A slow Sunday morning. Time to share a couple of recent lunch stops.

First, BC Burrito in Kaimuki. It’s on Waialae Avenue, between Koko Head Avenue and 12th Avenue. For those who are familiar with Kaimuki, it’s in that short block between Coffee Talk and Azteca.

Last week was spring break at UH, so Meda was pretty much locked out of her office. As a result, we spent the week running errands, which led to lunch on the road.

When in Kaimuki, we usually lunch at Saigon’s, which is just across the street, but it was closed for a week of vacation. We considered several other nearby spots, but wanted to do lunch on the cheap. That’s how we ended up at BC Burrito. Okay, it’s not much to look at. No white tablecloths here or obsequious servers here. But the smells….

Your first job on entering BC Burrito is to make some decisions. Do you want your burrito on a 10 inch tortilla or the extra large 12 incher? Here’s a hint…the 10″ is way huge enough for any appetite.

Next choice, what kind of tortilla? Flour, whole wheat, tomato chile, japapeno cheddar, or spinach? Then, black beans or pinto beans? And what kind of filling? You can choose from two kinds of chicken and pork, beef, veggie, shrimp, beans and cheese…may more. And then there’s salsa. Mild, medium or hot?

Whew. I wanted the chicken molé filling, but the fresh pot of molé sauce was still on the stove and would require a 5 minute wait. I opted for the bay leaf chicken instead. Meda held out for the molé.

Assembly follows. Your tortilla is heated, then piled with spanish rice and your choice of beans, topped with the filling of your choice (sticking with just the rice and beans saves you a little over a buck). You’re offered several extra cost add-ons, including cheese and guacamole, and then you’re turned loose to graze on a couple of dozen bottled hot sauces ranging from mild to thermonuclear.

What you don’t get in these two iPhone pictures is a sense of scale. The only thing small about this burrito was the price. This was the smaller choice with the 10″ tortilla, and it was definitely all I could eat. Meda opted for the tacos, which she thought looked like a more petite serving size. Again, it was plenty of tasty food for the price.

Overall, I would give BC Burrito a solid “B” as a place for lunch. Good food, good prices, casual atmosphere, central location. Will I return? Definitely. Would I recommend it to friends? Yes.

Another spot added on to our very short list of restaurants is Pho My Vi, a relatively new restaurant in the Kaneohe Bay Shopping Center (across from Windward Mall, anchored by Safeway and Longs). It sits over on the Safeway side, in the small wing along with L&L, Panda Express, and several other spots.

It’s a convenient spot, especially since we often find ourselves in that Longs, or stopping for something at Safeway. Pho My Vi is clean, pleasant, with friendly staff. We almost always order chicken pho, so we don’t have many choices to make. The pho arrives in a huge bowl which is a little disorienting, and the presentation is beautifully made. I can’t say there was anything memorable about the food, but the tastes were good, and the serving filling. Nothing necessarily to rave about, or to complain about. Just a good, solid choice when in this area and feeling like pho. Of course, it has lots of competition for our business from L&L (where we settle for BBQ chicken sandwiches) and Tasty Korean BBQ, which is down near Longs, where we often split a regular BBQ chicken plate lunch with the standard choice of four veggie sides.

I’m looking forward to the next week of vacation when we can sample a few more mid-day meals.