Neato Burrito in Harrisburg is a small chain, but it stays loyal to its local roots. For twenty years, Neato has been known for its mission-style burritos, which are larger than regular burritos – both in terms of size and in how much food is stuffed inside. Neato is responsible for bringing this type of burrito to Central Pennsylvania in 1995. Shayne Edmunds, the founder and president, says that they “were the first and only place in the area for a long time (at least 10 years).”

Edmunds keeps the business in the family. His wife, Grace, is his business partner and is in charge of accounting and human resources; Jon Rohrer is a friend and business partner who is the operations manager.

Staying locally-operated improves the quality of the restaurant. Edmunds designed the menu and recipes. The salsas are made from scratch, the ingredients are whole-food, and the vegetables are fresh. Neato is even largely gluten-free, with a gluten-free tortilla option in the works. Burritos are made in front of the customers with steamed or baked ingredients.

Perhaps the most popular menu item is the Cowboy Crunch. The Cowboy, Edmunds describes, is made up of “slow-cooked Cajun chicken.” The barbecue rice is made with sugar and molasses barbecue sauce and the refried beans are low-sodium and lard-free. No preservatives are used in the drizzled homemade Ranch sauce or crushed nacho chips. In fact, Edmunds points out, almost every menu item is preservative-free.

With two homemade house salsas, there are options for both picky or adventurous eaters. For a tame taste, guests can try the mild Mexican Pico de Gallo, while the spicy Salsa Verde is for a walk on the wild side. Although these are the house salsas, there are additional options for each day of the week. For example,Monday’s special salsa “IPO” is a combination of sweet roasted tomatoes and smoky chipotle peppers. While Thursdays feature “drexel,” which includes peppers, honey, and cilantro.

Some innovative burrito items are in the works at Neato. Neato Burrito is excited to be the first burrito place in the area (possibly the country) to be offering a 12″ gluten free tortilla made from tapioca flour. Beyond being gluten free, it’s a very tasty tortilla. Some of our staff who aren’t gluten sensitive are choosing this tortilla for their own burritos just based on the taste.

Neato Burrito has been serving Central Pennsylvania healthy overstuffed and flavorful Mission Style Burritos for two decades. With a focus on cooking from scratch and using preservative free and whole food ingredients, it’s a solid departure from the fried and salt laden fast food wasteland.