# Do Chipotle burritos really suck as some burrito snobs would have us believe? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 11, 2012, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163 "2012-08-11T04:52:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/81 "2012-08-13T19:25:59Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > As a Californian exiled to DC, it’s taken me a while to come to terms with fact that if I want a burrito, I pretty much have to go to Chipotle. It’s not _terrible_ or inedible or anything. It’s just not that good, and it’s pretty expensive for any burrito, mediocre or not. > > What’s wrong with it? For one, the article is right about the packing. A good mission-style burrito is a neat, tight little package of food. You slowly peel down the foil and eat it bite by delicious bite. Chipotle burritos, on the other hand, are loose and sloppy. You feel down the foil, and you get juice and stuff dripping everywhere. A good burrito leaves the foil clean at the end, while at Chipotle I’ve always got a nasty puddle of bean sauce and the like leaking out of the end, and the last few bites are almost impossible to manage as the whole burrito seems to dissolve into an incoherent mess. It’s just not well crafted. It’s like going to Subway and getting the new sandwich cut that makes lettuce fall everywhere and your hands get stained with mustard. > > Taste-wise, one major objection I have is that they do not melt the cheese. Typically, I’d expect cheese to be steamed along with the tortilla, creating a warm, gooey, flavorful bed for the beans. If I wanted to eat a handful of cold shredded cheese, I’d go to Taco Bell. Seriously, who wants to eat cold shredded cheese? I haven’t found any variety of Chipotle meat that I like. I’m not a huge meat eater, so I’ll give them a pass one that. But it all seems kind of dry and chewy. The beans are bland but edible, I pass on the rice (starch on starch?), some of their salsas are pretty good, and the guac is okay but again, bland. They put way too much rice and lettuce into the thngs- these should be side-notes to provide contrast, not the bulk of your burrito. They don’t have anything you can add to make an actually spicy burrito- I eat it with a bottle of tabasco sauce in hand, saucing each bite. Tabasco isn’t the right kind of heat for that purpose to begin with, and I can’t add it into the burrito because I’m afraid it will dissolve into incoherence if I unwrap it. Anyway, the whole package just doesn’t work together. Burritos are all about contrast- hot beans and cheese, cool sour cream and guac, a hint of crisp lettuce, spicy meat, chewy steamed tortilla…all in one delicious bite, with each bite just so slightly different in balance than the last. But a Chipotle burrito is just…saucy and incoherent. > > Finally, it’s just too pricey. I want to pay $4.00 for a non-guac veggie burrito, up to $6 for meat with guac. When I go to Chipotle, I pay $6-$8.50 for a burrito. Burritos are fast food. They are a cheap lunch on the go. I really don’t want to pay dinner prices for some beans on a tortilla. To me, it’s like being asked to pay good money for a hot dog…I just don’t want to pay that. Despite the fact that you’re getting some flack for being a “burrito snob” or whatever, I thought this was a good, detailed description of what you find lacking in a Chipotle burrito. And even though I like Chipotle’s burritos all right, it makes me want to try a really good one. (As a D.C. native living in Michigan, perhaps I’ve never had what you’d consider a really good burrito.) ---
**Author:** ![GovernmentMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9c0ed/32.png) [@GovernmentMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GovernmentMan)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/82 "2012-08-13T19:32:44Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > It’s the usual SDMB pseudo-foodie circlejerk. “You can find much better burritos at this food truck nobody’s ever heard of.” What, did you expect that better burritos would be found at somewhere everybody’s heard of? ---
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/83 "2012-08-13T19:47:21Z")
According to Mister Vigilante (a Mexican) they don’t put the rice in, in Mexico City where most of his relatives live. He says many of the border towns do, for filler to sell to the tourists. Usually when we get Mexican food at sit-down places (and we do this A LOT), there is no rice inside, unless it’s a special / super / supreme / filled with everything burrito. It’s always on the side. Never had a chipotle burrito. I read an article that they basically use [slave labor](http://news.change.org/stories/chipotle-s-slave-stuffed-burritos). I’m not sure what really to believe, haven’t looked that deeply into it. I prefer Moe’s. To me it sounds like a similar place and their burritos are fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/84 "2012-08-13T19:49:38Z")
