5 Reasons Qdoba is Better Than Chipotle

1. The Tortillas - Chipotle's are thicker and chewier; Qdoba's are thinner and stay out of the way of the fillings. 

2. The Sauces - Chipotle has the basic fillings (e.g. chicken, beef, pork, etc.) that come only plain; in addition to plain Qdoba offers those with tasty sauces including Ancho Chile BBQ and Poblano Pesto, among others.

3. The Rice - Chipotle has way too much cilantro in its rice; Qdoba has a more reasonable amount. For me and people like me (www.ihatecilatro.com) better to have less (or none) and let those who love cilantro add more.

4. The Loyalty Card - Qdoba has one that earns you free food for frequent dining; Chipotle doesn't have one at all.

5. The Ownership - Chipotle is owned by obesity-fueling behemoth McDonald's; Qdoba is owned by the much smaller and cooler Jack in the Box.

Bring it on Chipotle fanboys/Qdoba haters!

Comments

[Alex Nunez]

I have to agree with just about all of this, though I couldn't care less about ownership. I am a big supporter of McDonald's world-beating french fries, after all. And didn't Jack in the Box have some hideous e coli situation years ago? I digress...

Chipotle's good -- no question -- but Qdoba's tortillas are conducive to a less messy dining experience, and the flavorful sauces put it over the top. The frequent dining card is icing on the cake.

The only issue you neglected to mention is that the burrito technicians at Qdoba sometimes fail to evenly mix the ingredients, so you can have some lopsided filling distribution as a result. tI suppose there's no avoiding human error.

Also, Qdoba's closer to the office -- no small thing.

Weinberg is going to have a cow over this.

[Nick]

This is just confusing.

Cilantro is wonderful.

[Erika]

I agree. Cilantro is the worst tasting herb on the planet! It's like eating fresh dirt.

[ChipotleFan]

1). Thicker tortillas make for more secure burritos that don't fall apart with your "every so wonderful" extra sauces (as opposed to fresh SALSA'S that Chipotle offers.

2) Chipotle marinades there chicken and steak in real Chipotle based Adobo sauce for AT LEAST 24 hours giving them plenty of deep taste that requires NO extra sauces. If you do need sauces, the meat is just not that good.

3) The Cilantro Lime Rice is wonderful and the cilantro amount is well regulated. However, IF you don't like cilantro they CAN give you fresh plain white rice instead...problem solved.

4) Chipotle gives out 4 promotional cards. The popular "Burrito Buck" that gives you a one time FREE burrito, bowl, salad, or tacos, a new Buy One Get One Free Card that does just what it says (gives you a one time FREE burrito, bowl, salad, or tacos when such an item is purchased, a FREE chips & guac card that gives you a one time FREE order of Chips and (way better than Qdoba) guacamole.

5) As of 2006, McDonald's no longer holds stake in Chipotle (IT DOES NOT OWN CHIPOTLE!!!) Besides, CEO Steve Elles is a visionary entrepreneur that goes around the country to find locally own farms that provide food that is of the best quality. Animals that are naturally raised, allowed to be outside (not in cages of confined spaces), animals that are never given growth hormones, steroids, antibiotics, AND they are all vegetarian fed! PLUS the cows that provide the milk for the sour cream and cheese are NEVER given RbGH (Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone -- A hormone injected into the utter of a cow to produce roughly one gallon more milk a day; it's painful for the animal and bad for people).

Can the same be said for your beloved Qdoba?

ALL CHIPOTLE FANS UNITE AGAINST THIS OUTRAGES LACK OF INTELLIGENCE AND SENSE!!!!

[Anonymous]

Try Panchero's.

[G. Stone]

Just checked, the Mc Donald's ownership and found this as of 2006 "McDonald's, which had been the majority owner of Chipotle Mexican Grill, spun off its stake in the restaurant chain in October, allowing Chipotle to become an independent entity" from the Washington Post. Saying one food is better than the other is like masturbating with a fish, yeah it may get you off, but you junk smells like fish.

[acb@def.com]

McDonalds spun off Chiplotle because they would not lower their standards to conform to typical fast food practices. Apparently Qdoba has no problem with low standards and it comes through in the quality of their food. I refuse to pay a premium price for food that is only slightly better than Taco Bell.

[NBA JAM]

The author of this article is a near-sighted idiot.

@acb: McDonalds divested (unloaded their shares) in Chipotle at the same time as other restaurants such as Boston Market. This had nothing to do with a quality conflict. This was part of an initiative to focus the McDonalds Corporation.

@ChipotleFan: You sir are a knowledgeable person. Just given the quality management and 'behind the scenes' quality and ethics of Chipotle there really is no reason to hate the company. Even the years with McD as an investor did nothing to detract from the fact that Chipotle is a fine example of how a business should be.

[dan pritts]

Reason to hate qdoba: Replaced yummy quasi-authentic mole' sauce with...bbq sauce. yuck.

[James]

two more reasons qdoba is better than chipotle: 1.) qdoba is open way later the chipotle (i haven't seen the comparison in many other places but in a college town, when one's open all night on the weekends and the other closes at 10pm, that's just bad business) and 2.) QDOBA HAS BREAKFAST BURRITOS; these are quite possible the most enjoyable item on their menu and are even cheaper than regular burritos.

[Bovemsa]

Qdoba > Chipotle

all ze wayyyyy !

[Anonymous]

For all the reasons ChipotleFan said, Chipotle is way better than Qdoba, it is very obvious.

[Most informed on the matter]

Chipoltle's food with integrity thing is a total scam, trust me, I worked there. As of 2009 we got food from the same companies as mcdonalds. That said, Chipoltle does have some great food. Better tasting meats, better rice imo, although 99 times of a 100 I would NOT make white rice for you(p.i.t.a). Qdoba does have better salsa and sauces though. The guacamole is pretty even, at chipoltle we did it twice daily, idk about qdoba. We dont have queso to match qdobas heavenly stuff. One big advantage we have is that Chipoltle is a huge corporation while Qdoba is composed of primarily franchisees. This allows us to be more uniform and food to be predictably good.
Chipoltle gets a slight edge here.

[Brynn]

Mmm Now I am craving a Queso Burrito. Of course, from Qdoba!