Let's turn to something else: Chipotle - lots to consider

[GaryDis]

There are way better authentic Mexican places in the Boston area than doing a cookie cutter chain place.

Any outside 128 that do reliable vegetarian? There's a new Mexican sit down at the Burlington Mall that looks promising, but I wouldn't compare its TS to the QS at Chipotle/Qdoba/Moe's. And the problem I have with the mom and pop Mexican is that there's pork everywhere, and I'm not even sure I can trust their wheat tortillas.

I never heard of Moe's. Had to google it. Definitely not any here.

FWIW, there's one at Universal's Citywalk in Ordlando. It's my backup for our arrival there, next trip, depending on crowds and how hungry we are.

I've always preferred Moe's to both Chipotle and Qdoba, I think because they put more greens and less rice into their salads. But Chipotle is closest to home, and I do appreciate their Sofritas (vegetarian substitute for meat).

A Chipotle executive seemed quite relieved it was "just" norovirus instead of the more serious bacteria, EColi.

So if it was norovirus, does that mean an employee had it and transmitted it while cooking/serving food?

Norovirus is most commonly transmitted via food handling, so a few affected people in theory might be from a customer at the buffet, but a large outbreak such as this is most probably an employee. It's no surprise that the Chipotle executive would be relieved, because it means it's most likely isolated to one day at one store, instead of the massive E. coli problem they have. But the poor temperature control makes me worry about their company-wide training and policies.

I must admit that I haven't eaten there recently for various reasons, including not being thrilled by it. I like the unique parts of their attitude, but that can't replace either flavor or food safety.

 

[bcla]

I suppose there are the local places in San Francisco, where the Mission style burrito originated. Then again, most are mom and pop shops where one might worry about the way the food is prepared. For the most part they're not going to be living up to some code of ethics regarding he sourcing of their meat and produce.

There was one place in San Jose where it was suspected that one ill worker probably spread shigella. These events tend to be kind of random, and it generally won't make much sense to simply cut out one company because of isolated incidents.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Norovirus is most commonly transmitted via food handling, so a few affected people in theory might be from a customer at the buffet, but a large outbreak such as this is most probably an employee. It's no surprise that the Chipotle executive would be relieved, because it means it's most likely isolated to one day at one store, instead of the massive E. coli problem they have. But the poor temperature control makes me worry about their company-wide training and policies.

I agree. I think I was trying to say, and it didn't come out right, was that it seemed to me, in the article, that he was glad to blame it on noro so quickly, even though an investigation is apparently still underway - this only happened this past weekend - and that it read to me like it was being downplayed, when in fact, a norovirus outbreak is pretty bad as well. Heck, whole cruise ships are taken out of commission when there's an outbreak!

 

[Bec3b1g]

We've had norovirus before and it was really horrible. Dd got it from daycare and then it spread through our family like wildfire. Truly awful!

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

I love Chipotle (and in all fairness, I used to work for them, about 12 years ago). But, the atmosphere is definitely...less...than what it used to be, at least in the area I'm in now.
(Barbacoa is the best. The steak tends to run fatty, as the quick cooking time doesn't allow the fat to break down properly; same with chicken. My craving: hard shell tacos, pinto beans, fajita veg, sour cream, cheese, tomato and corn salsa, smidgen of green salsa, and lettuce; topped with Tabasco Chipotle sauce. mmmmmmmmm)

Moe's is good too. I love the queso dip.

Tijuana Flats is a different set up that Chipotle and Moe's. I really enjoy those Bangin' chicken tostadas....

I haven't been following these stories too much (we stopped eating at places like Moe's and Sweet Tomatoes after DH's transplant; DS and I will go occasionally) but outbreaks of food bourne illness can happen anywhere. One sick or dirty worker in the production line or farm, one sick worker doing prep...and bam, there it is.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I haven't been following these stories too much (we stopped eating at places like Moe's and Sweet Tomatoes after DH's transplant; DS and I will go occasionally) but outbreaks of food bourne illness can happen anywhere. One sick or dirty worker in the production line or farm, one sick worker doing prep...and bam, there it is.

They can, but I think we have to remember they're not supposed to. People get very sick and can even die from them. And many have long lasting sequelea we don't hear much about, not to mention the cost of being sick in terms of lost wages and medical care, etc. And this company has had more than its share - unfortunately, seeing as it's such a popular and well-loved place.

 

[eliza61]

Never eaten in one, no plans to do so . There are way better authentic Mexican places in the Boston area than doing a cookie cutter chain place.

lol, one of the great advantages of living in a city. I rarely do chain restaurants. I actually had someone tell me once that Olive garden was great Italian food.

I have no horse in this race but I do think chipotle will survive this, they are going to have to make serious changes and then do a huge marketing strategy to over come the negative publicity.

 

[JaxDad]

I like Chipotle. I don't go there often, and I don't plan to return anytime soon because of this.

I am no expert on how these things are transmitted, but I wonder if in their effort to be "green," maybe Chipotle chose cleaners (for hands and for pots/utensils/etc) with less than optimal disinfecting properties. Again, no expert, but just wondering...

 

[acebatonfan]

Am I the only person who hates Chipotle with a passion (I'm a college student also)? My college's Chipotle tastes overcooked and bland, and I can make something a lot tastier for a lot less.

I might be paranoid, but those super open buffet/kitchen style places freak me out. All it takes is for a customer or employee to not wash their hands after using the bathroom (and have some sort of bacteria on their hand), reach over the glass and touch the food, and then cause that entire food item to be contaminated.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Same here.

Very unimpressed with either.

