Barrel Burrito Co. opens in East Town

Milwaukee— 11/11/2023 — Caravan Hospitality Group is opening its first fast casual concept this week in the heart of East Town’s resurgent nightlife and entertainment district at 782 N. Jefferson St. Barrel Burrito Co. features eleven different burrito styles along with five house-made salsas and “cremas.”

The menu offers traditional burritos like carnitas, chicken, steak, and birria but those also give way to out of bounds flavors like Korean BBQ, a Bacon Cheeseburger burrito, and “The Spicoli,” named after Sean Penn’s famous stoner/surfer character from the cult film Fast Times at Ridgemont High. BBQ ribs, andouille sausage, mac n cheese, and garlic roasted potatoes are packed like a supper club dinner into a tortilla and then grilled. Other offerings are geared towards vegetarians and pescatarians with the lineup also including a vegan burrito.

It all started with an egg

“When we opened Nomad Coffee Bar in the abandoned house next to our patio on Brady Street, we were finally able to offer a small food menu to our early morning soccer fans and daytime coffee customers,” Eitel explained. Nomad’s signature breakfast burrito became wildly popular leading to afternoon/evening customers’ requests for more burrito options.

“The Caravan team began to compete with each other to make the best burritos for staff tastings and pretty soon, we had way too many amazing burritos coming at us and nowhere to offer them,” beamed Director of Operations, Keanen Kopplin. “The burritos started getting a bit crazy and flavors began going off the rails with influences from cuisines from all over the world,” Kopplin continued.

Barrel Burrito Co.’s menu abounds with those flavors and experimentation with what to make and even how to make it. All eleven burritos can be ordered “rolled,” (a grilled version of a traditional stuffed flour tortilla) “wet,” (covered in either a flavorful burrito sauce or queso fundido) or “naked.” (served on rice in a bowl). In addition to these preparation styles, Barrel has trademarked its “Burrito Bites”—slicing the burrito like a sushi roll and serving it with choice of chopsticks or a fork. Eitel says the bites encourage sharing, sampling, or a more car-friendly way to eat a massive amount of food by hand. “I’ve never been into trying to go molar deep on a giant burrito, but I definitely love eating these one piece at a time,” he confessed.

The space itself acts like a fast casual restaurant with counter service and a smattering of tables set amongst vibrant, beach-y colors that fans of the Nomad Patio will recognize. The walls are adorned with tributes to the surf culture of the 60’s and 70’s as well as other surfing memorabilia from Eitel’s love of all things surf, beach, and travel. Ordering ahead of time online for pickup and delivery is available at www.barrelburrito.com and the menu is available on most 3rd party delivery apps.

Opening hours for November and December will be Sunday-Thursday from 11am-9pm with extended hours on Friday and Saturday nights until 2am.

Barrel’s first day of normal operations begins Monday, November 13th

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.