Guacamole Upgrade

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

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

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

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

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?

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

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