Friday, March 16, 2007

The Ultimate Burrito


I was a bit opposed to writing about this subject because I was trying to keep the focus of my blog more on sit down, waiter service chains but I have realized that I can not ignore so much of the chain restaurant world. Therefore I am going to also write about a few fast food places. The first type I will cover is my absolute favorite, the burrito place. Burritos are a relatively new favorite food that I love but I think I have eaten enough of them to really appreciate them. I am going to talk about my three favorite Burrito places. Amazingly I think of the three I am going to write about all three are really delicious and awesome. I can not think of any other chain group where all three main choices are all stellar.

My favorite chain burrito place is Baja Fresh. I discovered this wonderful establishment while living in DC. I loved it so much that I even made my friend Nina drive to some random Boston suburb to try it for herself once I moved back to Beantown. I think she loved it too so I doubt she minded the drive.
This place really lives up to it's name because no word better describes it - FRESH!
The burritos are so fresh tasting and delicious. You totally do not feel like you are eating fast food. I always get the Burrito Mexicano because it is so yummy I do not feel the need to try anything else. What I also love about this place is that they give you chips and salsa with your burrito. It is a nice touch that I appreciate.
My second favorite burrito place is now Qdoba and I am pleased to announce that it is now opened in Manhattan in my hood. Yippee!!! I am not going to lie, I have only been there once but I enjoyed all the different types of burritos they offered. I got the fajita burrito and it was very tasty and filling. What I like about burrito places is that you can tell the people what you like and dislike and really get the meal made the way you want it. I am for sure going to try the pesto burrito that they have because I am obsessed with pesto.
The third burrito place on my list is Chipotle. The only reason it is not higher is because you get more options at the other places. I mean believe me, I really love Chiptole and go there a lot I just kind of think the other two are a tiny bit better. I do applaud Chipotle though for opening up a large amount of locations in Manhattan. I encourage the other two to do the same. At Chipotle I either get the steak fajita burrito or the chicken one. Sometimes Chipotle can be a bit spicy for me, I think they make the chicken much more spicy than the steak. If I am feeling tame I get the steak. They also have really good guac. At most of the Chipotle's in Manhattan the line at lunch time is so, so, so long which can be very frustrating but now they have this cool feature on their website where you can order online and pick it up in around 10 minutes. I pretty much only order Chipotle that way now. Oh I should also mention that when the first Chipotle opened in Manhattan I went on the day it opened because I was so excited for it's arrival.
OK so that is my take on burrito places. Let me know what you think.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Rori I completely agree with your take on this subject. I also need to mention that Qdoba offers ground sirloin as well which i think is great...reminds me of my days in Warren Towers.

Chipotle is ok but thei pinto beans taste like pig and their meats are usually dry and over spiced

Baja fresh is the best but there arent enough of them

Rori you have done well with your blog today

Jori said...

personally, i think it should be illegal to sell "fast" mexican food in new york. i'd rather eat a bag of Alpo.....

however. i must admit, the day Jason got 4 free burritos (because they kept messing up his meal)and brought them back for us, i did enjoy my steak burrito from Chipotle.

Nina, great to see you last night.

Unknown said...

O Jordan it was great to see you and the rest of the group...cant wait for the NY POST/Rori's Lover Bowlfest...

Anonymous said...

burritoville does a decent job. tired of chipotle. qdoba just doesnt' use high quality ingredients- though its basic burrito tastes identical to chipotle's... just not "organic", "free range", etc etc like chipotle

Unknown said...

burritoville is really gross and the chicken at qdoba is MUCH fresher than at Chipotle and the guac is made fresh every morning..Chipotle's comes out of a pre-made tub.

Unknown said...

Living in Southern California, there are a host of Mexican-inspired fast food chains to choose from: Del Taco, Rubios, Taco Bell, Chipotle and Baja Fresh.

My favorite, by a mile, is Chipotle. They have the best meats and flour tortillas, though I agree with Rori that their burritos tend to be a little on the spicy side. The one drawback: guac is a buck and a half extra.

I don't dare eat at Taco Bell, and I avoid Del Taco unless a friend drags me there. Del Taco is the cheapest option, and accordingly, has the poorest quality of food.

Rubios brags that they introduced SoCal to the fish taco. I find the ad campaign less than inspiring, but then again, I'm probably an ignorant New Yorker. My friends that are native to SoCal, though, love the fish taco - especially on Tuesdays when it costs just a buck.