After a bevy of unsavory building management tasks, I worked up an appetite and headed off to grab dinner with B.
The Oxnard office building is just down the street from the airport so naturally we made our way to Burrito Express, just a few blocks away.
This is not the first Mexican restaurant named "Burrito Express" in my life. My cousins opened up a restaurant with the same name in the early 80’s and owned it for twenty years.
The restaurant was located in a former gas station so it was the butt of many family jokes. But the place was always packed with customers.
People would show up for their huge burritos, which were delicious but mostly beans. Since my cousin is an ex cop, it would be common to see droves of police officers there to say hello and to take down a massive carnitas burrito or two.
My sister also worked there so we would go pick her up after work and try to score a free Orange Bang! or homemade chocolate chip cookie.
But we didn’t hang out there much since we had issues with one of the cousins. Owning a restaurant turned into owning a Mercedes, a big house, and distance from the rest of the family, so we gave them that distance.
It’s been ten years since the last time I saw either cousin and Burrito Express is still there but they no longer run it, or so I’ve heard.
As for Burrito Express "II", they have slamming food – including awesome gorditas and sopes – but I always think of the old place just the same.