Restaurants

The Verdict is In: We Like Anna’s Guacamole. Sort of

Ryan Breslin/Boston.com Staff The guacamole samples were selected from a variety of restaurants across the Greater Boston area.

By Emily Wright

April 21, 2015

2 minutes to read

Is guacamole actually still guacamole when it’s made with [gasp] dairy?

The typically peppery, slightly spicy, lime-highlighted delight of Mexican food lovers’ dreams, guacamole is typically made of simple ingredients such as avocado, citrus, peppers, tomatoes, and onions.

But when it comes to the palates of Boston.com’s staff, the best guacamole is chock full of sour cream.

Ryan Breslin/Boston.com Staff

Last week, 12 brave, ravenous Boston.com staffers took on the task of blindly sampling and rating 10 Boston-area restaurants’ varieties of chips and guacamole, ranging from South End’s El Centro to East Boston Taqueria Jalisco.

Here’s the full list of samples being judged: Chipotle (Fenway), Taco Real (Dorchester), Qdoba (Fenway), El Centro (South End), Herrera’s (Theatre District), El Pelon (Fenway), Taqueria Jalisco (East Boston), Taco Loco (Somerville), Anna’s Taqueria (Cambridge — Porter Square), and Boloco (Theatre District).

Each sample was given a score of 1 to 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best. The testers were asked to take certain factors into consideration when judging, including overall flavor, chip density, viscosity, and authenticity.

After approximately 20 minutes of 28 elbows jostling over the paper boats of chips and containers of guac, ballots were turned in and the winner was revealed.

The top three were all from chains. Porter Square’s Anna’s Taqueria came in first with an average score of 7.92, besting the South End’s El Centro (7.88), and Fenway’s Qdoba (7.71) for top honors.

Surprised? We aren’t.

Anna’s has landed on national burrito rankings, including last year’s FiveThirtyEight bracket, where the Boston-based small chain was given a 78 out of 100 by taster and burrito expert Anna Maria Barry-Jester, and The Daily Meal’s “The 35 Best Burritos in America,’’ ranked Anna’s No. 31.

What we are surprised about, though, is that Anna’s, which has six locations, openly admits that it uses sour cream in its guacamole. So wouldn’t that quantify it as dip?

BDCwire staff writer Kevin Slane called the dairy addition in the comments section of his ballot, which was properly stained with guac-y goodness, hypothesizing, “Tastes creamier. Possible sour cream addition?’’

Slane, a classicist, was not impressed. He gave it a mediocre 5.5.

Ryan Breslin/Boston.com Staff

Chipotle’s by-the-book rendition of guacamole came it at No. 4 (6.67). The national chain’s variety is made of “ripe Hass avocados, mashed with sweet red onions, jalapeños, cilantro, and fresh lemon and lime juice,’’ according to its website, won Slane over. He gave the Fenway location’s sample an 8.5.

Ellen O’Leary, a Boston.com staffer, also commented on the creaminess of the Anna’s guacdip (“Me gusta,’’ she wrote), but rated it a 7 and gave her personal top marks to that of Qdoba.

The lowest-rated sample on the list was Herrera’s (Theatre District), which earned a dismal 4.17 out of 10 and warranted comments like “So bland and tasteless,’’ from staff writer Kristin Toussaint.

Have a personal favorite you think we missed? Send it to us in the comments.

Kevin Slane, Jordan Lebeau, Ellen O’Leary, Meagan McGinnes, Allison Pohle, Braden Campbell, Shawna Wright, Kristin Toussaint, Chris Rattey, Perry Eaton, John Waller, and Chelsea Rice contributed to this report.