Last week in a brainstorming meeting with our CEO, Chase, we somehow got on the topic of how the breakfast burrito has recently taken hold at brunch tables across Boston. “I hate breakfast burritos,” I immediately retorted, and we got into a debate about what’s better — the breakfast sandwich or the breakfast burrito.

“You know, this would be a great post,” Chase said when we couldn’t come to a decision of which item was the better breakfast choice.

So folks, it’s This Vs. That time. For the first installment, we’ll be matching up the breakfast sandwich with – you guessed it – the breakfast burrito. Leggo…

Breakfast Sandwich

Let’s start with the bread. Who doesn’t love a little carbo-loading action in the morning? Whether it’s sourdough, cinnamon raisin or even a bagel, it don’t matter. Bruncher don’t care. The thicker the crust, the better to hold in the melted cheese and oozing egg yolk.

Which brings me to my next point: Eggs. In a breakfast sandwich, the eggs can be cooked however your hungry heart desires. From fried to sunny side up, poached to over-easy, any type of egg works well with a breakfast sandwich.

Add cheeses to spruce it up. Veggies — you name it, it could be in there. Potatoes are a must. Overall, the breakfast sandwich is just an extremely versatile breakfast item.

Breakfast Burrito  

The breakfast burrito is like the breakfast sandwich’s neater younger sister. The burrito is clean and tidy. All the ingredients are wrapped up nicely in a tortilla, so you never run the risk of dripping hot sauce down your sundress. If you want to be uber classy, you can even use a fork and knife to consume the breakfast burrito.

Also, I absolutely adore sour cream. It’s one of my top three favorite foods. If it was socially acceptable to eat it plain out of the container, I would. So for me, breakfast burritos are a perfect excuse to eat as much sour cream as possible first thing in the day. Honorable mention goes to salsa as the second best condiment that can be consumed at breakfast.

My ultimate problem the breakfast burrito, though,  is the inherent lack of variety. The eggs are always scrambled. You’d be hard-pressed to find a breakfast burrito that comes with a meat other than sausage. And I’ve got to go back to the bread – it’s always the same flimsy tortilla.

Winner: Breakfast Sandwich.

The only way breakfast sandwiches could get better is if they were served with sour cream. Try that on for size.

Disagree? Hate sour cream? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. 

Also, here’s where to find some of the best breakfast sandwiches in Boston, courtesy of Tasted Menu. Don’t worry burrito lovers, we threw in some of your favorites, too.

Images via Tasted Menu