Qdoba vs. Chipotle
 

So, from which culinary kitchen do you prefer those fatty fatty burritos from?

Qdoba, with its snazzy little cactus logo, or Chipotle, with the astro/contemporary font and restaurant layout?

I think I prefer Chipotle. I seem to get more bang for my buck there.

I've only ever been to a Qdoba, but from a marketing standpoint, theirs is the better name. It's intriguing and more instinctively pronounceable. Qdoba also more adequately conveys their theme; if you don't know what a chipotle pepper is, you're sort of lost. A cactus, on the other hand, is a pretty recognizable symbol of Tex-Mex cuisine.

Having never eaten both to compare, I must withhold full judgement. But Qdoba wins the logo battle.

Out of all the burrito places I've tried, Qdoba was inferior to Chipotle, California Tortilla, and Urban Burrito. Their cheese sauce was okay, but I just wasn't very impressed. Although Chipotle had the plainest menu of them all it still had quite a bit of flavor.

Having never even heard of Qdoba, never mind eaten there, and being a fervent follower of Chipotle, I would say the latter since I can't imagine anything more delicious than a giant chicken fajita burrito with chunky guacamole and Chipotle Tabasco sauce.

True, I'm making an uninformed decision but I'm moving in September and nothing made me happier than knowing a Chipotle was within walking distance of my living quarters.

I've actually eaten at both. They have a Qdoba on the Rutgers - College Ave. Campus and tried Chipotle a couple of times when I've been in NYC.

I agree that Chipotle has the better taste, but Qdoba manages to take it from them just for the amount of variety that it has.

Qdoba for me.

I'm holding you personally responsible for the small puddle of drool that just formed on my keyboard.

I've never even heard of Qdoba... in my neck of the woods it's either Freebirds or Chipotle, and while I like both, I like the overall flavor of Chipotle better. I just wish they had the option of adding extra cilantro :(.

And I love their metal-sculpture Mayan symbol art as well.

Since of those two we only have a Chipotle here in Visalia, it wins by default.

Why does it have to be either one? Chipotle burritos are dry and lack variety, and Qdoba, while having a lot more to chose from, is too expensive (no combo for chips and a drink to go along with my burrito?) I'll take California Tortilla (local to the DC area) or any other local chain over those two.

Chipotle all the way. My favorite would have to be the vegetarian bowl! I love the burrito stuff too but falling into that trap gets my stomach really full, too full that it hurts.

I'll take Qdoba any day over Chipotle. I love the ability to choose more than a burrito or a taco for dinner, they cost about the same amount of money, and goddamn nothing beats Qdoba's nachos. Also, gotta say I like the taste of Qdoba's chicken a lot better than Chipotle's.

The limited selection never bothered me at Chipotle. I go there when I want an excellent Chipotle burrito (and veritable meal in itself). Aaaaand I go to other restaurants when I'm in the mood for something else. Not a big deal.

I'm certainly going to be trying out Qdoba soon, however, as there's a franchise location just a block down the way from here.

I decided to give Qdoba another shot yesterday, since it's a 9 block walk to California Tortilla. Qdoba's chicken ranch taco salad was quite tasty, especially the grilled chicken, but for almost the same price ($6) I could get a salad twice as big, with more toppings, at California Tortilla. At least it's a good way to enforce portion control.

Where's BM at with the rabid Chipotle support?

Never heard of Qdoba before and there's a Chipotle within a couple miles of where I live, so my preference is obviously skewed.

Kind of disagree with Qdoba being more "instinctively pronounceable." How do you pronounce it? Q-doba? Kuhdoughba? Chipotle seems much more manageable to me.

Alright, just tried out Qdoba and I thought it was pretty tasty. Maybe a little flat compared to Chipotle but seeing as its closer I'll probably end up going there instead.

I didn't even know Freebirds was a chain until now. I went to the original one in Goleta (a.k.a. Isla Vista, a.k.a. Santa Barbara) many times. They have awesome burritos. However, it's a different style than Chipotle. I like both. I've never been to a Qdoba, but I hear there's one somewhere not to far from where I live now, so I'll have to seek it out.

Ha, Freebirds...

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/7...againbysf9.jpg

This poll needs more Moe's.

There's a Qdoba more conveniently located near me than a Chipotle, and I've taken quite a liking to their burritos. Sometimes they're poorly wrapped, but they're overflowing with fixings. Dee=lish.

You mean the place that throws your chips willy-nilly into a bag, then tosses your burrito on top of them, and tops it off with an insultingly small container of salsa? I don't think so.

Franchised burritos are tools of the white man. Get to California and eat a burrito from some dingy taqueria you never heard of.

I've never heard of Qdoba before (I'm in California), and I'm also not sure if we have any around the area I live in. There are quite a few Chipotles in the area though. Maybe about three within 5 miles of where I live. So I have to go with Chipotle for the sake of familiarity. I also usually feel quite full after eating there.

:3 Legend has it that the Chipotle near my campus was the first restaurant~ (yea go Colorado)

I've tried Qdoba before, and honestly wasn't a fan. The burrito I had was soggy after like five minutes, which made it really difficult/gross to eat.

Can't remember much of the flavor either, which may say something about how tasty it was (whereas I remember how Chipotle's burritos taste like)

'Course, I've had Chipotle first, so that might be a factor of not liking Qdoba, but I think I'll get my burritos from Chipotle <3

In my area, there is neither a Qdoba (which I've never heard of) or a Chipotle (which I've heard from friends in the Midwest). Actually, there aren't any franchised burrito places in my area.

