Phat Burrito

01/04/09

Yummy Burritos by Melissa C. at InsiderPages

Contributor at Insider Pages

I have a special place in my heart for Phat Burrito - it was here before Chipotle, Qdoba and Salasarita's took over town.

The burritos are large and delicious - the chicken has fantastic flavor. The brownies they sell are divine! The chips are the one thing lacking - they are bagged, not freshly made/warmed. But the burritos more than make up for the chips!

08/27/09

Disappointed

by CharlotteEats at Citysearch

I have lived in Charlotte for over 4 years & have always heard how great this place was. I decided to try it out finally. I believe I would have been better off going to Taco Bell. Seriously. I got chips & queso, and a chicken quesadilla. Wow. Absolutely no flavor to the chicken. The quesadilla was skimpy. The cheese was almost not there. The chips? Literally Tostitos. Someone went to the grocery store & bought Tostitos.The queso dip was cold & stiff. The sweet tea was good. Needless to say, I was very disappointed with PB, & to top it off, the quesadilla was over $6 by ityself. Maybe I went on a bad day, but wow what a waste of money.

• Pros: Cool Vibe
• Cons: No flavor, mediocre service at best, Chips, Overpriced

05/18/09

Good Food

by Appoaf at Citysearch

This place is the best in Charlotte. The salsa makes everything better, so go for it. The meats are good cuts, i can even eat the steak here, which i always steer clear of at mexican or chinese joints. The only two problems i've had are a couple sell-outs. 1. They went away from the tri-colored chips to the crappy round ones many years ago (or am i making this up? been too long)... 2. Last time i went the cups were wax paper, the worst insulator on the planet. No one wants a watered down drink after 5 minutes.. Nothing beats a nice cold drink in styrofoam to accompany my spicy food ! Maybe they just ran out and had to go to back up, but couldn't they have easily had styrofoam back ups??? ha.

• Pros: Simple menu, GREAT Salsa
• Cons: Chips & Drink Cups Sell-out! Will never touch Black Cat

02/12/09

can i get some service?

by hillzarealive at Citysearch

I got the fish taco, and it was great! However, I would hesitate to recommend this place because of the terrible service. It was 2pm when I went in so it wasn't crowded, yet the workers acted like I was an annoyance. They never smiled at me or seemed remotely polite. They just stared at me like "what do you want?" I asked for a couple chips with my meal and they were bothered again! It was so bizarre that I literally almost asked them if it was supposed to be one of those restaurants where servers are jerks on purpose, like a shtick or something...

• Pros: tasty tacos, cool outdoor area
• Cons: how rude!

08/20/08

Great Eats, Good Beats, Better Peeps

by DVMin98 at Citysearch

I've been going to PB for years now, at least 1-2 times a week for lunch. The food is awesome and the salsa bar is to die for (gotta have salsa on each bite of burrito). The atmosphere is great and relaxed with good music all the time, unless Leonard is playing his Pet Shop Boys megamix.

But, I have to say the people are the best part. V is just a cool, fun person...Leonard is about as chilled as they get, and pretty cool as well....Steve (the owner) is a great guy that likes to talk sports and shoot the sh*t.

Can't go wrong here if you want a great place for lunch at a great price with great people.

07/23/08

Meh. OK, but nothing great.

by aravenel at Citysearch

I really don't know what to write about this place. It's OK, certainly not bad, but nothing amazing either. It's a very middle of the road burrito. For Charlotte, I suppose it's quite good, but Charlotte has no good burritos. Always crowded, so somebody must really like it, but the two times I've been here I just didn't see what the hype was. I love burritos, but this was just very middle of the road.

• Pros: Decent burrito for Charlotte. Lots of food.
• Cons: Decent for Charlotte doesn't mean it's very good. It's mediocre.

04/29/08

Do you like to eat unsanitary and tasteless food? Eat here

by uesgirlie at Citysearch

I went here for lunch today. I was really excited because the reviews were sooo good and I have seriously been craving a burrito. I could not have been more disappointed. The ingredients did not taste fresh at all, and had NO flavor whatsoever - VERY bland. It tasted like the tortillas had been frozen and reheated, the sour cream tasted warm and disgusting, and the cheese was very likely government cheese. The steak - really tough, I could barely chew it. While I was waiting for my order (which, btw, was wrong) I saw the manager or whoever dip his dirty paws - without gloves - into the ingredients and make a makeshift burrito to scarf down - he took a bite and then PUT DOWN THE HALF EATEN BURRITO on the counter where they were making food!!! GROSS!!!! I don't understand what the hype is about this place - don't waste your money.

• Pros: Nothing
• Cons: Unsanitary, tasteless, I probably ate feces

10/30/07

Nothing amazing, but a good deal nonetheless

by photowilder at Citysearch

I got a chicken burrito with black beans and guacamole for around 7.50. The salsa was really good and you can take it to go on the side, so I brought some home, ate it w/ chips and it was fantastic. The tomatoes in the burrito were not as fresh as I would have liked and I ended up having to put salsa on the burrito to spice it up and give it more flavor. I think overall I would recommend the burrito but don't expect anything to unbelievable. I say this having only eaten there once, so maybe I caught them at a slow time around 6 or 6:30. I bet it's better at busier times of the day when the ingredients are moving and haven't sat out for awhile. I'll go back and give them another chance, its a pretty cool place and for the price definitely worth it.

• Pros: Value, Pretty Good
• Cons: Not so fresh

06/03/07

The BEST Burritos

by ben_swanson at Citysearch

The burritos that is the restaurant's namesake, truly are phat and fat. Made from quality meat that has a hint of spice in it, beans, and rice. You will be very lucky to come away with no leftovers after a visit to phat burrito. The price is very reasonable and cheap forming the awesome cheap and delicious combo. The music has a nice unique feel to go with the unique interior filled with cut out comics pasted on interior beams and walls. Another cool thing is the plastic covering on the tables: the customers are encouraged to leave business cards or whatever other small cards or advertisements under the table coverings, which is very neat since you leave your imprint on the restaurant . The worst part by far is the parking. Only able to house eight or nine cars, you may find yourself looking to find other places to park. Leaving the parking lot is tough as well, so you may want to walk from another lot. Overall it is the best burrito place in town in my opinion.

• Pros: Price, scrumptious burritos, individuality
• Cons: parking

02/23/07

Killer Burritos

by bluescat at Citysearch

BBQ Chicken burrito or quesadilla is the ONLY way to go. Great food. VERY fresh. Cheap, & you even get to listen to reggae music while you eat. Portions will leave you in "nap mode".

• Pros: Portions, freshness, value
• Cons: Parking

Fat burritos for thin wallets.

by Contributor at Citysearch

The Scene

This one-room place serves up huge, no-nonsense Southwestern-style favorites and nothing else. The lime, blue and yellow walls are the only decoration in an otherwise minimalist decor, and tablecloths are nonexistent. Orders are taken at the front counter, assembled just behind it at the grill, then placed onto a side counter. There's some picnic-style seating outside, but in colder months the crowd moves inside and the line can get backed up to the door.

The Food

You can get tacos and tortas (sandwiches) here, but your best bet is to stick with the namesake meal, a "fat" burrito, measuring some 7" x 3". These aren't your wimpy fast-food burritos, either. They're stuffed with rice, red or black beans, cheese, and your choice of filling: marinated steak, grilled chicken or roasted vegetables. With meals this heaping (and cheap), Phat Burrito is a popular spot, particularly among young people.