We don't have Chipotle Mexican Grill in Hawaii so I really wanted to try this place. We passed a Chipotle directly across from the University of Florida twice on this trip. Both times the lines were so long we decided not to go in. As we were driving back to our hotel we saw that there was another Chipotle right near our hotel. We ventured in and there was a very short line. The menu is very simple. You choose either a burrito, fajita burrito, burrito bowl, tacos or salad with chicken, steak, carnitas, barbacoa or vegetarian fillings. Then you go down the line and add whatever topping and salsa you like. Every dish is around $6.00. We ordered soft tacos with chicken, barbacoa and steak. I topped mine with hot salsa, lettuce and just a tiny bit of cheese. My wife went for the quacamole and lots of cheese. The barbacoa is a spicy shredded naturally raised beef braised in chipotle adobo, cumin, cloves, garlic and oregeno. The steak taco uses a cubed beef that is marinated for hours in chipotle adobo and then grilled. The chicken tacos are naturally raised, vegetarian fed chicken that is marinated in chipotle pepper, adobo and then grilled. All of the tacos were great. You get three tacos per order and can mix or match them. There were alot of burritos being served. They are huge. By the time we got through the short line dozen of people including the University of Pacific Volleyball team were all waiting in line. This place rocks. It is only a matter of time before you see the Chipotle Grill in your neigborhood and hopefully Hawaii.
UPDATE 5/4/14
CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND
CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL
3201 ST. PAUL STREET
BALTIMORE, MD 21218
410-662-1701
Note: There are no Chipotle's in Hawaii
Finally made it back to Chipotle after many years. I did a blog on Chipotle way back and did not even have pictures. That blog has received tons of hits and may be in the top ten of all time on my blog hits. This time I snapped some photos. Chipotle is a super successful chain that has a cult like following. Their stock has been on fire for years and now is around $500 per share. Hard to believe this when you enter one of their stores. It is pretty simple stuff with basic tacos, burritos and bowls. Not many selections but all top quality ingredients and fresh. They can rock out a custom burrito for you in seconds so it is FAST AND FRESH! I went with a Steak Burrito ($6.84). Once you order the meat, you can add beans and rice. After that the guy slides your burrito over to another person who adds sides like salsa, guacamole, sour creme, lettuce and cheese. I threw it all in along with the "hot" sauce. The burrito was heavy and rolled into almost a ball. I added Chips n' Salsa to my meal for $2.13. A small drink set me back $1.66. So all in this lunch was around $11. The burrito was FANTASTIC. I could only finish half during our visit but took the other half back to the hotel and enjoyed it later that evening. Every ingredient in the burrito can be tasted because it is fresh. There are no Chipotle's in Hawaii but boy I wish there was!
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| CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL |
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| PRETTY BASIC AND CLEAN DINING AREA |
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| ORDER - PICK UP AND PAY AT THE COUNTER |
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| CHOOSE FROM STEAK, CHICKEN OR CARNITAS AND ADD BEANS/RICE IF YOU LIKE |
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| CHOOSE TOPPINGS - SALSA, CORN, SOUR CREME, CHEESE, GUACAMOLE, LETTUCE, CILANTRO |
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| SIDE ORDER OF CHIPS N' SALSA. THERE ARE MORE CHIPS IN THE BAG |
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| CHIPOTLE BURRITO |
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| LARGE BURRITO THAT HAS SOME SERIOUS WEIGHT TO IT |
Thank you for posting this! (Heard about this restaurant chain when I watched the extras on the 'Food, Inc.' DVD. Then I ran through a search, hoping that one was somewhere in Hawaii... No such luck).
ReplyDeleteHopefully one will open in Hawaii sometime in the future (especially in the Aiea/Pearl City area?)... I know. Just wishful thinking... ;-D