Baja Fresh

It has been a LONG time since I have been to a Baja Fresh location. Needed a quick lunch and this place was a random walk in for us. Had a shrimp Baja burrito and found it quite good — specially compared to some offerings from Chipotle or Moe’s in recent memory.

I came in here today having never been to this location and not even knowing there was a Baja Fresh in New York! I looked at the menu and decided on the tostada salad with steak. When it was given to me on a tray, it looked very good and fresh. It was in a crispy corn tortilla shell. I saw romaine lettuce, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo and cheese. I did not realize it was pico de gallo and not just tomatoes until I tasted it. I did not see the beans and was about to get up and ask the order taker about it when I dug a little deeper and saw the beans were at the bottom. There is a salsa bar with a few fresh and cooked salsas, sliced jalapeño peppers, whole banana peppers, and other toppings. I grabbed a container of the medium salsa and the hot salsa, a container of pico de gallo, some sliced jalapenos, the whole banana peppers, a lime wedge, all from the fixins bar. The two different salsas were tasty, and Ive never had a whole banana pepper (only slices) but they were deliciously hot.
It is not fast food. It is fresh food withing a reasonable amount of time.

Solid burritos. They do have a wider menu than Chipotles, but when I get Mexican I typically get the burrito and this place just can’t compare on the food. There’s nothing wrong with this place. Again very solid. Just tough competition.

Baja Fresh captured the essence of why I am not a fan of Mexican food. I had Chicken Taco, which was basically two pieces of soft corn tortillas filled with fire-​grilled white meat chicken, fresh onions, and cilantro. I added verde salsa (green mild salsa) and pico de gallo to add some flavors, but the taco was still pretty bland and nothing special. The Mexican rice and black beans on the side both needed more seasoning. You would think a chain restaurant with hundreds of locations around the country would be much better than this, but nope!

I’m a big fan of fish tacos and I must say I was a little hesitant to get them from a fast food chain. I have to report that I was pleasantly surprised. The fish is fresh and line caught. The fried is not greasy and comes with a good amount of fixin’s. The grilled for me was just a touch dry, but I might give it another try in case I just a dud– still tasted good though. Wish they were a touch less expensive, but I will definitely be back.

Not sure why so many people are comparing this place to Chipotle. The only thing they have in common is that it’s a Mexican type of place and it’s a more expensive fast food. thats where it ends. Baja Fresh have a much larger menu. Chipotle is burrito or bowl (THATS IT). I Would also like to add that Chipotle is not the first place to serve burritos in a fast way. I wish more readers would try different things to know that. Also I had Baja Fresh many years before I even heard of Chipotle. First time I ate Chipotle was in 2007ish in LA. First time Baja Fresh was in Miami around 2002. What I am saying is… Chipotle is not the be all, end all of fast Mexican food. It’s for sure the biggest, but it’s far from the best. It’s mostly good because they mastered the art of consistence. Okay got that out of the way.
I go to this location sort of often, but I am not a fan of the cramped space but the food makes up for it. Mostly everything I ever have here is good. They are also very generous about giving free chips. For a quick Tex Mex type of meal, you can’t go wrong.

I was actually really disappointed in this place, mostly because the food was so basic.
I got the Chicken Baja Bowl, which was just rice thrown with a scarce amount of chicken breast, black beans, and bell peppers. It was just… whatever. I actually have no adjective to describe the food because it was just so forgettable.
The restaurant itself seemed really dingy too, like a run-​down fast food joint, which was surprising considering that this place is situated right near Times Square. If you’re trying to attract customers, at least make the place look presentable!
If you want good Mexican fast food, definitely do yourself a favor and go to Chipotle. If you’re super hungry or you have the munchies, then I guess this place will do.

Bathrooms were dirty (and I mean «even dirty for a Times Square take-​out place»). Ordered the burrito, and the shell broke apart too easily. The avocado might’ve been fresh, but guacamole is more than just a wedge of avocado. It was dry and tasteless. Worst of all, I ordered a chicken burrito, and there were definitely a few pieces of steak in there. Will not go back.

Zero taste. I had the diablo burrito which has diablo sauce plus I added the spicy salsa. It had no spice to it what-​so-​ever. Guacamole was bland as well.

I’ve never been to Baja Fresh in general, so I decided to check it out. The moment I walked in the staff was very friendly. The manager (I think?) saw me checking out the big menu and gave me a smaller version so that «I didn’t have to strain my eyes» haha. I tried the chicken quesadilla and it was really yummy! It already came with guac, sour cream, and pico for a decent price.
I was just most shocked that I barely finished getting myself a drink and my order was ready! I actually said «wow» out loud. The people there were genuinely nice, and the music was very relaxing and hip which made me enjoy my lunch break. I’ll definitely be back again :)

Another lunch time review!
I ordered a big olé steak burrito with a side of guac and chips. Both were MUCH larger than I thought they would be!!! The burrito easily makes two meals. They put warm chips with some extra cheese melted on them, with the burrito. Fresh ingredients. Nice flavor. HUGE!!!
The guac? How do I know it’s fresh? I pulled out a big olé wedge fresh avocado! They mix tomato in… which isn’t my preference… but it’s executed well, and has a bit of heat behind each bite.
Delivery came on time, and the delivery guy was nice. Solid choice for lunch time delivery in the ‘hood!

This place is just ok for food. Their salsa bar is good and very necessary because their food barely has any flavor. I have been here several times and tired their rice bowls and salads. Their chips are usually stale and hard to eat. Even though they are free, i never take them.

