The Baja Buzz

Baja Fresh vs. Chipotle

2010-09-30T23:16:00.000-07:00

Wow! Chipotle, you almost got me! I got a recommendation on twitter from Chipotle to try the steak burrito with rice, beans, hot salsa, corn salsa and cheese, and I have to admit I really enjoyed it. They don't mess around over there...

I've been hearing a lot of talk about Chipotle lately, but between the assembly line approach to the food prep and the old ties to McDonald's, I haven't been able to take them that seriously. Today though, I gained some respect for this establishment.

Simply put, the burrito was great! It had the flavor it needed and it was nicely balanced. I actually went for a carnitas taco too, and I was impressed. On top of that, I tasted the guac my friend ordered, and it was outstanding. So Chipotle, props to you for making good food. It's true what people say - you're better than La Salsa, Qdoba and Sharky's.

Still though, I'm not sure Chipotle is quite on the Baja level. I went there for dinner and had the Nacho Burrito with steak. The big difference was the steak that came right off the grill. It hadn't been chopped up before I entered the restaurant and it wasn't sitting behind a glass wall waiting to be scooped up. Also, it's tough to match the Queso Fundido. The salsa at Baja are amazing too, and at Chipotle there's not even a salsa bar. Oh, and let's not forget about the fact that you have to buy your chips at Chipotle. Seriously, you guys are better than that...

But one thing's for sure: I'll be coming back for more. Chipotle deserves the love their getting, and now they're even getting some from me.

One more comparison left - the final one is Rubio's!

BB2

Baja Fresh vs. Sharky's

2010-09-30T00:07:00.000-07:00

Another day, another comparison. Today the Fajita Burrito at Sharky's was up against the Ultimo Burrito at Baja Fresh. Many people are unfamiliar with Sharky's because they only have 21 locations and almost all of them are in SoCal, but they're quite popular in the LA area...

As a true Baja boy, I'm not sure I can ever fully embrace a Baja competitor, but I must say I appreciate the freshness of Sharky's. Quality ingredients always make for a good starting point. But where's the flavor? Had it not been for the salsa I kept throwing on my Fajita Burrito, this would have been an outrageously bland experience. On top of that, I really walked away feeling like the folks at Sharky's are a bit stingy with the meat. The rice-to-meat ratio definitely wasn't right.

Also, who thought squash would be good in a burrito? I realize I'm getting some veggies when I order something with "fajita" in the name, but shouldn't peppers and onions be enough?

Coming "home" to Baja for dinner in the evening saved the day once again. The Ultimo Burrito - which I typically order with carnitas and quac instead of sour cream - was simply delicious. It may have been a bit heavier than the flavorless squash-rice thing I had earlier in the day, but the buzz certainly made it up for it. Another one bites the dust...

Next up is Chipotle!

BB2

Baja Fresh vs. Qdoba

2010-09-28T23:33:00.000-07:00

The Queso Burrito sounded tasty - and it was. But something wasn't quite right at Qdoba. I don't know if it was the lack of a salsa bar or the fact that I had to pay to get chips, but the experience just wasn't on the Baja Fresh level...

Freshness is definitely an issue when you do the assembly line style burrito making, and to me the food loses some of its appeal in that situation. "We make it fresh for you." Yeah, but you've had all this stuff - including the meat - sitting out here forever... Still though, the food was pretty good. Even the salsa was tasty.

But the not-so-great service and the cold atmosphere - stainless steal tables, seriously? - didn't make this a great lunch. There's obviously a limit to have great the atmosphere can be at a quick serve restaurant, but Qdoba just seemed completely stripped for any soul. And when comparing that to the outstanding service at Baja Fresh for dinner, it became clear that this wasn't even a fair comparison.

The Queso Burrito is supposedly one of the most popular items at Qdoba so I tried to match that with a customized version of the Nacho Burrito at Baja Fresh. Even though the flavor of the lunch version was solid, Baja's steak and queso fundido knocked it out. It's that simple - Qdoba didn't really have a shot, and I don't think I'll be going back there any time soon.

Next up is Sharky's...

BB2

Baja Fresh vs. La Salsa

2010-09-27T22:46:00.000-07:00

This is the week - five days of intense comparisons! Realizing that some of the other quick serve Mexican restaurants have fans too, I wanted to put them all to the test to see how they really stack up against my beloved Baja Fresh.

