IlliniHQ 2
General Category => The Deuce => Topic started by: Custard on November 05, 2025, 08:55:59 PM
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Having a Ukrainian beer in downtown Champaign in a bar adjacent to Hyatt Place where I’m staying. Guy next to me is talking about Smile Politely. Where is Robb?!?!?
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La Bamba’s at 11:49 pm!
(https://i.ibb.co/6R5Rt5YJ/IMG-1171.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7JFJpFvN)
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La Bamba’s at 11:49 pm!
wtf you doing slumming at the freeway onramp at midnight?
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wtf you doing slumming at the freeway onramp at midnight?
I’m trying to find Robb!!!
But I had to stop in to my room at the Hyatt Place to house this burrito. Going to start looking in and around dumpsters on campus soon.
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Burritos as big as your head.
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I’m trying to find Robb!!!
But I had to stop in to my room at the Hyatt Place to house this burrito. Going to start looking in and around dumpsters on campus soon.
Yeah, just start looking in garbage cans. You’ll find him.
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I believe he lives in urbana, he wouldn't be seen dead living in dumpy champaign
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La Bamba’s at 11:49 pm!
(https://i.ibb.co/6R5Rt5YJ/IMG-1171.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7JFJpFvN)
Looks like Bamba has officially gone downhill. That tortilla looks awful.
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And yes, Robb will not be caught dead west of Wright St.
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Looks like Bamba has officially gone downhill. That tortilla looks awful.
Yeah it sat for an hour before I ate it too. It was tasty and didn’t hurt too bad this morning.
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And yes, Robb will not be caught dead west of Wright St.
No wonder I never saw him at Legend’s! Did he bartend at the Tumble Inn?
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Looks like Bamba has officially gone downhill. That tortilla looks awful.
La Bamba's strength was always its hot sauce. Which I can confirm still has game. Northern California is pretty much the center of all things burrito, and while there are some better burritos than La Bamba out here*, nobody matches La Bamba's hot sauce. Like, I would buy it buy the jug if I could.
* Caveat - NorCal burritos are known for including rice, which is a different ball game than Chicago area burritos. Just stay away from those infernal San Diego burritos and the travesty that is french fries in burritos.
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La Bamba’s at 11:49 pm!
Speaking of Bamba, it was such a sensation when it opened. $2.25 a burrito made me a bit shocked, used to 49 cents or whatever Taco Bell was, having had no exposure to the "big burrito concept", but once you had one we were all hooked.
Back then, out of state students were so unusual that UIUC had a Freshman orientation trip for out of state students, 3-4 days in the dorms with other out of state students knocking around campus doing whatever activities. I think we had like 12 of us. My roommate from that trip was a guy named Talbot Masten.
So Talbot gets to his senior year and decides to drop out of UIUC and invest in La Bamba. Provided a bunch of capital that seeded the new franchises, focusing on other college towns, Purdue, MSU, etc... I was visiting my sister at Purdue and we went to La Bamba and there was that dude, behind the grill making burritos. I think they eventually had a falling out, not sure the original brothers were too keen on the gringo - so he now owns a burrito joint in Nashville where he grew up.
All sorts of weird shit in the backstory of that place, at some point some guys kidnapped one of the brothers and held him for ransom.
Glad the place lives on, one of the original brothers still runs the place in Champaign, I was chatting with him about the old days with the restaurant in Skylight.
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I was not aware of any of that but I do like a la Bamba burrito after some beers.
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La Bamba's strength was always its hot sauce. Which I can confirm still has game. Northern California is pretty much the center of all things burrito, and while there are some better burritos than La Bamba out here*, nobody matches La Bamba's hot sauce. Like, I would buy it buy the jug if I could.
* Caveat - NorCal burritos are known for including rice, which is a different ball game than Chicago area burritos. Just stay away from those infernal San Diego burritos and the travesty that is french fries in burritos.
When in San Diego a couple of weeks ago we decided to try a San Diego style burrito with the fries in it. It went against everything I believe in, but I felt like you have to at least try the local thing.
I sent a screenshot of your post to Ms. Custard and she almost immediately replied, “Can confirm, the French fries were god awful”
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When in San Diego a couple of weeks ago we decided to try a San Diego style burrito with the fries in it. It went against everything I believe in, but I felt like you have to at least try the local thing.
I sent a screenshot of your post to Ms. Custard and she almost immediately replied, “Can confirm, the French fries were god awful”
Some things we can all agree upon. This is probably why they lost their football team.
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When in San Diego a couple of weeks ago we decided to try a San Diego style burrito with the fries in it. It went against everything I believe in, but I felt like you have to at least try the local thing.
I sent a screenshot of your post to Ms. Custard and she almost immediately replied, “Can confirm, the French fries were god awful”
Speaking of god awful, I had poutine in Winnipeg and was told the place had good poutine.
I tried the local thing. The local beer was ok. The poutine was a never again.
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Speaking of god awful, I had poutine in Winnipeg and was told the place had good poutine.
I tried the local thing. The local beer was ok. The poutine was a never again.
Canadian beer sucks.
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Canadian beer sucks.
You don’t like a good Moosehead or Molson?! Haven’t had it in years. My tastes have changed. I used to like Labatt’s.
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You don’t like a good Moosehead or Molson?! Haven’t had it in years. My tastes have changed. I used to like Labatt’s.
They are better than Coors. I will say that.
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First time I ver got drunk was on Coors. A couple years in my early teens I used to go spend part of the summer with my cousins at my uncle’s house. I pestered him over and over about “buying me a six pack of Coors!” Finally, he said “You know what I’m going to buy you a six pack of Coors and you’re going to drink it!” I puked after 2-3. No more Coors after that.
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Canadian beer sucks.
"I'd rather drink a Moosehead than give one." -- Something s late business used to say.
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Speaking of god awful, I had poutine in Winnipeg and was told the place had good poutine.
I tried the local thing. The local beer was ok. The poutine was a never again.
I once did some consulting work for a firm based out of Winnipeg. Whenever I went up there, they would try to take us to this American brew pub style restaurant. I’m like guys I can have that stuff which is way better back home, take me to a place that has good Canadian food. They took me to someplace that was famous for their poutine, it was basically a horseshoe with less flavor.
I like Molson Canadian.
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"I'd rather drink a Moosehead than give one." -- Something s late business used to say.
That’s funny.
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Labatt Blue in Canada is actually Budweiser
Bud in Canada is actually Labatt Blue. Why the Bud up there has higher ABv.
So I was told by a Canadian, eh.