A better burrito bowl

This summer, TIME Magazine published an article called The Fast Food Ethicist about Chipotle's startlingly forward-thinking methods and choices. I keep thinking about this article when I see outposts of the widespread chain. The article has given me a warm, fuzzy feeling about a joint that used to be somewhat interchangeable in my mind with Qdoba and Five Guys. Not that I really eat fast food anyway- but I do live in Manhattan and keep a packed schedule, so feeling good about Chipotle's ethics and values has opened up a new burrito-bowl option on-the-go.

The short of it is this: Ellis is a chef, and wants to 'destroy fast food.' He also believes that he is doing much more than selling burritos: that he is saving the world. He places high value on all the ingredients of his company's operations: high-quality, ethical, and sustainable meat, produce, and people.

Almost as amazing is that we didn't know any of this before- or at least I didn't, and neither did my friends. These shared values were not the core of their marketing campaigns, they were the core of their business. And now, as it sneaks its way into the media and our consciousness, it's that much more effective because it feels real.

And real is just what we need in our food options these days.  The salt, sugar, and fat-packed meals and treats of the past few decades seemed too good to be true because they were. We can't get away with that kind of eating anymore (we never could), and Chipotle represents the next wave of responsibility (relatively speaking: depending on your grocery store, it's still better to cook).  Thank you, Ellis, for showing the world that it can be done, and you can become wildly successful doing it.

image from TIME Magazine online