Oak Glen serves pies made from mountain-grown apples. Temecula pours fairly good wine. Tamales are devoured in Indio and date shakes are blended in Cabazon and Coachella.

Now Hemet ranks with those other Inland communities that boast signature food and drink.

It has the James Burrito.

Carlos Valadez of Taqueria Rancho Grande at Dartmouth Street and Florida Avenue in Hemet is proud of his famous burrito, but won’t take credit for its creation.

He thinks only about 10 percent of his customers know who first made the James by deciding to add ranch dressing to a California burrito (which itself is an odd regional favorite in that it has French fries inside).

The James Burrito became so popular in the nine years since its birth that Valadez sells about 100 a day.

So who is James?

James is 26-year-old James Warren, a 2008 Hemet High grad who was a regular customer at the taqueria, a favorite lunch spot for teachers and students. During his junior year, Warren added ranch dressing, which he loves, to the traditional California burrito. Its ingredients include carne asada, French fries, salsa, cheese and sour cream.

He said the ranch dressing created a tasty mild-and-spicy flavor blend.

Warren began ordering his personal burrito many times a week. His friends began ordering it, too. It caught on and became known as the James Burrito.

Valadez tried the burrito and was so impressed that he put it on his menu. It quickly became one of his most popular orders.

Most customers who order the James are teens who were in grammar school when it first was made. They don’t know its history. They don’t know Warren. They simply love the high-calorie ingredients.

I was pleasantly surprised when I tried one for lunch. The French fries added an interesting crunch. The ranch dressing and sour cream were a cool contrast to the hot beef and spicy salsa.

It was very, very filling.

Interestingly, creating the burrito foreshadowed a serious culinary career. After Hemet High, Warren graduated from the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts College in Pasadena. He works as a lead line cook at the upscale Range Steak House in the Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Resort in Maricopa, Arizona.

He loves to cook and is enthusiastic about working hard to advance in his career as a chef.

Despite his sophisticated training and the high-dollar meals he prepares, he still loves his simple burrito and is glad that it still bears his name. Heading to the taqueria for a James is the first thing he does when visiting his family in Hemet.

His father, David Warren, Uncle Dana Warren and grandfather, Judge James Warren, who still fills in at trials, are star decorators on my annual Christmas light map.

Warren said he sometimes is dismayed when word reaches him in Arizona that someone claimed they created the culinary delight. What doesn’t bother him is that 30 percent of the orders ask for chicken instead of carne asada.

He loves telling his colleagues in the kitchen about the James.

“I am proud of it, I really am,” he said. “I don’t want any royalties or anything. The fact that it was named after me makes me happy.”

Contact the writer: bpratte@pe.com, or 951-368-9078