Chipotle

[kevm14]

Back story: I have been to Cilantro many years ago and at lunch some folks were discussing Cilantro vs Chipotle. Having only tried Cilantro I weighed in that I never really thought it was that great. Big burritos but despite the many hot sauces, I never ended up with anything I thought was that great. I think Taco Bell tastes better and that's not a slam on Taco Bell. Probably for 2 years I vowed to try Chipotle.

Finally, today, I did.

I got the barbacoa burrito. Stuffed with most fixin's, hot salsa, and guac. It was like $15 for that, a bag of nacho chips and a fountain drink.

Results?

I like this hands down better than Cilantro. I like the flavors, the texture, even the temperature, better. The only thing I missed was fresh jalapenos - not sure if they had them. That would have really put this over the top. Didn't even feel the need to douse it in hot sauce - I ate it as it was made. This is the burrito I wanted at Cilantro but never got despite trying a bunch of the meats the handful of times I went there with others. I haven't been back in many years because I would rather eat somewhere else if I am going out for lunch. As rarely as I'd likely go to Chipotle I have no issue at all with the higher price. It was definitely worth it.

So that's my vote.

[dochielomn]

Funny/interesting. I probably hit up Chipotle about once a month or once every 6 weeks or so. Only issue can be is that every now and then, something has happened at a Chipotle somewhere (like the noro virus breaking out at a store in Virginia) or getting some bad ingredients at a store in the Washington (state) area. So you never know. As for Cilantro, from what I remember, I enjoyed it. But I usually tend to stick to something like the BBQ pork and keep it simple with like rice, corn, sour cream, cheese, lettuce. So, can't say I've had a complaint about either place.

[kevm14]

I need to be clear that I don't think Cilantro tastes "bad." But it didn't have that flavorful quality that I expected and dousing my burritos in the various hot sauces also didn't seem to help, which annoyed me. I've been there quite a few times many years ago and that experience never changed based on what I got. I think their food to price ratio is good (and better than Chipotle) but that's not really a concern - it's not like I'm going out to lunch every single day.

I'm not even really sure why I would find Chipotle to be that much tastier. It should be about the same. But for me, it's not.

[Adam]

You guys should try Adalberto's Mexican Food in San Diego.

[kevm14]

Yeah exactly. Or Tex Mex which Bryan assures me is the shit.

[dochielomn]

Is Adalberto's a chain though or a fast food type of place? Not really fair if it's just an actual restaurant. Plus locations counts, .

[Adam]

It's a chain of restaurants that operate like fast food (order at the counter, pick up by number, etc...)