That quality Mexican food is more readily available in a place that used to be Mexico and which has since that time always had a substantial Mexican population is, perhaps, not so surprising.
Mexico is close to the US. The US has a sizable Mexican population, which means expertise. It also means there is a demand for Mexican food, which spurs competition. Finally, ingredients for Mexican food (whether sourced from Mexico or elsewhere) are readily available. This creates an environment where its possible to find delicious and reasonable priced Mexican food.
Europe is far from Mexico, and the situation is different.
Allow me to generalize "Europe": In Europe you can get delicious and cheap middle Eastern food.
P.S. Where in Europe do you live? Last year we had a really good Mexican restaurant open in Warsaw, Poland.
NYC.
I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't like a burrito, or pizza.
My point is I think a clean burrito joint would go over practically anywhere.
It needs to be clean, and the portions need to be generous, and the owner needs to keep an eye on the business.
Luckily these past years a lot of the "US food" has become way more popular. Tons of "artisan burger" restaurants and burrito/taco shops popping up. US-style food trucks, with all kinds of different offerings, also have become very popular.
More upmarket segment and pricing though, not really in the category of kebap shops.
I haven't seen a 14 Euro Doener anywhere, but I'm sure they exist. But 4.50 is definitely not the cheapest. 2.50-3.50 is actually the most common price I see around Berlin.
The peak will hit when a franchise chain of kebab places goes national.
I'd keep my eyes on Chicken & Rice Guys (3 locations around Boston, plus a truck), but they really need ten million dollars or so to win the domestic market.
[0] Halal Snack Pack, served originally by west Sydney kebab shops, it’s literally the greatest food to eat drunk. Which I find amusing — we do love our irony down here!
Basically french fries/chips covered with kebab meat and liberally doused with various sauces.
Absolutely true. At least at our truck, our kebab sales are second only to fish & chips - people go absolutely nuts for kebab, especially if we're posted up somewhere with alcohol. Munchy Box adoption is similarly high.
The main reason being that I prefer food that start life on my plate separately, so that I can choose to take a bite of each in turn. After that I don't especially like cheese, which spoils a lot of these types of dishes. I find that a lot of people agree with my first point, it's rarer to find people that aren't into cheese.
There’s an independent burrito place right next to my office (big tower block, so just being there guarantees them customers), and it has good prices (for London), good sized portions and is clean, but the taste is mediocre at best.