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the university daily kansan
wednesday ▲
10.6.99 ▲
eight.a ▲
maybe folks have simply grown weary of greasy burgers.
Perhaps the soggy piece of pizza isn't pleasing. And maybe apple pie and hot dogs aren't really what we want as our national dietary symbols anymore.
Three local shops think they have the problem wrapped up.
On Oct. 1, 1998, New York Burrite officially opened at 939 Massachusetts St. Months later, Z-Teca Fresh Mexican Grill, 743 Massachusetts St., and Chipotle Mexican Grill, 911 Massachusetts St., followed suit.
Packaged in flour tortillas and stuffed with everything from ground beef to tofu, the "wrap" has invaded Lawrence from its California homeland.
Somehow every restaurant touring the hip concoction has managed to stay in business despite similar offerings and location.
Representatives of the new restaurants said business had been good, although none would release profit figures.
Anyone who's hurried themselves into the world wraps can tell you there's more than one way to fill a tortilla. Meat, beans and cheese no longer are crucial. Sour cream and gouge sauce no longer rest at the pinnacle of extravagance.
Instead, it's about things like marinated chicken breasts,
Instead, it's about things like marinated chick in breasts, steamed tortillas and obscure vegetables.
It is also about quantity and quality. For about $5, all three of the stores on Massachusetts advert offer a bursito that usually prices more than a pound.
These stores have brewed up new interest in hefty burritos and unwrapped some competition. Now the brains behind the burritos come forth to spill the beans.
Oso Burrito
Joe Warner sifted through a stock of oxymoron some of his customers had left next to the cash register last week. KU football, congressional ethics and smart K-Staters were a few to appear.
Warner is owner of New York Burrito — the exymoron that originally inspired the contest. Though there are more than 60 New York Burritos across the country, New York is still foreign territory.
From the spicy Cajun shrimp wrap to the South Bronx smothered burrito, New York Burrito doesn't lack options.
The wrap, Warner said, originated in San Francisco about a decade ago and was now hitting the Midwest.
As for the high population of burrito shops on Massachusetts
Street, Warner doesn't find it too surprising.
"Obviously it splits up the pie, but anytime you're in food service you're in competition with others," he said. "Customers come in the store all the time and say they like ours the best."
Two Burrito
Bruce Marano gave away 2,700 burritos in August — a number that, in burrito terms, is worth $13,500.
Through free burrito ads in the University Daily Kansan, Marango, owner of Z-Teca Fresh Mexican Grill, hoped to connect with the student population of the University of Kansas.
"It's no different than buying someone a beer," Maranea said. "I just bought them a burrito."
Marano said his restaurant had quickly-served gourmet Mexican food in a relaxed atmosphere. Marano is proud of the fact that everything is grilled or baked rather than fried. He boasts that everything is made from scratch.
Marano is well aware of the competition.
"We don't care if people try out the other burrito places," he said. "They'll see ours better."
Though Chipotle Mexican Grill looks conservative from the street, inside one finds a room that looks like a mix between Mad Max and Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
The store opened at the beginning of last summer with a bang. After handing out informal invitations, two nights of free burritos and free beers followed. People swarmed in like vultures.
"People would get on their cell phones and a drave of that buddies would come down to join in," Manager Matt Easley said. Like the other burnt places, Easley said his store was the best.
"I hear from people all the time that there is no comparison," Easley said. "We have the best product. People come in here and are hooked."
Mord
Despite the influx of new burrito restaurants, Jesse Zuniga, owner of Burrito King, 900 Illinois St., said his business hadn't been affected. He said that his five-year-old business was family run and didn't buy food prepackaged. He also said price was a difference.
"You can almost get two of my burritos for the price of one of theirs," Zuniga said.
Zuniga said he didn't think people would become devoted to one burrito restaurant.
"It's like anything else," ne said. "No one wants to eat McDonald's three times a week."
Burrito King: No.1
Burrito King: No.1 Chipotle Grill: Chicken Burrito New York Burrito: The Original Z Teca: Vegetarian Burrito A No.1 — the classic burrito wrap with chicken, beef or pork, covered in sour cream, rice, lettuce and beans — satisfies like no other when the need for a lot of food arises. For shear value and amount of food, Burrito King is unsurpassed. Three bucks for a pound of food? Gid-syrup — Mike Miller, sportswriter If you want a lot of rice and a little chicken on the side, have a Chipotle Grill chicken burrito. Although Chipotle's signature cilantro-lime rice pleases the palate, it suffocates the flavor of what's traditionally supposed to go inside a tortilla — chicken, beans, salsa, sour cream and cheese. The chicken burrito is a carbo-loaded wrap, bordering on bland. — Emily Huhgey, staff writer The Original New York Burrito is the signature dish at the restaurant. Ground beef, small slices of pastrami, pinto beans and flavored rice are tossed into a flour tortilla, then either a mild red sauce or a slightly more bold green sauce is slathered on top along with shredded cheese. While the pastrami is a little unusual, it works surprisingly well. — Brendan Walsh, movie critic The vegetarian burrito is bland and big. Inside the burrito's bleated belly, watery black beans settle in a warm pool of disabled hot sauce, herbed rice and a fistful of cheese. Upon request, a white drizzle of sour cream can be sprayed onto the burrito's innards. It is an act of consumption to be missed. Plus, it costs too much. — Dan Curry, associate features editor
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