggies. Mucho Burrito in brookfield place is not going to win many culinary awards, but it is light-​years better than this disaster. Avoid at all costs.

I came here for lunch because I was craving a burrito bowl and was hoping it would be the same if not better than Chipotle’s version because of the great reviews. The bowl wasn’t the same at all. Smaller portion, ingredients weren’t as fresh and the chicken pieces were not full pieces, it was more like bits and pieces. After my meal I was unsatisfied left feeling still hungry.

Went for a quick lunch with my ex colleague in the Commerce Court location. He ordered a grilled chicken burrito and I got a vegetarian bowl.
A person ahead of us ordered a Shrimp bowl. His bowl was over flowing and mine was not even half full. He paid the same amount as I did.
The quality of the salad was just plain Ok. The salsa had no flavour. Added a hot sauce but it did revive it.
According to my friend the chicken was bland as well.
It was my first and last time.

I am afraid z-​teca doesn’t pass muster on at least three fronts – 1. Flavor – nothing seems spicy, not even the hot sauce (sic), 2. Taste – I can’t wait to finish the meals versus yearning for more at Chipotle, 3. Price – I could eat in at most Mexican restaurants for lesser.
Interestingly, the lines are long– it must be the winter and the paucity of Mexican options nearby. To their credit, the lines move quickly. The burrito bowls, tacos, quesadillas and everything else is a step down from Chipotle. I have not tried the chips, but I suspect it’s not going to be an outlier.
I will be back at z-​teca when I am eating in the Path at Commerce Court. Sometimes you have to value diversity over quality.

Not the best.
Beans seemed to be straight out a can.
Portions for the burrito bowl was so small it couldn’t make me (a 100lb 5’4 woman) full. Plus it was approximately 9 dollars. Chipotle is more worth it. Burrito Boyz is still the best, obviously.

This CIBC Commerce Court eatery is cheap and cheerful. I’ve had the chicken; steak; and beef barbacoa burritos. Personally, I prefer to eat here than at the other fast food joints in the place. However, lunch comes to over $ 10. Final note, whether a burrito or bowl, I still manage to make a mess!

When it comes to downtown food court burritos this place is not too bad. Lots of options: beef, chicken, vegetarian, pork, as well salads. They are a good size, not as big as Chipotle or Burrito Boys but good for lunch.
Arrive early, there will be a line up and it moves slow. It’s nice that they press grill it at the end but I think that adds to the long wait. I usually get a burrito bowl just because it’s faster.

Kind of like Mucho Burrito, with the following exceptions:
1. Worse/​less variety in toppings. No cilantro? No fresh jalapeño? No burrito sauce?
2. Serious topping restrictions require you to put way less on your burrito than you want to. I’ve gotten used to forking out fextra cash for fresh guacamole, but here it’s even the cheap stuff! They’re all like, «Would you like corn OR black beans OR peppers and onions?» And I’m all like, «Escoo-​me? This is a burrito joint, put the WORLD in that foil and then ask if I want more! Newsflash! I DO!»
3. Nothing is spicy. At all.
4. More expensive. A lot more expensive. There is only one size, so if you get meat on your burrito its going to cost you $ 9. What dee.
If you have an extra ten minutes to go to the Mucho Burrito in Brookfield or Freshwest in TD Center, do it.

As far as food court meals go in the PATH, this is about as good as it gets… hence the extra star. Not cheap but certainly not expensive by any stretch. The large burrito is far more than I can eat in one sitting. I was prepared to be very disappointed after reading the reviews here BUT… surprise, surprise my burrito was quite decent. I don’t care for rice in my burrito and that wasn’t a problem. The guacamole was very good, vegetables were better than average, I like the whole wheat tortilla option, etc. This is by far the best «food court» meal I’ve had in the Commerce Court. I no longer feel the need go to Burrito Boyz, which has gone downhill BTW. You can find places that will make a better burrito… but not in the PATH.

This is another PATH spot that always seem to generate a line up in the Commerce Court food court. During lunch, it’s easy to see at least 4 or 5 people in line waiting for their ‘fresh’ burritos to be made. I’m all for tasty Mexican food and even quasi Mexican food but this isn’t it. It’s mostly filler (mediocre rice) and some haphazard vegetables thrown in. For the price, it’s really not worth it.
I will admit the whole choose your own adventure is pretty common for Toronto food but it has it’s novelty because you get to eat what you like. Vegetables are common fare but sadly they’re fall flat on flavour. Tomatos are too firm and yellowy-​orange. Lettuce is slightly limp. Carrots are tough… you get idea. Thanks for the selection but where’s the flavour. I ordered the grilled chicken with the chipotle adobo marinade. Sounds great doesn’t it… All I tasted was protein. No char (though you cant expect that in an underground food court), spices, or flavour.
Overall, this is a convenient and fast operation but the flavour and price makes you want to try something else soon after 3 bites. Mucho Burrito is slightly better but with Burrito Boyz a semi close walk to the downtown core, that seems like the best place to grab a real burrito.

In a nutshell?
Uninspired
Boring
Overpriced.
I’m a loyal burrito boyz fan and I decided to try Z Teca at a friends recommendation and I completely regretted it.
Toppings are limited, selection is boring and standard. What exactly makes this place gourmet?
You would be better to make your own at home.
Don’t let the line ups fool you.