Why pay $8 for a fake burrito when I can pay $5 for a taco, a burrito, and Rice at my local authentic Mexican restaurant? And it's just as fast.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Norovirus and Food:

http://www.cdc.gov/norovirus/food-handlers/work-with-food.html

If an employee is sick with Noro at work or back to work before he or she is recovered, it's not just the food that person touches (which is bad enough). If that person *ahem* uses the bathroom (has vomiting or diarrhea), then tiny virus particles disperse in the air and on surfaces, so that mostly everyone who uses the bathroom, i.e. customers and employees, take a little bit of it back with them even if they wash their hands, as it can spread like wildfire in a bathroom on handles and such, and thus it spreads around a restaurant where everyone there can pick it up. Pretty gross. Once it's around somewhere, it's hard to not become infected. (And it dawned on me last night that my own daughter was at a hockey game at BC this weekend. Hopefully she didn't pick anything up there and bring it home!)

EColi comes in on the food, but can also be spread around through cross-contamination.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

This is actually a bigger problem with "organic" and "free range" products than many people realize. I worked for a company that studied the incidence of salmonella in free range vs traditional chicken and eggs. We found twice the incidence of salmonella contamination in free range samples. I have also seen evidence to suggest there is a much higher incidence of e coli in some organic produce, particularly on a local level because farmers are using untreated manure as fertilizer, and there is no processing to remove the bacteria.

 

[Tiggeroo]

One of the problems here is lack of sick time for low paid workers. If you make $8. an hour and your family or even you are dependent on that income there is not much wiggle room. You can't afford to miss 2-3 days in a pay period because you are sick. Also you might feel that your job is at risk if you miss that time. Mandatory paid sick leave with no consequences for taking it, in fact employers insisting that sick workers go home, would help a good deal here. And offering 2 days a year is not enough. Most companies with better paid workers who are offering benefit packages as incentives to work there give at least 5 days a year of sick leave along with personal time that can be used as sick leave if necessary.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

One of the problems here is lack of sick time for low paid workers. If you make $8. an hour and your family or even you are dependent on that income there is not much wiggle room. You can't afford to miss 2-3 days in a pay period because you are sick. Also you might feel that your job is at risk if you miss that time. Mandatory paid sick leave with no consequences for taking it, in fact employers insisting that sick workers go home, would help a good deal here. And offering 2 days a year is not enough. Most companies with better paid workers who are offering benefit packages as incentives to work there give at least 5 days a year of sick leave along with personal time that can be used as sick leave if necessary.

I agree, there should be sick time and people shouldn't be penalized for using it appropriately. Sometimes what's at play, though, is that sick time is used excessively prior to an illness, then when an illness occurs, people don't want to call out because they're over their limit, etc. So saving sick time for appropriate use helps, also. I think there's also an ongoing educational component, too, and that has to come from the company when they employ food workers.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

This is actually a bigger problem with "organic" and "free range" products than many people realize. I worked for a company that studied the incidence of salmonella in free range vs traditional chicken and eggs. We found twice the incidence of salmonella contamination in free range samples. I have also seen evidence to suggest there is a much higher incidence of e coli in some organic produce, particularly on a local level because farmers are using untreated manure as fertilizer, and there is no processing to remove the bacteria.

This is interesting. I haven't seen much supporting data, especially for produce, not sure if it's out there. Do you by any chance have a link?

This is what I've seen - primarily related to meat and dairy: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/02/organic-meat-dairy-safer/#.VmhGmno8KrU

I think there's a lot that's unknown at this point, or at least not well documented.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

And just out, now they are "unsure" if it was the celery-onion blend that caused the Costco rotisserie chicken salad E Coli outbreak, so they are "continuing to investigate".

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2015/...oducts-may-not-be-e-coli-source/#.VmhIkno8KrU

To be honest, when I first heard it, especially it being the E Coli generally associated with beef (0157), my first thought was cross contamination. As in, did someone cut up the cooked chicken in a place where raw beef was present? Hopefully at some point, they'll have answers, but who knows. It can be worse than finding a needle in a haystack trying to pinpoint where an outbreak began.

 

[mamamary]

One of the problems here is lack of sick time for low paid workers. If you make $8. an hour and your family or even you are dependent on that income there is not much wiggle room. You can't afford to miss 2-3 days in a pay period because you are sick. Also you might feel that your job is at risk if you miss that time. Mandatory paid sick leave with no consequences for taking it, in fact employers insisting that sick workers go home, would help a good deal here. And offering 2 days a year is not enough. Most companies with better paid workers who are offering benefit packages as incentives to work there give at least 5 days a year of sick leave along with personal time that can be used as sick leave if necessary.

I have two teens that are working or who have worked at fast food places. Some of the stories are not good. When my daughter just started her job she came down with strep and of course I kept her home. Now at my sons job they pretty much force your hand to come in if no one can take your shift. It's a Small place so not that many workers to get to cover you.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Very good article in The Washington Post today:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/12/09/what-in-the-world-is-happening-to-chipotle/

 

[PrincessJo]

I just tried our local Chipotle about 2 months ago because of all the hype. I wasn't impressed at all with the food and even less impressed with the rude employees who mumble when they talk so you can't understand a single word. Then when you say, 'excuse me?' they sneer.

No thanks. For $2 more I can swing into Berry Hill and get delicious fish tacos on the way home from work. And their employees are friendly!!

 

[deedeetoo]

We love Chipotle and go maybe every other week or so. I don't think that we will change our habits because of this. We are in MA so the BC thing scared me a bit, but now that it turns out to be noro I can't blame it on Chipotle. Noro can happen anywhere.