The Chipotle chain has come to the Capital District. There's been a Chipotle restaurant in Wilton for a few months, but it's come closer to home. Friday was the grand opening of the new Latham Chipotle (on Troy-Schenectady Road, by Target), and they're building another one in Clifton Park. I have to say that I was excited to have a new restaurant in the area, and we'd heard many good things about Chipotle.
In fact, I'd first heard about Chipotle a little over a year ago, when I met some new friends who had recently moved to the area from Colorado. They absolutely hated Bomber's, and thought Moe's was OK, but said you couldn't beat Chipotle for "fast" Mexican food.
Not only that, but most of the food at Chipotle is gluten free! The only items that are not safe are the flour tortillas. Hard shell tacos, bowls, salads, and chips and salsa are all safe. Their entire allergen chart is available online: http://www.chipotle.com/Chipotle_Allergen_Card.pdf Now, you can get "bowls" at Moe's, but what is nice about Chipotle is the ability to go there and get a taco or chips and guacamole about bringing your own.
So, we checked it out on Friday evening. We got there around 6:30 or 7, and the line was pretty long, but moved very quickly. My husband ordered two orders of tacos -- one chicken and one barbacoa -- and I ordered one order of steak tacos and some chips and guacamole. The original plan had been to share each other's orders, but we had some slight differences in mild vs. medium hot sauce. The tacos themselves were OK, and we enjoyed our meal, but I'm not sure how frequently we'd really go there. I like the tacos we make at home much better, and guacamole is very easy to make at home (or, spicy Wholly Guacamole is wonderful and labelled gluten free).
Our order combined with two sodas came in around 27 bucks, which seemed a little high for tacos that were comparable in size to what you'd get for much less at Taco Bell. I was full after my three tacos, but my husband didn't think two orders was enough for an entire meal. The burritos would probably be more filling -- but unfortunately they don't carry soft corn tortillas.
Overall -- not terrible, I'm glad we tried it, but a little overpriced for what it is. Still, major props for a clear allergen information policy and actually offering gluten free corn chips (Moe's, ya hearing me?). If you want to try Chipotle, you can order online at their website or through the iPhone -- that's pretty cool!! :)
