Our blog would have probably preferred to start off with some chic restaurant or independent café. Yet, work constraints had us pointing for a lunch service closer to the office with an eye on good food but also quick turnaround. Nevertheless, we were still going to start this off in style and by the rules of engagement.
Six of us from the Wimbledon Eatery visited Chipotle Mexican Grill, an American food chain offering gourmet burritos and tacos which only opened around 6 months ago. Concept is similar to other recent tex-mex food joints that opened in London: you start your order at the counter, follow your dish as it is "built" in front of you, add sides, pay straight away and off to your seat.
Service is quick and fast as the friendly staff dynamically takes your order step by step with great synchronicity. It is a well-thought production chain: you order, you go! Queue was not very long on the day but at busy times you can imagine very little space available as we were bordering the main entrance (and fortunately we were not sticking out in the drizzling rain). Ordering process is still quick so be ready before you queue up, and have payment at hand or the end of the queue will turn into a traffic jam, with dishes, cards and hands overlapping. Apparently there were many cooking and waiting staff but only 1 cashier!
The menu is very brief and lacks a few details that may catch you unprepared, and it did for a few of us. Drinks are listed by categories, not by brand. Yet, you pick up the drinks from the chilling cabinet situated a few feet beyond the till which you only notice after you have paid. If they do not have the flavour of juice you want, or the brand of soda you like, you should have checked before queuing up. There is a silver lining: we think you could order water or the cheapest drink, and perhaps grab the most expensive drink unnoticed...cheeky!
The internal décor is not really Mexican, but it is also far from having any form of
décor at all. Very minimalist, with great emphasis on metal and wood, it
can be easily labelled as the cold version of McDonald's. Seating is self-contained, with six-seaters similar to a diner. There is also an outdoor area which looks nicer than the inside and it is a shame the weather was not in favour. Anyway, we sat to enjoy the first taste of our 50-restaurant long journey and finally tasted the food.
Flavour was nice, rich, and not artificial. Their big claim is on organic food and free range, which we appreciated and it seems to reflect on the taste buds. Meat and beans tasted fresh, and the same for guacamole and sour cream. The bulging meat-beans-rice filled burrito was rather filling, but the vegetarian salad was no less. You can of course help yourself to paper napkins and plastic cutlery, but remember tacos and burritos are messy finger food so be careful as it will spill here and there. You also eat from plastic baskets as you would with street food, so your expectations should be resized - this is not a typical restaurant but rather a fast food chain selling on the basis of good quality foods that you can be satisfied of!
Our verdict is as follows:
Quality of Food 4.50
Hygiene 3.67
Value for Money 3.50
Speed of Service 4.33
Quality of Service 3.50
Ambience & décor 2.00
Chipotle gets an overall rating of 75.6%
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