> [@Sister\_Vigilante](#): > > According to Mister Vigilante (a Mexican) they don’t put the rice in, in Mexico City where most of his relatives live. He says many of the border towns do, for filler to sell to the tourists. Usually when we get Mexican food at sit-down places (and we do this A LOT), there is no rice inside, unless it’s a special / super / supreme / filled with everything burrito. It’s always on the side. > > Never had a chipotle burrito. I read an article that they basically use [slave labor](http://news.change.org/stories/chipotle-s-slave-stuffed-burritos). I’m not sure what really to believe, haven’t looked that deeply into it. > > I prefer Moe’s. To me it sounds like a similar place and their burritos are fantastic. You prefer Moe’s to a burrito you’ve never had? That’s interesting, or something. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/85 "2012-08-13T19:53:16Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > It’s the usual SDMB pseudo-foodie circlejerk. “You can find much better burritos at this food truck nobody’s ever heard of.” Ha! A+ As others have said, Chipotle is solid fast food. When you’re on a diet, you can assemble a bowl with fresh ingredients that’s going to be better for you (calorically, at least) than most any other fast food out there. The bowl I get has something like 520 calories, but I make two meals out of it (and am full at both meals)-- when I’m rushing around trying to get things done, that’s damned good fast food. And that’s really the trick of it: Chipotle isn’t supposed to be authentic Mexican. I’ve lived in California my entire life and several times a month eat with friends’ families who either don’t speak a lick of English or are visiting from Mexico. I know authentic Mexican and while it’s delicious, authentic Mexican isn’t exactly positive for the dieting folks (lard, lard, more lard, fried lard, and some lard on the side). So, while I can stop at any number of taco shops in town, the point is that the calories won’t be as reliably controlled as they will be from Chipotle. I have noticed that your Chipotle experience 100% depends on what’s in your burrito (duh, I know). I’ve had several friends proclaim they hate it, but fall in love with Chipotle when they get my suggested arrangement. You can get this in a burrito (more calories) or a bowl, either are just as good: chicken, rice (I think the white has a better flavor than the brown, but either or), fajita vegetables, mild salsa (pico), lettuce, sour cream, and cheese. No beans. That right there is a delicious meal. Sometimes if I’m trying to be extra good, I’ll do either sour cream or cheese, but that’s up to you. Anyway, the point is: in my multi state Chipotle experience, the chicken is consistently good, as are the fajita veggies. The other meats and bans? I’ve heard too many complaints now to deviate. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/86 "2012-08-13T20:26:15Z")
I’m surprised the thread has gone on this long without anyone mentioning Chipotle’s direct competitor **Qdoba**. They’re the same kind of place, selling the same kind of burrito. I don’t eat there often enough to tell which of the two is better. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/87 "2012-08-13T20:29:30Z")
I’m glad I found this thread because I did not know that burritos more or less officially don’t contain rice. I like Chipotle just fine. It’s great cheap dinner and movie food. A Chipotle burrito could just as well be called a “wrap” which is pretty darn common these days. All kinds of wonderful things can go in a wrap. I’ve decided that I no longer desire “authentic” food. I’ve searched out enough authentic in my life and it’s not all that. 100-year-old cooking. Yum. I’ll all new & fusion these days. You guys can keep your “authentic.” Extra cilantro on that Chipotle burrito! And some hot sauce. No, not that salsa, that dangerous-looking orange stuff. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/88 "2012-08-13T21:18:19Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I’m surprised the thread has gone on this long without anyone mentioning Chipotle’s direct competitor **Qdoba**. They’re the same kind of place, selling the same kind of burrito. I don’t eat there often enough to tell which of the two is better. Qdoba was also started by someone in Denver. . . two years after Chipotle started. Their menu is basically identical, their rice has the same flavoring (jasmine lime cilantro), on and on. It’s pretty obvious that Qdoba is a Chipotle knock off. Having eaten at both, they are basically the exact same. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/89 "2012-08-13T21:19:51Z")
I hope Chipotle burritos don’t suck…somebody offered me half of one to take home for dinner tonight, and I want to look forward to it! Smells good… ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/90 "2012-08-13T21:54:59Z")