So this week I'm doing lunch at one place and then a comparable dinner at Baja Fresh the same day to compare full meals without any sleep or other non-sense in between. First up was La Salsa...

I must admit I was a bit apprehensive about going to a Baja competitor, but as soon as I entered the restaurant, I immediately felt welcomed by a surprisingly pleasant La Salsa atmosphere. The staff was friendly too (solid service for sure) and I ordered the recommended Mexico City Tacos - one with steak, one with chicken and one with carnitas.

Comparing this to dinner at Baja later proved to be a bit tricky, but I was able to order three Original Baja Tacos with the same three meat types and just add cheese. At La Salsa, they actually serve those tacos with what on the huge poster looks like some kind of cheese-coated tortillas, but that pre-melted cheese thing turned out to be a dramatic disappointment. So on the cheese alone, Baja definitely had a leg up on La Salsa. Another disappointment at La Salsa was the chicken, but the carnitas taco was amazing. Baja matched it though, and with better chicken and more flavorful steak, they won all-around in terms of food quality.

But the biggest La Salsa disappointment was a part of their name - their darn salsa! How do you brag about eight different kinds of salsa when they all suck? Ok, that's not true - let me back up. Their avocado salsa is surprisingly tasty and their habanero salsa is decent, but the rest are just weak and sad. And on the pet peeve side, what's up with those tiny salsa ramekins?

Guys, I could really go on and on here, but the conclusion is simply that Baja Fresh was better than La Salsa - today and probably everyday. Baja was tastier and it also gave me more of that buzz (although admittedly the La Salsa lunch that was still in my system could have added to the Baja buzz in this case)...

Next up is Qdoba!

BB2

Thanks Fellow Freshies!

2010-08-15T19:24:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, thanks for all of your support and shared passion for BF. We just wanted to let you know we are reading your mail and plan to take the suggestion for guest posts, promotions and more. Please reach out if you want to get more actively involved!

BB1 & BB2

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

2010-08-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

Taking inspiration from my friend, and not to be outdone by BB2, I too aspired to the perfect week recently. Though I cannot touch (nor do I plan to attempt) his 2x per day obsession, I did successfully eat there 5 weekdays in a row recently. I got hooked on BB2's EZ pico recommendation on Baja steak and especially like how it teases out the guacamole flavor. It is definitely better with steak but also plays well on chicken too. Other varieties in my 5-day mix were the Ultimo chicken w/ EZ sour cream and the Veggie burrito with black beans and EZ sour cream, then add chicken. But the best part of the week had to be the novelty of critiquing burritos on the porch with BB2-- thanks again for lending a hand to help move that chair!

BB1

The Perfect Week

2010-08-08T19:58:00.000-07:00

What a week! Baja for lunch and dinner every day Monday through Friday - 10 visits in 5 days. Pure culinary bliss. The perfect week. Yes indeed.

In my 9+ years as a Baja enthusiast, I've enjoyed many amazing back-to-back Baja meals, but this was the first time I made a conscious decision to stay truly consistent for a whole week. Can't believe I waited so long to do it. The experience was incredible. So many highlights. In no particular order:

Custom taquitos on the house! Anybody ever had the chicken taquitos prepared with Baja salsa, the red hot salsa and cilantro? I would have gladly caughed up some serious dough for this delicious dish, but I wasn't about to complain when it was offered up on the house by the friendly staff. Tuesday's dinner couldn't have been better.

Dinner with the whole gang. Wednesday night was special because a bunch of us got together for dinner. It doesn't exactly hurt when the people you care about join you at Baja. And the Ultimo Burrito with steak (no sour cream, guacamole added, enchilado style, extra enchilado salsa) didn't make it any worse.

Best quesadilla ever! If you step into Baja and you're not sure what you want to order, you can count on the staff to make some clever recommendations. Proof: Who would have thought to add diablo sauce and cilantro to the chicken quesadilla? That's how I wrapped up the week with dinner on Friday. Outstanding.

Lunch with BB1 on his patio. The two Baja Boyz get together over a burrito quite frequently, but it's not everyday we pick 'em up and bring all that flavor with us. Some furniture lifting was required that day too, but after the manual labor we got to enjoy our Baja Burritos with steak (easy pico, crispy - as always) out on the patio. Baja and fresh air - fantastic!

