Qdoba Mexican Grill

People.  You know what you're getting when you come to qdoba.  The service at this location is good, place is clean, food is more flavorful than at the C-word down the street.  Giving this place one star is like giving McDonald's 1 star.  When I go there I get exactly what I expect:  cheap large portions of delicious but far-from-authentic Mexican fare.  Tip: pay the few cents extra to get the ranchera sauce on your burrito. Also. Try the Mexican gumbo it is quite tasty.

Ordered a burrito with no cheese, no sour cream. (Allergic to dairy)
Cut open burrito to check before eating. Cheese.
Returned burrito, informed them of allergy, they apologized and made a new burrito free of charge.
Cut open 2nd burrito to check before eating. Sour cream.
Promptly went somewhere else.

I appreciate the effort of Qdoba management to get customers in here but it doesn't appear that a lot of people will be coming back.  The food is bland and just doesn't taste fresh compared to Chipotle.  It seems Chipotle has hotter, fresher, better tasting food because they get steady business all day and so they are constantly cooking. On the other hand, it seems Qdoba's food sits there for a while and taste just like it's been sitting there.

I've been to Qdoba 5 times and only paid once.  I wrote a bad review and management sent me three free entree cards. I was careful to pick out what I wanted with no extras so it wouldn't cost me anything. I'm not cheap, I just don't want to pay for anything here.  Then, I got three free entree cards at the Cubs game.  As much as I don't enjoy the food, it's edible enough to warranty a free lunch. I'll save money where I can.

I've tried the burrito, naked burrito, nachos, and tacos with various meat, rice, beans and veggies and I'm not feeling anything. The nacho cheese taste good but it's not worth going for.  Everything seems to be an extra charge here where not at Chipotle.  The tacos at Chipotle automatically come with rice and beans, but at Qdoba you have to ask for it. Otherwise it's just meat, salsa, sour cream, cheese and lettuce.

The other thing I don't like is that Qdoba uses plastic bowls and covers for to-go food and plastic bags for carry out. In this day where we are trying to use less plastic and less oil to make plastic (among other things) I'd prefer Qdoba take a page out of Chipotle's book when it comes to food to go.

Despite the freebies, the food and the disinterested staff are not enough to get me to come back once I use these last two free cards!