Chipotle

So when we lived in CA, my husband and I eschewed Chipotle for two reasons. 1) There were so many better burrito shops. 2) It was owned by McDonald's.

So, we moved to the East Coast in 2004, and we quickly found that 1) There are very few burrito shops, and 2) Everyone went to Chipotle (see 1). So we got out of the burrito habit. I won't say we never go, but we've tended to avoid it over other options.

About a month ago my SIL suggested we go for lunch when we were at the local mall, and given the other options, I said sure. I was surprised at how good it was, better than I remembered.

Yesterday my mom tells me that Michale Pollan was on Oprah. And so was the guy who owns Chipotle and he was talking about how they use as much local ingredients as they can and all organic meats. And I said, they are owned by McDonald's. And she was like, 'no, I don't think so, the owner was on the show'.

So, I went to Wikipedia, and low and behold, " In 1998, McDonald's made an initial minority investment in the company. By 2001, the company had grown to be Chipotle's largest investor" and in addition "In October 2006, McDonald's fully divested from Chipotle.^[16] This was part of a larger initiative for McDonald's to divest all of its non-core business restaurants".

SO. I'm very excited. Happy Eating!

A Year Later

OK, really, it's more than a year, but close enough. I really enjoyed this experience and I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. The challenge of choosing local has reaped some wonderful experiences, conversations, and food.

Here are my successes:
South Mountain Creamery
Salt River Lobster
Garrett Park Farmers Market

Six of One, Half Dozen of the Other
Grosvenor Market
MOMS Organic Market
Polyface Farm


The past week or two I gave up on choosing local products as a lifestyle choice over convenience. I will still choose local sources as a first option, but sometimes it's just too much of a pain in the ass to shop, prepare and cook, a healthy, variety of foods year round.

I am so thrilled to find a fish and seafood source. They are lovely. Their prices can be slightly high as there are no discounted sale prices ever, but they are reasonably competitive, and you can't beat their quality or service.

Really, I could probably keep scouting for local veggies, but, particularly as my red meat consumption has decreased, my need for iron has gone up. And broccoli is all well and good, but I like spinach too. And it is easier to send my daughter to lunch at school with peppers, and cucumbers and hummos than most anything else. And she likes it. And eats it, and for a toddler, that is important. And since I've been working out, I have been trying to eat more protein and what they call good fats in every meal. which often means almonds, which are not local, or olives, which are also not local.

But I am much more aware of where my food comes from, how I can get it, and concessions I make regarding ideal and reality.

I'll keep writing as I find other options, try new things, etc. I would like to review certain things I tried last year, (comparison between two local egg nogs) and maybe some restaurants that have expressed that they try to source their food locally.