I wouldn’t say they suck at all. They taske OK. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/91 "2012-08-13T22:04:44Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > I’m glad I found this thread because I did not know that burritos more or less officially don’t contain rice. You probably did not know it because it isn’t true. Burritos don’t have any official ingredients, except the tortilla, any more than a sandwich does. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/92 "2012-08-13T22:42:16Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > You probably did not know it because it isn’t true. Burritos don’t have any official ingredients, except the tortilla, any more than a sandwich does. Don’t say that! Nobody expects the burrito police, they’re _every_where! (+1. I can’t believe there are burrito snobs here dictating what does and doesn’t belongs in a freaking tortilla. Get a life, guys.) ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/93 "2012-08-13T22:43:48Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > I hope Chipotle burritos don’t suck…somebody offered me half of one to take home for dinner tonight, and I want to look forward to it! > > Smells good… Holy shit… Good. I am having to try VERY hard to not eat all of it, since I’m just using it for a snack. Having Indian later tonight and don’t want to ruin my appetite. Thumbs up here. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/94 "2012-08-14T00:41:22Z")
I think Chipotle is quite good, especially considering my other options around here (Moe’s, Hot Harrys, and a number of passable but not great sit-down places.) The ingredients are high quality, there’s a reasonable amount of variation possible, and it’s fast. Now, if I was in Albuquerque I’d probably be heading to a place like Dos Hermanos, where you’d get beans, no rice, and red or green chile instead of salsa. It’s definitely a California-style burrito, and I’d love something local in the New Mexico style, but I won’t turn down a meal at Chipotle. Personally, I think they’re missing a bet not doing breakfast burritos, at least on weekends. I was also amused when I ran into a Chipotle in London (spotted it from the bus earlier and wound up dashing in later as London has a definite paucity of public restrooms, at least from an American point of view.) As far as I could tell, they just changed the pricing from dollars to pounds. I wasn’t curious enough to pay about $11 for a burrito. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/95 "2012-08-14T00:46:35Z")
Best part about Chipotle, for me, is they serve beer, or at least their downtown location does. I find the anti-foodie posts kind of funny, as Chipotle is usually, in my experience, considered a reasonable place by foodies or whateverthefuck you wanna call them. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/96 "2012-08-14T01:09:03Z")
> [@](#): > > I find the anti-foodie posts kind of funny, as Chipotle is usually, in my experience, considered a reasonable place by foodies or whateverthefuck you wanna call them. I call them “douchebags.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/97 "2012-08-14T01:43:20Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > I call them “douchebags.” Har har. What I’m saying is, in my experience, people who like food seem to have a wide range of tastes that includes fast food and junk food. For example, I think I would probably qualify as a “foodie” of some sort. But I enjoy McDonald’s, White Castle, Jimmy’s John’s, etc. Then there is fast food I don’t like, like Burger King, Subway, and Taco Bell. But, in my experience, “foodies” run the gamut of low-brow to high-brow tastes. Maybe y’all are just meeting a bunch of dicks and the Chicago “foodies” are much more down-to-earth. The only “foodies” I’ve met that were douchebags were simply douchebags in general. Their opinion on food had nothing to do with it. I find the same thing with the stereotype about hipster kids. Some of my brother’s friends who are in their late 20s and early 30s would qualify as hipsters. There seems to be a meme that hipsters are only interested in obscure music that the average person couldn’t possibly ever have heard of. Yet, without exception, every single “hipster” type I’ve met personally was as into the latest Jay-Z, Kanye, or Beyonce record as whateverthefuck it is as Bon Iver, Gotye, or whatever it is they listen to these days. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/98 "2012-08-14T03:05:45Z")
The term _foodie_ is stupid. So is the notion of a “burrito snob.” (How do you connect “burrito” with “snob”?) People have opinions about all kinds of things: music, politics, stamp collecting, cars–whatever. Why not food? Why get all insecure about food, probably the lowest common denominator of them all? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/99 "2012-08-14T03:07:43Z")
Absolutely agreed. ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163/100 "2012-08-14T04:01:30Z")
La Bamba They only have locations in college towns, and their burritos are exemplary. I doubt I could ever crave a burrito so much again. In a fair fight, La Bamba will SLAY Chipotle amongst the late night crowd any day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-chipotle-burritos-really-suck-as-some-burrito-snobs-would-have-us-believe/631163.md?page=6)