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Burrito Pop-Up Brings the Bay Area to Brooklyn

 B'klyn Burro serves San Francisco-style burritos in Brooklyn.
B'klyn Burro serves San Francisco-style burritos in Brooklyn.
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BROOKLYN — Even if you leave your heart in San Francisco, be sure not to leave your appetite.

San Francisco-style burrito shop B'klyn Burro is bringing its West Coast take on the popular Mexican dish to Doris, at 1088 Fulton St., on Saturday, as part of a weekly series of pop-ups across the borough.

B'klyn Burro, which earlier this year set up shop inside the kitchen of Williamsburg bar Don Pedro, is the result of a search by owner and San Francisco native Pepe Urquijo, who moved to New York in 2009, to find a burrito that tasted like those found in the Mission District of his hometown.

Nothing in New York could compare, the 41-year-old owner said, so he decided to do it himself.

"Deep down inside I was homesick," Urquijo said. "There was just this yearning of missing the food from back home, and not willing to accept that food like that can't exist out here. I went to places that claimed to have Mission-style burritos, and it was a joke."

Now living in Clinton Hill, Urquijo attended business workshops at Bushwick's 3rd Ward and Workshop in Business Opportunities, established relationships with local bars and began spreading the gospel of "the burrito capital of the world," the Mission District, the owner said.

All it took was a little know-how.

"What I get kind of a kick out of is hearing all the theories as to why there's no good Mexican food [in New York]," Urquijo said. "'Oh, the beef's not the same, oh, the avocado's not the same,' but I think we've disproved all of them."

B'klyn Burro serves what Urquijo called the "classic" burrito, with rice, beans and meat — carne asada is the best-seller, he said — alongside a chile relleno specialty: stuffed poblano with cheese, deep-fried in batter and wrapped in a burrito, with rice and beans. The shop also sells quesadillas, tacos and other Mexican favorites.

The food is a hit with Bay Area transplants.

"I do not say this lightly: these burritos are perfect," read a review from one San Franciscan on Yelp. "The best you can find anywhere."

"I live in SF, raised in LA and this is the best burrito I have ever had," read another review.

Hearing such high praise from his own hometown is the most satisfying part of the job, the owner said.

"The thing that's really been cool about this is seeing all the folks from [San Francisco] that seek us out," Urquijo said. "We take people back home."

B'klyn Burro comes to Doris, at 1088 Fulton St. in Bed-Stuy, on Saturday at 8 p.m.