Loyal readers may know that this food blog adheres to an almost exception-free policy of not re-reviewing restaurants. First impressions are the most important impressions and that is why this unwritten policy is in place. However, when a restaurant innovates or completely reworks a menu, they could be considered for another feature on the Unvegan. Typically, this has been relegated to Taco Bell, but another faux-Mexican restaurant called Mad Mex is continuing that trend. Namely, this innovation is called The Gobblerito and it means Thanksgiving in a tortilla.

You see, The Gobblerito is an item that only appears on the Mad Mex menu around the Thanksgiving season and then it goes away, leaving a hole the size of a Thanksgiving turkey inside those fortunate enough to have tried it. It comes packed with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and corn, then is topped with gravy and served with a side of cranberry sauce. Essentially it is what an x-ray of my stomach after Thanksgiving dinner would reveal. As you may recall, the Mad Mex burritos come in strange cubic form and The Gobblerito is no different.

In just a few bites, I was thrown back to a time when I first tried The Bobby at Capriotti’s and realized there was true good in this world. The Gobblerito is absolutely at the level of The Bobby and this status is only bolstered by the brevity of its existence every year. The only downside was the weird “garnish” of lettuce strewn in one small area of the plate just large enough to interact with some of the gravy. Fortunately for Mad Mex and The Gobblerito, it was easy to avoid.

So what are you waiting for? Thanksgiving is fast approaching and you do not want to miss your chance to taste the burrito of tryptophan-induced dreams.

I know what I’ll be thankful for come Thursday.

Tucked into the back end of Strip District, a warehouse/ethnic grocery store area in Pittsburgh, is a place called Kaya. Part of the Big Burrito Group that seems to run a big portion of the Pittsburgh food scene. Kaya bills itself as island cuisine, but really has a bit of everything. Including burgers, which I heard were quite delicious, so I clearly had to get one.

The Kaya Burger was topped with bacon, avocado, pickles, tomato, Chihuahua cheese, a sunny side up egg and “Kaya sauce.” It also came with a choice of sweet potato fries, waffle fries or some kind of dirty salad. Being a lover of waffle fries, I went for those and made sure to order the burger without the pickles and tomato that would surely ruin the whole situation.

It turned out to be nearly a damn good burger. I say nearly because everything except the actual burger, which spent a bit too much time on the grill. It was big, but brown all the way through. Aside from that, each ingredient was prepared perfectly, right through to the waffle fries that were awesome.

If only they could actually get the patty right, this burger would have been incredible. Without that, it was all style, not so much substance.