Dining Review -- Kathy Mader

One of the top five greatest things about living in Southern

California is the abundant availability of Mexican food. With this

state’s close proximity to Mexico, we get some of the very best down-home

recipes, and all the authentic ingredients that go into it. And if we

don’t like the way one restaurant does it, we’ve got lots more to choose

from. I’ll say right off, I like the way Chipotle Mexican Grill on Harbor

Boulevard does it.

What is Chipotle, you ask? A chipotle chile is actually a dried and

smoked jalapeno with a smoky, sweet, almost chocolaty flavor. It is used

in various sauces and marinades, including salsas. It is a lot easier on

the mouth than the raw jalapeno, and its flavor is one of a kind.

You can’t actually say that Chipotle the restaurant is one of a kind

because they now have about 200 restaurants nationwide. To write this

review, I had to get over my bias of chain restaurants -- a bias which

actually has nothing to do with food and a lot to do with cookie-cutter

strip malls, but that is neither here nor there. I went, I ate, I wrote.

The decor at Chipotle is that new ode to stainless steel you see in

the newer restaurants. It’s not a warm environment, but I like this

metallic look for several reasons. One is that it is a very clean look,

and two, if it isn’t clean, you know it. Stainless steel is not

forgiving, and neither am I when it comes to dirty restaurants. This one

is clean.

I mentioned Chipotle is actually a Mexican grill. Items like

enchiladas, taquitos, flautas and the like are not found on the menu.

This is “grill,” as in meat. Meat is the name of this game. You name it

-- carnitas, pork; carne asada, beef; pollo, chicken; and barbacoa,

barbecued beef, can all be found in the traditional burritos, fajita

burritos or tacos.

We tried the barbacoa burrito ($5.29), a huge burrito made of shredded

beef braised with chipotle peppers, cumin, cloves and garlic, pinto or

black beans, their special cilantro-lime rice, sour cream and hot

tomatilla-green chili salsa. This was pretty darn good, but placed third

in our top three.

Second was the carnitas (pork) burrito ($5.50). Another very large

tortilla stuffed with marinated and grilled pork, pinto or black beans,

rice, sour cream, cheese and salsa. Let it be known that Chipotle is not

heavy on the cheese like some local Mexican restaurants. This could be a

good thing or a bad thing depending on you. Me, I can never have enough

cheese. But like I said, this place is about the meat.

Our unanimous No. 1 choice, believe it or not, were the chicken tacos

($4.85). You can order them in a crispy corn tortilla, and this is

actually a good way to go because you get four instead of the three you

get with the soft flour tortillas. But the soft flour is what we ordered

and these tacos, stuffed with marinated, grilled chicken, sour cream and

cheese, lettuce and salsa were simply outright delicious. Get some

guacamole on the side and you have entered the gates of heaven. Would

that it were that easy!

The menu here is simple but also includes vegetarian items. And for

once I can say that I wouldn’t mind sampling a vegetarian burrito,

because in place of meat, it is stuffed with guacamole, rice and beans.

The rest of the good news is that, if you are so inspired, you can even

get a margarita or a beer, just not to go. You can even fax your order in

ahead of time.

Chipotle caters as well, in fact they just supplied the spice for the

professional volleyball tour in Huntington Beach. Who wouldn’t be happy

to receive a jumbo carne asada burrito? I would any day, just not in a

bathing suit.

But you don’t have to wear a bathing suit to enjoy the food at

Chipotle. In fact, unless you are a professional volleyball player,

please don’t.

* KATHY MADER’s dining reviews appear every other Thursday.

FYI

WHERE: Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2300 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa

WHEN: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily

HOW MUCH: Inexpensive

CALL: (949) 646-1288