We say Chipotle!

With the Marlborough food plaza just seconds away, we students face a very difficult decision in contemplating where to eat when it comes to lunch time. Will we get a mac n’ cheese from Panera today? Or an Italian foot long from Subway? Or a McChicken from McDonald’s? But what about Papa Gino’s? Just kidding; no one goes there anymore. But let’s say you’re feeling like Mexican (which is every day), then you really only have two choices: Chipotle or Moe’s?

As two people who know everything and anything there is to know about Chipotle and are referred to by the staff as their “Chipotle regulars,” the choice of where to eat lunch is rather simple and easy… it’s Chipotle every single time.

After the bell rings at the end of the day, there’s really only one Mexican restaurant that all of the Algonquin kids rush to eat at, and is that Moe’s? No… it’s Chipotle. The two minute drive from the high school to the Marlborough Chipotle is already two minutes too long, versus the long 18 minute drive it takes to get to the Shrewsbury Moe’s.

Now, besides the fact that Chipotle is better, the menus at Chipotle and Moe’s are very similar! They both offer burritos, quesadillas, burrito bowls, salads, chips, and tacos; but wait, Moe’s doesn’t offer soft tacos… only crispy tacos.  And now that we think of it, Moe’s also doesn’t offer quesurritos or certain meat  choices like barbacoa and carnitas or two choices of rice… but then again you could argue that Chipotle doesn’t offer fish or tofu, except who in their right mind eats tofu or fish in their Mexican food?

Some may also argue that with every purchase at Moe’s you get a free bag of chips, but what is a free bag of chips when they aren’t made with a squeeze of real lime and kosher salt? And what’s a side of guac when it’s not hand mashed with ripened Hass avocados, mixed with freshly chopped cilantro, red onions, jalapeño peppers, citrus juice, and salted until silky, sexy and delicious? Although both places have an endless amount of combinations to choose from, it’s Chipotle that has the best combinations.

Now, it has been said that Moe’s has a formal greeting where when you walk in, the staff stops what they’re doing and turns to you and yells “Welcome to Moe’s!” We’ve never been greeted like that or greeted at all for that matter. Instead, when you enter Chipotle the warm atmosphere welcomes you and draws you in, and the pleasant workers greet you with a smile.  The astounding surroundings and vibrant music that Chipotle offers help you to enjoy your food to the maximum.

In addition, aside from being more delicious, Chipotle is much cleaner and healthier than Moe’s. What’s the fuss over this “famous queso” anyway? We hear it’s the best thing about Moe’s, but you are also ingesting 920 calories of orange goo and 3530 mg of sodium, so that’s not so good. Chipotle’s highest calorie salsa or “side” is the Guac and it’s only 150 calories…that’s 770 calories less (ouch). Also, when you walk up to the counter in Chipotle, the food is always neatly organized in individual sectors, warm and freshly cooked, but Moe’s wouldn’t be Moe’s unless the counter is always a bit messy.

So next time you’re feeling like Mexican food and you ask your friends where they want to go to eat after school and they say “Chipotle” (because they will), don’t be afraid to do what they’re doing because, in the end, it is and will always be the right thing to do.