I'd say the closest would be a California Tortilla in Newark, DE but I don't know how widespread that franchise is, aside from locations in D.C. It could be that it's just a college town and they were cashing in on the craziness that can be a college campus.

I've only been to Chipotle. The first visit was the direct result of endless Chipotle talk, so I decided to give the place a try. Needless to say, I wasn't too impressed, but this was probably because I failed at ordering. I don't even remember what I got. The second time around, I ordered a steak burrito and added beans, pico de gallo, and rice. Much better. I could definitely use another one right now. The only issue I have is the price. Okay, well, I guess it's not too bad, but I could fill myself with more at the same price. And no, I'm not referring to greasy McDonalds. :D But then again, Chipotle usually leaves me feeling pretty full, so meh.

Chipotle is better for one reason: Chipotle Tabasco sauce, as was pointed out by kat. I mean, I get the (pretty boring) vegetarian salad, but I smother that damn thing with this sauce. I don't think it's available in stores. =/

Fuck, now I want a veggie burrito, extra fajita, corn salsa, guac, no sour cream. Unfortunately, thanks to the endlessly rising floodwaters, the normal 15 minute walk there has been turned into a 40 minute quest through flooded streets, unstable bridges, and tourists from Illinois who start fistfights if someone asks that they would PLEASE quit standing on the sandbag levee that we're trying to build so that the city doesn't sink under 20 feet of water.

And the stupid part is that I'm probably going to risk drowning to get one now. ENJOY YOUR 500 YEAR FLOOD GUYS

We don't have Qdoba around here, instead we get Panchero's, which is a regional chain. It's not very good, as I found that they're quite expensive for their small meal sizes, and everything has this odd cloying sweetness to it. I'm aware that tortillas are supposed to be slightly sweet, but they take that quite a bit too far.

Eh. I have all 3 (Panchero's, Qdoba, and Chipotle) around, and I prefer Panchero's to Qdoba. Quality's about the same and prices are better.

Chipotle's still probably the best of the bunch, however.

I think Panchero's is better than both Qdoba and Chipotle. The tortillas are better, and they have better salsas.

I don't like Chipotle much because all the meats taste the same, except for the chicken (which is the least tasty anyways). I guess I'm just not a fan of adobo.

Qdoba... Chipotle... They pale in comparison. If you're looking for the world's greatest burrito, the you must fly to Albuquerque, New Mexico and go to Dos Hermanos. Nothing else comes close.

Dos Hermanos Authentic New Mexican Restaurants - Albuquerque, New Mexico

I'm first going to have to represent my local burrito bar, Machismo Burrito Bar: Fresh. Local. Delicious. They're really vegetarian friendly and have really fresh stuff.

It's a tough call. It really depends on the crew working the night, because I've gotten fantastic and terrible burritos from both. Qdoba tends to vary the most, while Chipotle usually is pretty consistently decent. I have a million coupons for $5 Qdoba Burrito and Drink meal, which definitely skews it to Qdoba's favor. Combined with Qdoba's variety, it makes Chiptole look pretty sad. However, it's hard as shit to get to Qdoba, due to their shitty parking situation in my area.

And 1.50 Guac? What the hell is up with that?

No duh. Pick any food you want - some small shop will be able to beat the national chains any day. That's not this thread. This thread is deciding which big chain (that most people have access to) is superior .

Chipotle, the steak just tastes much better. Also, free drinks for students. At least around here.

Though I do love a Queso burrito every once in a while.

I keep hearing this, but not sure which one people are talking about. I want to know if I've been there :/

Well sorry for being so off topic; why you gotta be such a Nazi? Not like mentioning another burrito joint completely derails the thread. You'll thank me later when your find yourself in ABQ eating a Dos burrito and realize that your life is complete.

Does anybody have access to a Taco del Mar? If so, how do you think it compares to the other chains?

I assure you that my life will be considerably more complete if I never have occasion to visit New Mexico.

Taco del Mar's not bad, but I'd prefer any of the 3 chains mentioned thus far in the thread over it.

Taco Del Mar is the only one of the chains that I've ever even seen, let alone been to. I'd never even heard of Qdoba before this thread was made. That said, I am a fan of the Mondo Burrito. It seems that unless the person who made your burrito was a total douche, they usually pack them rediculously fat. So much so that a single well made Mondo will be enough to satisfy even a giant hunger, from my experience. Befriending the staff never hurts either, since I work across the street from a TDM. Nice enough guys.

Qdoba has a new pulled pork on the menu, which is absolutely a must. It's way better than either the chicken or the beef. They get major props for it!

Hmm, my experience with Qdoba wasn't that good, but hearing all these responses about Qdoba makes me want to go back and revise that. Good thing a Qdoba opened up about 10 minutes away from home.

My vote goes for Chipotle, however. I found Qdoba to be amazingly dry, but it could've been that specific restaurant.

It's apparently the one on Evans, near DU, but I'm not so sure.

A lot of Chipotle places have special events where you do ridiculous things for a free food. I remember seeing a lot of tin foil on Halloween and if you buy gift cards for certain holidays, you get a free burrito when you bring in the receipt.

Anyway, does Qdoba have any promotional things like that? I heard that if you sign up for the newsletter, you get a coupon for your birthday? I definitely wanna give them another try, but there aren't a ton of locations.

Taco del Mar's west coast, right? I only saw them in Orange County in California, although they had some pretty incredible burritos too...

...delicious and expensive Mexican food...

...Yeah, wow. Definitely should not be reading this thread at 2.30 in the mornin' (especially Adol's post!)

Fuck I'm hungry :tpg: