Same Address, Same Scratch Kitchen, Same Screaming Value on Green-Chile-Drenched Breakfast Burritos
Photography by Jennifer Bridge
There’s a handwritten sign near the register at Santiago’s on Main Street that shares the day’s breakfast-burrito flavor (it rotates between bacon, chorizo, ham, and sausage). Your only decisions are spice level—“mild,” “half-and-half,” or “hot”—and quantity.
As in, “Good morning! ¡Buenos dias! I’ll take two half-and-halfs and a spicy.” If the sign said “chorizo,” buen provecho! You’ve got a fistful of Longmont’s best, with green chile on the inside.
At Santiago’s, everyone is friendly about the whole ordering process, of course, but there is a sense that you should know what you’re doing to keep the line moving. The restaurant has been on Main Street for 25 years—same location, same green-chile recipe, same scratch kitchen. It was the sixth Santiago’s to open in the state (there are now 30). The first opened in Brighton in 1991.
CEO and founder Carmen Morales grew up in Brighton, Colorado. The restaurant’s green-chile recipe came from her mother, Rachel Morales, and the chiles themselves still come from New Mexico.
“Some of the other dishes were what I loved to eat as a child,” Carmen says, “like the stuffed sopapillas.” Indeed, there’s quite a full menu of tacos, tamales, entrées, and combo plates.
But the breakfast burrito, served till 11 a.m. (later if they have extras), remains Santiago’s signature item—and it has an origin story. When Carmen was growing up, her family observed Lent, which meant no food before receiving Communion. After mass, her mother made breakfast burritos for the kids to eat on the way to school that week.
At less than $4, that breakfast burrito remains the best deal in town, even when you bump it up in price to make it the “deluxed” version, which is smothered with lettuce, tomato, and extra cheese.
Santiago’s always has a charity they are helping, as well. Just check the poster in your booth for ways to help. Between all their restaurants over 20 years, they have donated more than $3.8 million to youth charities. The current project supports SungateKids, an organization that provides forensic interviewing, family advocacy, and child-abuse-prevention services.
So swing on by, grab a fistful of foil-wrapped, quarter-century-old Longmont tradition, and savor the warmth of those green chiles entering your belly. 215 Main Street