I forgot what my burrito was called but it was a chicken burrito with pinto beans, rice and sour cream. All the other condiments, sauces and ingredients you have to put on yourself on the food bar off to the side. The Burrito was pretty expensive and very bland. I also noticed that considering there were only really three ingredients in my burrito the ratio of rice to beans/​chicken was way to much. It tasted like a rice wrap with dried pinto beans and sour cream with a little bit of chicken. It was a few cents shy of ten dollars. i also didn’t enjoy having to make part of my burrito myself.
They keep salsa and other sauces off to the side in case you want to add them to your meal. Be warned that the lids for the small containers you put them in doesn’t really fit onto the container very well. I spent almost five minutes trying to put the lid on. It wasn’t just me either. The other guy at the condiment/​salsa station was having just as hard a time putting his lid on as I did So be warned don’t fill the sauces to the top. It was very frustrating to say the least.
A few other reviews talked about this place being cheaper than Chipotle. That’s completely false. A Burrito at Chipotle is eight and change while my burrito was nine and change at Baja Fresh. This shouldn’t even be compared to Chipotle. A more accurate comparison would be to the frozen burrito you’d find in your local grocery stores frozen food isle. I can say I tried it but I won’t be back and not because it’s more expensive than a burrito from elsewhere but because the food just wasn’t pleasant at all.

I’ve been to other Tex mex places but Baja Fresh takes to another level… Forget taco bell
this is the place go if you can’t find taco food truck.
I don’t overload my tacs I like the Original Baja Tacos served withf steak, carnitas, or, shrimp or chicken on a warm corn tortilla and topped with freshly diced onions, cilantro, and salsa
Always Fresh & Delicious!

Whenever I am in the area to meet the Princess at work I make a point to stop in here for a quick taco or two. Obviously it’s not in the league of my fave Bushwick taco truck but I prefer this place much more than the over rated Chipotle or the disgusting and vile Taco Bell.
I usually get the fish tacos and you get fresh, battered or grilled fillets in a soft tortilla shell with some slaw on it. The shrimp and Carnita tacos are delish as well. The free salsa bar is great, lots to choose from of varying degrees of heat. They give you a free bag of chips as well no matter what you order and how the hell do you beat a fast food joint that serves booze! They really pack it in after work and everyone around me was drinking Margaritas. Havent tried one yet but its only a matter of time tick tock.

Don’t go here.
The food tastes like a school cafeteria. And not a good school cafeteria.

First time ever at a Baja’s and I am pleasantly surprised! Unplanned lunch with my sister and all I had was 45 minutes before I had to be in the Upper West Side. Where to go and its 1130am! Baja’s it was!
I had the steak and shrimp Baja bowl. What set this place apart for me from Qdoba and Chipotle was the freshness of the ingredients and the quality of the food! It was delicious! And the salsa bar was awesome!
For a fast food type establishment, the food is pretty damn good. I am a Baja Fresh convert.

I’ve been here a few times for lunch. What I hate about this location is that it’s always crowded. There’s always a long line waiting to order, and if you want to eat in, be prepared to wait for a seat.
Their food is pretty good. They give you free chips and salsa to start off. They have many different flavors of salsa, and you can pick out as many as you like. The mango salsa is one of my favorites. Also, it sucks that they make you pay extra if you’d like sour cream or guacamole ($ 2 for guac is pushing it!).
I had their steak burrito and really liked it. I just wish it had a little more steak and a lot less rice. The burrito was big, but only because it was stuffed with rice.
So I like Baja Fresh, but to me, it doesn’t come close to the quality and taste of Chipotle.

Out of all the mainstream fast-​food Mexican franchise restaurants in the city Chipotle, Qdoba, Baja Fresh, I like Baja Fresh the most. Chipotle is just too expensive for what you get. Qdoba is pretty good but it’s too far from my apartment and Baja Fresh is located about 5 minutes from my apartment and they have a Do-​It-​Your-​Self Salsa Bar? which is a HUGE Plus. Their Burritos are pretty big and tasty. I got the Carnitas Burrito for lunch today and it was pretty filling.
Their Salsa Bar has a wide variety of options to suite anyone’s taste:
SALSAS:
Salsa 6 Chiles: HOT (Red)
Salsa Verde: MEDIUM (Green)
Salsa Pico De Gallo: MEDIUM
Salsa Baha: MEDIUM (Brown)
Salsa Mango: MILD (Yellow) —This is my favorite!!! Sweet and Tangy! :P
CONDIMENTS:
Cilantro Leaflets (??)
Bell Peppers
Jalapeño Peppers

A few weeks ago, D wanted to eat here. The food had a lot of flavor which is always welcome. But unfortunately it came with a lot of sodium too…
I ordered a Bare Burrito –Served in a bowl ($ 8.50 with tax included): «Grilled peppers, chilies and onions, fresh chopped cilantro, Pico de Gallo and your choice of salsa all on a bed of lettuce with freshly simmered black beans»

What I liked:
1) a lot of food: about 2 servings
2) very flavorful
3) fixings bar: I love the free salsas and accompaniments
What I did not like:
1) the grilled vegetables were oily
2) sodium levels were off the charts: this is coming from someone who loves salty food
3) rice: it was very tough and very fine pieces. I didn’t enjoy it at all.
Summary: Baja Fresh might have fresh ingredients, but it’s not that great. I can’t get over how much sodium and how awful the damn rice is. No amount of free fixings can hide the fact that you’re stuck with a double serving of this stuff…