At Centennial, food is a shared comfort. During after-school activities, it’s not uncommon to see Chipotle getting dropped off at the school, or to hear students make plans to meet there. As an athlete, I’ve celebrated after track meets by getting Chipotle with the team. As a community member, I’ve supported Best Buddies fundraisers held there, as Chipotle is a convenient and popular option that students are interested in.
Specifically, burrito bowls have been experiencing a craze among students in recent years due to their availability, diverse customizability, nutritional value, and affordability, which makes it efficient for students to plan meals during a stressful academic season. Additionally, the fast-casual setting has also been preferred due to its quick accessibility. Our location is especially convenient, with 121 Chipotles and 25 Qdoba and Cava locations in Maryland, each of which has one location in Ellicott City or Columbia. The fast-casual restaurants offer flexible accessibility, providing pickup and delivery options in addition to a quick build-your-own ordering process, available both in person and online.
With Chipotle as a trendy food hub, students have also diverged in seeking popular alternatives, including Qdoba, a more affordable option, and Cava, a Mediterranean-style option. Cava offers more olives, spinach, customized dips, and spreads, which has been gaining popularity lately because of its positive health benefits.
Although Chipotle is the popular choice that most students have tried and trusted, it remains a fair competitor to its contenders. Fittingly, some locations are even stationed right next to each other, like the Chipotle and Qdoba in Ellicott City and the Chipotle and Cava in Columbia.
When it comes to the portions of the food, Cava seems to be the best option. Chipotle and Qdoba offer only two rice options, while Cava provides three. Cava also allows an added extra grain and meat option to one bowl, giving more value compared to Chipotle and Qdoba. However, I usually get falafel as my meat option, but they only give me four or five of them, which is lacking. The same is recognized with their other bowl ingredients. Out of the three, Cava also has the broadest range of dips, spreads, and dressings, while Chipotle doesn’t offer dressings. I also found that I felt the fullest after having a Cava bowl, despite my order having the same number of calories as my Chipotle order. Qdoba does not track calories, but it seemed like they gave much less compared to Chipotle and Cava. While I rated my satisfaction level with Chipotle a 10/10 and Cava an 11, I would rate Qdoba as a 6 on that scale.
Cava remains an outlier when it comes to the nutritional content. With the fast-casual chain being Mediterranean, it differs from Chipotle and Qdoba’s Mexican cuisine. Their background explains why their ingredient range is significantly larger, particularly with more plant-based options, making it a preferred choice among individuals with dietary restrictions, such as vegans and vegetarians. The Mediterranean style is also more naturally sourced and provides a better balance of nutrients, including fiber, healthy fats, and antioxidants. I specifically noticed that Cava’s avocado tasted fresher and riper compared to the others, feeling more authentic, especially since some of the avocado was browned due to oxidation. The texture was more solidified and less gooey compared to Qdoba and Chipotle’s, but still blended in very well with the rest of the Cava bowl when mixed. Their “fire-roasted corn” was also perfectly burnt around the edges, notable in its crisp taste.
Being very similar to Chipotle, Qdoba’s quality is much more refined. Their rice was grainier and saltier, while Chipotle’s just felt soggy; their tomatoes and corn were juicier, their cheese was heated up and slightly melted, and their chicken was more tender. Although I enjoyed the more pungent taste of their toppings, some might say that the queso and cilantro overpower the flavor.
Qdoba keeps its emphasis on its literal cheese culture. If anything, Qdoba is renowned for its signature queso, including its 3-Cheese Queso and Queso Diablo. The 3-cheese queso is a sophisticated cheesy blend that meshes perfectly together, and the texture of the cheese is very lightweight, melting in my mouth while blending well together with the other ingredients. Their Queso Diablo is a spicy version of the 3-Cheese Queso, featuring jalapenos and peppers to heaten it up. As someone who enjoys cheese, the blend, along with the amount given, is unmatchable.
When it comes to affordability, Qdoba is undoubtedly the winner. While my Cava order totals $15.85 and my Chipotle order totals $15.95, Qdoba’s is only $11.25, as it doesn’t charge extra for certain ingredients like Cava and Chipotle do. They even offer extra guacamole and queso for free. Cava is at the same price point as Chipotle, but even they provide a free side pita along with the bowl. But the cheaper price at Qdoba comes with less content, which is a downside.
We all know Chipotle, but it’s nowhere near the best investment for a burrito bowl. So the next time someone suggests a Chipotle run, tell them to save their money and hop next door to Qdoba or Cava.
