Laos Burrito

The next stop after Vang Vieng was the capital, Vientiane. A "major" city with hints of charm and a small dose of hustle and bustle. With a sore throat and the memory of Luang Prabang still lingering, I don't think I gave it the chance it deserved and perhaps moved on a bit fast. However, no regrets...not even the burrito.

I arrived at dusk and checked into a mediocre hotel on the waterfront of the Mekong River. Rather than lounge in my slightly damp room with walls that used to be white, I headed out to find sustenance. There were plenty of eateries - traditional Laos food, Indian, bakeries, Mexican, Western, French, Japanese, etc. all at my disposal. But there was one I just couldn't shake - Mexican.

Now I knew this was risky. A child of California and a self-proclaimed connoisseur of Mission burritos, I was guaranteed to be let down by the Laos burrito...but how let down? I needed to know. I entered "Tex-Mex" and took a seat on the balcony.


When my order came it looked kind of like a burrito despite the side of steamed white rice. It had a tortilla and some red sauce on top. The filling consisted of stewed tomatoes and some barely spicy bell peppers and onions. The whole thing tasted a little like a meatless and flavorless spaghetti sauce wrapped up in a moderately authentic tortilla. I ignored the cole slaw.