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Burrito Truck's Sign: They Serve "300-Year-Old Recipes," Not "Gluten-Free" Food

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"In colonial Mexico, no one was vegan or low-carb."

Faith Kramer

Hot on the heels of SO Restaurant's infamous "We don't give a shit about gluten free" rant, yet another Bay Area dining establishment is taking a stand against picky diners via a sign. Sonoran-style burrito truck The Burr-Eatery now bears a placard that reads: "Our traditional recipes are 300 years old...In Colonial Mexico, no one was gluten-free, vegan, low-carb, etc. Neither are we!"

Owner Aaron Bullington, whose sign predates the one at SO (he's had it up for about two months), says he's sick of diners who don't understand his product taking potshots on Yelp. "Our concept is the original, Sonoran-style burrito. I went to Mexico to learn to make flour tortillas with butter or lard. The whole vegan thing is just nonexistent, and no one there has problems with flour," he says. "I thought the Bay Area wouldn't need a sign like that, but apparently they did." While Bullington does offer vegetarian tortillas and burrito fillings, (made with dairy, but no lard), he feels he's being unjustly marked down on Yelp for not accommodating other dietary restrictions. "People were accusing us of bad customer service for not accommodating their various needs."

Unlike SO, which proclaimed they "don't believe in organic food," Bullington, a Fatted Calf and Prather Ranch alum whose wife is a Sonora native, prides himself on using top-quality and sustainable ingredients. He says the sign has drawn plenty of comments from customers, both positive and negative. "Here in the Bay Area, people are very used to getting things their way, and think they know more than the establishment they're eating at," he says. "If something is too salty, or burnt, or undercooked, that's one thing. I'm happy to hear those criticisms. As long as they have some sort of a foundation and some sort of a reference. We're doing a particular kind of food that has its own culture and its own recipe. When people ask me for chicken, or guacamole, or sour cream...that's not what goes in a Sonoran burrito. That's not how it's made. I don't want to come across as if I don't give a crap what anybody thinks, because I do. But I'm done following Yelp reviews with picky people and picky ideas of what I should do."


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