So beyond these highlights and the joy throughout the perfect week, what was the point? Well, this is basically the test. If you want to make sure you're a Baja lover - a true Baja boy or girl - you should try a full week of it. In fact, that goes for any restaurant you might be into. Put your culinary love to the test! Are you just a normal eater or do you appreciate something so much that you can eat it all the time? And do all restaurants have lovers like this? Interestingly, a couple of the Sharky's lovers I know told me they wouldn't even be able to do anything close to this. Maybe Baja love is stronger than any other love?

BB2

Baja Me

2010-08-03T01:25:00.000-07:00

The Baja Boyz may have put eating over blogging lately, but we're never turning our backs on the Baja Buzz - we're still buzzin' for the right stuff...

And some things just need to be documented. My plan for an all-Baja week (the perfect week as my brother calls it) most certainly falls in that category. This is my own little version of Super Size Me, only tastier and healthier. Sadly though, Baja Fresh doesn't offer breakfast so I'll have to stick to my Honey Bunches of Oats in the morning, but this week I plan to have Baja Fresh for lunch and dinner every single day!

I'm not sure what to expect from this experiment other than pure culinary joy and some of that buzz we all love, but people seem to find this idea strange for some reason. My response to the world? Well, it's just sad that not everybody has found something they love enough to eat all the time. If they had, they wouldn't find this plan the least bit odd.

I'll be reporting as I go through the week, but I can tell you right away that this is going to be amazing. For lunch today I had a Baja Burrito with steak, easy pico de gallo, crispy and diablo sauce added. How can you go wrong with that? And for dinner I went with the Burrito Mexicano with chicken, hot salsa, pinto beans and queso fundido added. Just delightful.

For all the wonderful Baja Fresh employees out there, I got two words: BAJA ME!

BB2

Starting the Week off Right

2009-09-14T20:23:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you gotta double up - a Baja-free weekend (pathetic) may just have to be followed by two visits on a Monday. At least that's how I felt today. One trip didn't do it for me, but I had to switch up both location and meal.

After going basic but bonafide for lunch - Baja burrito with steak, crispy - at restaurant #2, I went more advanced for dinner. How about a burrito customized from scratch: mixed meat, rice, queso fundido, cheese, guacamole, easy sour cream and some lettuce. Oh yeah! It all went down at restaurant #50, and it was delicious. The pic truly does not do it justice, so you gotta just take my word for it and try it next time.

On an unrelated note, I've been seeing a lot of Baja tweets over the summer, and you know the Baja Boyz recommend following Baja Fresh on twitter. Good to see them taking advantage of the social media tools available. We'll be coming back with more on Baja Fresh marketing though...

BB2

Spreading the Love

2009-08-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

I was more than happy to help my local store manager promote a push for more online and phone orders by passing out coupons to my colleagues. Here is the text of an e-mail I sent to approximately 200 people in my office today.

Team,

As some of you know, I am a huge Baja Fresh fan. Today the local store manager gave me a wad of “$2 off next purchase” and “$5 off any online or phone order >$5” to share with you.

Get ‘em while they last and let please them know I sent you!

I tagged each of the coupons with my initials and will report back whether the manager sees and increase in store traffic from my efforts.

BB1

Free Burrito Day - July 22, 2009

2009-07-28T09:56:00.000-07:00

Is Baja Fresh figuring out social media marketing? Perhaps...

On July 22, the company posted a free burrito w/ purchase of a regular beverage coupon on its Facebook page (note to self: rant about company doing a way with small drinks in a future post).

According to the company they gave away over 50,000 burritos last week. I'm curious about the rationale for such an investment. At an average $6 per unit, how do you recoup a $300,000 when it's being promoted primarily to existing customers? The promotion would need to hook 6,000 new loyal customers who spend a minimum of $50 in the near future just to hit break-even.

More commentary on recent Baja Fresh marketing activities in an upcoming post.

BB1

A New Fav BF Combo

2009-07-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my colleagues Mark and Ian for turning me on to my latest favorite dish: Grilled Vegetarian Burrito; add chicken; black beans; easy sour cream. Captures all of the flavor of the Ultimo Burrito without the weight of the rice. Lettuce gave it surprisingly good texture and beans made it hearty and healthy too. I'm looking forward to trying different variations on this theme(add jalapeno, crispy, etc.). Just might head back there today for another go at it. Yum!