I really liked this place. For the location that’s it’s in, it works for me. I will admit calling it Gourmet Burritos is a but much. By all means they were really good, but I wouldn’t say gourmet.
I went here at midnight because my friend and I just didn’t want the typical deep fried, cheese covered whatever that you normally get after spending a night out. We both got the $ 10 special which got us a burrito, drink and chips (that they make themselves). I thought the price was good for all that. I didn’t even finish everything. The burrito was huge.
I would definitely go back here and would recommend it to anyone who wants something different from pub/​fast food.
It’s too bad not more people like it.

This place is right around the corner from my condo, so it gets one star for the convenience.
Their burritos are average, not spectacular and nothing to write home about for certain. However, I do have a special spot in my heart (read belly) for their burrito bowls. They’re quick, relatively healthy, if you ask for less rice, and portion size is ok.
They have a good selection of toppings and I like building my own burrito.
My issue with this place? Their prices. Fairly pricey for what you get, which is average «Mexican» food. However, when hungover or just plain lazy, I’ll fork over the cash, albeit begrudgingly.

For fast-​food burritios, Z-​Teca is my favourite place to go in Toronto. When it comes right down to it, it’s pretty hard to screw up a burrito. It’s rice, beans, cheese, and meat rolled up in a tortilla. As long as the tortilla isn’t stale and the fillings are cooked to an even mediocre quality you’ve got yourself a serviceable burrito. That being said, there are more than enough places that find a way to get it wrong. Z-​Teca offers steak, chicken, pork, and seasoned beef as meat choices, all of which are delicious. I typically get chicken but the seasoned beef is a real treat. It’s worth mentioning that all of their meat is grilled and sliced; no ground meat or microwave shenanigans at all which scores big points with me. Their fillings give you more options than your typical burrito bar with grilled «fajita vegetables» (peppers and red onions) and grilled corn (my personal favourite). They offer mild, medium, and spicy salsa and I like that their medium salsa has a noticeable kick to it unlike other medium salsas that err on the side of bland in so many other places. They also offer guacamole but at a $ 1 incremental charge which is the one strike I’d give against Z-​Teca. What sets Z-​Teca apart from other burrito bars in Toronto is the fact that they don’t try to over-​season their contents. Beans, rice, meat, and cheese create a great medley of flavours and textures on their own yet I’m always surprised at how often Mexican places douse their food in generic taco seasoning which kills the natural flavour of everything in the burrito. While some would assert that this may make Z-Teca’s burritos «inauthentic» I prefer to say that Z-​Teca takes a «less is more» approach to their seasoning to great effect. I wish, like I do for all burrito bars in Toronto, that they’d make their own tortillas or acquire ones freshly made that day. I’d gladly pay a dollar or two more to eliminate pre-​packaged tortillas.

People in the Zteca line, please get a life. How badly do you actually need a burrito? Why do you put up with such crappy food, high prices and disdainful service? And why, why are there so many of you?!
I don’t get why people throng around this place, eager to pay $ 8 for starch wrapped in starch, flavoured with some sad looking meats. Oh you want sour cream. That’s extra. You want guacamole — super extra. And heaven forbid that you haven’t got answers to the questions they are mumbling at you. Pathetic.

I finally can complete my Unilocal list with this review of Z-​teca burritos. We were able to order in a group for delivery at work. Yeah! So, I can’t say anything about what the store looks like, and maybe the transit time decreases the quality, but it needs to be able to stand up to a 10 – 15 minute walk down the street, right?
Anyway, I ordered the vegetarian, which is a unique combo of Guacamole and grilled corn. The grill/​char on the corn lends a suble, but tasty flavour. The Guac is creamy and thin– whereas I prefer a spicier chunky version. Seems like it might have come out of a caulking gun a-​la Taco Bell. I asked for HOT salsa, which is supposedly made with chipotle peppers– which are not a hot pepper to begin with. So, the results were that there was flavour, but no spice throughout a very rice-​y burrito. By no means my fave. I would suggest if you are near this location, keep walking west on Dundas to Mission Burrito for a little more magic.

Ok, to be clear if this place was not in the PATH (which provides nothing but mediocre lunch options for all of us poor financial district dwellers that it holds hostage) it would maybe have a 2 person line, sometimes. Instead it has an unexplainable line every lunch hour so go late, or early.
While I agree it’s no authentic Burrito, and how I miss the Mission in SF for that, as far as PATH options go, it’s not that bad.
Here’s how to almost make it a 4 star option — customize the burrito to hell: No rice, double meat, add grilled corn, add fajita veggies, add guac, and tomatillo as well as spicy salsa. The only problem — it becomes an $ 11 or $ 12 burrito.

Lame, lame Chipotle (also lame) knockoff with decent décor (brushed metal lunch tables). «Gourmet Burritos”– OK concept, but the cardinal rule is that the cheaper the mexican food, the better the mexican food. Gourmet has nothing to do with it unless you’re in San Miguel de Allende.
Dry chicken practically had me wheezing and the salsa tasted like tin cans. And where the *** are the corn tortillas?
Can someone get me a real tortilla? A corn one, not a wheat one? I’m desperate!

Although a little pricey. $ 7.95 for a chicken burrito, $ 8.95 for a steak burrito and $ 8.25 for a beef baracoa burrito, it still is the best burrito I’ve had in Toronto.
These by no way compare to the Burritos in San Francisco, but they are still better than Burrito Boys in my opinion. Although when drunk, late at night, I’m sure Burrito Boys tastes like Heaven. Dont get me wrong, Burrito Boys is good too, but I’d give them 4.75 stars out of 5 for Toronto Burrito standards and Z-​teca gets 5.