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By Owen Sizemore
CHAPEL HILL – Last week, I had the pleasure of traveling to Chapel Hill and ordering takeout from Cosmic Cantina, a staple of Franklin Street college eats well-known for its inexpensive yet plentiful portions of Mexican classics. Nestled in a cozy space inside the Franklin Centre section of shops, the restaurant offers a wide variety of burritos, tacos, quesadillas, chimichangas, and more late into the night, closing at 2 a.m. on weekends.
I should preface this review by stating that I am not a first-time customer of Cosmic. When living in Durham I was a frequent patron of their hole-in-the-wall location on Perry Street, enjoying many burritos after high school soccer games and on the weekends. My expectations for the Franklin Street location were quite high, but needless to say the experience did not disappoint my taste buds – nor my wallet. One reason that I have been such a longtime fan of Cosmic Cantina is due to their excellent variety of vegetarian and vegan options. I’ve been vegan for several years now and understand that finding Hispanic fare that is both authentic and accessible to my eating preferences is often an impossible task; such tacos and burritos are seldom made without meat, cheese, or beans and rice that isn’t cooked in animal fat. However, Cosmic does an incredible job of stepping up to the plate and knocking this challenge out of the park, boasting a wide variety of options for those with strict dietary needs. Cosmic offers several vegetarian burritos and tacos served with a selection of beans, veggies, rice, salsa, cheese, sour cream and guac that can be ordered as-is for vegetarians or without dairy for vegans. I ordered two vegetarian tacos without cheese and loved the taste of the made-in-house flour tortillas and savory salsa. They came cheap, too, at a price of less than $2.50 a taco.
If you’re looking for something a little more filling, the tofu burrito is an excellent option. Served with rice, beans, salsa, and soft tofu wrapped in a crispy flour tortilla, the burrito alone might be enough to constitute a meal but nonetheless is served with a modestly generous side of yellow corn tortilla chips and salsa.
For those still not satisfied, Cosmic also boasts “deluxe” burritos with sour cream and guacamole inside. Surpassing those are the “giant” burritos which are closer in size to a newborn baby than a meal for one. Each of these options are very affordable, with the tofu burrito sitting at just over $4, deluxe burritos at $8-10 depending on your protein, and giant burritos at about $11. The best deals, in my opinion, are the deluxe and giant vegetarian burritos, sitting at about $6 and $8 respectively.
I also took the opportunity to try a menu item I wasn’t as familiar with. Cosmic’s vegan platter is served with black and pinto beans, rice, and generous portions of guacamole and salsa for around $4.50. The platter definitely doesn’t have as much of an excitement factor compared to an item like the “giant burrito”, but the generous portion for such a low price is quite a convincing deal for a college student on a budget.
I tried the platter with my girlfriend, who was not the biggest fan of Cosmic’s guac, so it might be a good idea to try a side of it for about two bucks before adding it to your burritos or other items. The final item in my Cosmic spread was the simple yet powerful addition of tortilla chips and salsa. If you’re worried that a burrito or pair of tacos might not be enough to hold you over until tomorrow’s breakfast, it might be a good idea to throw this in for two bucks. I will say that the salsa is best served in another item like a burrito or taco as opposed to eaten plainly with chips, but regardless I found it very tasty.
I almost forgot one last item that was included in my order: my girlfriend, who is not vegan, ordered a glass of horchata, a traditional, creamy drink made of milk, rice, vanilla and cinnamon. She described it as one of her favorite horchatas, second only to that made by her own family. If you are looking to try something new or simply in need of some authentic horchata, Cosmic provides an excellent option.
All in all, my experience at Cosmic Cantina on Franklin Street was an overwhelmingly positive one. For around $20 I was able to make three meals out of my tacos, burrito, platter and chips, and I would certainly order each of them again. If you find yourself on Franklin Street – or on Perry Street in Durham, for that matter – and looking for a delicious budget meal, Cosmic Cantina is a student favorite for a reason. ● The Recommended Content Widget will appear here on the published site.
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7/12/2021
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