BB1

Thinking Small

2009-06-08T08:35:00.001-07:00

It's refreshing when big brands think small. The manager of my local Baja Fresh on Friday picked up the tab for my lunch (Baja Burrito w/ chicken, crispy). The gesture was appreciated as a loyal customer, but also as a marketer impressed by a large consumer retail food chain empowering its local managers to embrace the communies they serve.

BB1

Guacamole Upgrade

2009-04-09T18:36:00.000-07:00

Coincidentally, just days after commenting how impressed I was by Chipotle's guacamole (mainly because it had a nice kick to it), the manager at my local Baja Fresh invited me to give some feedback on their new recipe -- apparently they are the only store testing a new supplier of avocados from Mexico. It was fresh enough, but I don't expect Baja will have the balls to add jalapenos to the recipe, and it could use a dash more lime and garlic in the mix. In any case, I was happy to provide my feedback and will keep you updated on who has the best guac in the biz. For now the best recipe can still be found at my house. ;)

BB1

Unfaithfully Yours

2009-04-03T14:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Baja,

I ate at Chipotle today. There, I said it.

I'm sorry, but it was bound to happen. After all, she's more conveniently located, sitting there all shiny and new and everybody talking about her free burrito promos, beer and whatnot.

For what it's worth, she's not half the burrito you are. I mean, sure the appearance of control calling my own ingredients sounds good, but it's quite a bit of extra effort having to make all those decisions. Besides, who wants to see all those tubs of meat, watered down sour cream and come face-to-face with their creator as she fumbles my tortilla? Not I. The corn and fresh fajita peppers are ok, but a buck sixty extra to add guac? C'mon! No thanks.

Her guacamole may taste a little better, but you've still got the best chips around (and thankfully you don't charge extra for them!). And salsa? She's got none! Nothing, nada, zip - no salsa bar! No kidding! Sheesh!

I love your after-taste and your quality, I don't care what anybody says. Chipotle ain't got any buzz on you baby. I hope you will forgive me, as I was really only conducting "research" I hope will help make us stronger.

Love,
BB1

Return to sender

2009-03-30T23:02:00.000-07:00

Driving by again I was surprised to see the Baja Fresh logo covered by a "your name here" banner. Turns out corporate HQ moved to Cypress, CA, far from its Conejo Valley roots, so I guess it makes sense why nobody was too motivated to change the lights.

Wherever they go to work each day, I still have visions of a band of food service professionals scurrying to create new promotions and advertising to sell more burritos! I wonder if they are thinking of using social media to engage Baja Fresh brand loyalists like me?

BB1

BA A F E H - lights out

2009-03-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

Driving on the 101 North through Thousand Oaks, California, if you look off to the right side of the freeway just after crossing the 23 interchange, you can catch a glimpse of the Baja Fresh corporate offices, marked with their signature red and green logo.

It always gives me a warm feeling knowing that a small cadre of businessmen and women are inside cooking up new dishes, launching new stores and creating promotions to make a marketing professional like me proud.

For the past year or so, however, driving by at night has been something of a letdown. Instead of a glowing becon of the Baja Fresh brand, 3 of the 9 lights which comprise the company sign adorning the side of its office building are out, making the company name appear to be BA A F E H. That's a full one third of the company's brand missing in action!

I wonder if BF pays extra for the building signage? If so, I would be asking for a credit -- and some light bulbs! C'mon Baja Fresh - turn on the lights!

BB1

Double Crispy

2008-11-07T14:33:00.000-08:00

I ordered BB2's favorite lunch standby today (Baja Burrito/Chicken/Crispy) en route to the Newbury Park location. A phone conversation delayed my arrival by about 30 minutes but Blanca was more than happy to send it back to the grill for a "re-crisping." The result was a darker skin and even crispier texture than usual, with a surprisingly more flavorful finish having all those ingredients marinating together for awhile. The Baja Salsa was spot on and I was remined that not all of the stores have the

same chip recipe.

Ever wonder why the Newbury Park location doesn't have one of its signature Baja Fresh store number seals displayed inside, despite it being where the franchise started? It's because the original store #1 seal now hangs in the company's corporate office in Thousand Oaks. Apparently, when the store moved from its original location on Kimber to the current one on Broadbeck (off Wendy Dr. near Home Depot) decorating corporate HQ was more important than carrying the seal to the new location. That's why today I am calling for Baja Fresh to create a new "Store #1" sign to replace the makeshift one that now hangs where the original one should. Think of the pride employees will feel the day a new sign is hung, not to mention increased sales from all of the Baja Buzz readers who will undoubtedly want to stop by to check it out. C'mon Baja corporate, DO IT!!!

BB1

How Much Is Too Much?

2008-10-15T23:57:00.000-07:00

Knowing full well I’ll be reunited with BB1 tomorrow for lunch at – you guessed it – Baja Fresh, I still couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a Baja dinner tonight. This obviously isn’t the first time I go for back to back Baja meals (only separated by a little bit of rest and a light breakfast) and people keep asking me how I can handle all that Baja.

My friends, as a certain old man would say, The Baja Boyz have been doing this for years, and we’re not gonna stop. Now, Baja for lunch and dinner on the same day, I’ll admit, might be a bit heavy. I do that too sometimes, but the DBD (Double Baja Day) is pretty ambitious. What I’m really interested in though is the Baja threshold; specifically, what’s the least amount of time one can have between Baja visits without compromising or, even worse, fully jeopardizing the Baja buzz. I could eat at Baja Fresh all the time, but of course it doesn’t have the same effect if I go twice a day, every day.

With dinner at 7:30 pm and lunch the following day at 12:30 pm, 17 hours go by and that almost feels too long. But only 7 hours (going for lunch and dinner on the same day) might not give enough time to maximize the buzz. I’m pretty sure the answer to the question at the very top of this post is “it can never be too much when you're talking about Baja,” but I really need to get to the bottom of the buzz maximization question…

BB2

Baja Sunday

2008-10-12T21:13:00.000-07:00

While most people might prefer a heavy Sunday brunch, a real Baja boy will have to pass on that and instead go for something light for breakfast on that last day before the new week starts. The reason for that is simply that a bowl of cereal is the perfect foundation for what will later be a perfect lunch.

That’s how I warmed up today. So when the need for the buzz started creeping up on me around 2 pm, you know I had to head down to the closest Baja Fresh restaurant to solidify the highlight of the day. It was one of those visits that just called for something classic – a Baja Burrito with steak. But I always go crispy on those. How else are you gonna get the outside crunch AND make sure the pico and guac don’t freeze everything up in there? Anyway, it couldn’t have been better – the most classic Baja Fresh burrito and a Coke in the California sunshine…

As we all know, one thing that can potentially make a fantastic Baja run like the one today slightly less fantastic is when the Baja salsa (the brown one – but you already knew that) isn’t thick enough. But today was a good Baja salsa day! Oh yeah, thick, but not too chunky, and with the extra kick. Ah! You gotta love it!

BB2

Welcome

2008-09-01T23:30:00.000-07:00

Few dining establishments deserve a blog filled with as much love and appreciation as we have for Baja Fresh. The Baja Buzz was affectionately named not just for the “buzz” we hope to create among Baja Fresh fans, but for that easy feeling that sets in moments after you’ve consumed a flavorful Baja Fresh burrito. Mmmmm!!

We created The Baja Buzz to share our love of the food, our passion for the brand and our opinions about the Baja Fresh menu and dining experience. From the quirky and bizarre to the practical and informative; from product feedback and recommendations to our personal dining experiences, what we order and literally how we eat it, The Baja Buzz is a forum for EVERYTHING Baja Fresh.

We are the Baja Boyz. We live in the Conejo Valley in Southern California, where we visit some of the original Baja Fresh store locations several times each week. We have been eating at Baja Fresh since it was founded in 1990 and we are die hard Baja Fresh aficionados. While we don’t take ourselves too seriously, we’re serious about our dedication to the Baja Fresh brand.

We look forward to sharing our opinions (and yours) as this unlikely journey of two guys who love Baja Fresh unfolds. Our aim is nothing short of creating a new Baja Fresh lexicon and giving its customers a voice in how the Baja Fresh experience evolves in the years to come. We hope you will join us.

Welcome to The Baja Buzz!