Moe’s Southwest Grill
http://www.moes.com/
Southwest Grill, I think not. This is the standard format $6.00 burrito joint. Think Chipotle, Qdoba, the list goes on. My favorite is still Chipotle and it all comes down to the taste of the meat, I just like it the best. Although, I am a fan of the queso from Qdoba and their killer breakfast burritos.
Moe’s is owned by Focus Brands, the same people that bring you Seattle’s Best Coffee, Schlotzsky’s Deli and Cinnabon. Not convinced that coffee people can make a good burrito, but…
What I ate: Joey Bag of Doughnuts ($5.85 or somewhere around there)
Meat, Beans, Rice, Cheese, Pico de Gallo
As I understand it, they name their food after “Friends” the TV show. Honestly, that is ridiculous. Whoever thought that it would be a good idea to name a burrito after a 90’s TV reference is a moron.
Since I am trying to shave a few calories, I decided to get this in a burrito bowl format. Meat options are pork, beef, chicken and tofu. Yes, tofu. You have to be one crazy hippie to order a tofu burrito. I went with the pork.
You walk down the line and they ask you if you want black beans, pinto, etc. Then I asked for them to add veggies (grilled onions and peppers), so they did. It is free at Chipotle, but Moe’s adds 79¢ for veggies and that was total horse shiznit.
As far as taste it is pretty much what I expected. It was an honest portion, but the Kraft style Mexican cheese mix was bland, the quality/taste of the meat was below the competitors, lame iceberg lettuce and the salsa had to be out of a bag. The pork was a little sweet. I have been to Moe’s a few times and I actually like their pork the best.
Moe’s also has a salsa bar and they give you free chips with your order. The salsas again seemed bagged and just emptied into the bowls. They were not offensive, just boring and bland.
Would I Buy It Again? Probably not. I had a BOGO coupon and I got a ton of food for about $6.50. If I had to pay full price, I would choose Qdoba or Chipotle over Moe’s. It is not horrible, but compared to the many taco joints in this town making wonderful fresh authentic Mexican food or even similar chains that just seem to be better. Moe’s lacks a market niche…except for the ridiculous names they call their food.
-WIBIA
Joey Bag of Donuts? Buh? That is just weird.
I agree with the menu item names…dumb. I refuse to use the names actually…I just say what I want..that works too. I really like the chips/queso at Moe’s. They use a Pepperjack style queso now.
I’ve always wondered if this place was any good, but now that I know it is sub-standard (it seems like it is similar to Baja Fresh…just boring), I will not be heading there anytime soon.
I like Moe’s and find it a worthy competitor to Qdoba, etc. Moe’s offers a few unique toppings like mushrooms and I appreciate that chips are included.
I get vegetarian meals about half of my days, and love that Moe’s has some really tasty tofu!
Their food is all named after different movies and TV shows, but I’m pretty sure none of them are references to “Friends”. The “Joey Bag of Donuts” is a reference to the movie “My Cousin Vinny”.
But what’s really important here is that the burrito was subpar, which sucks. I wonder if the food would have been better in traditional burrito form?
And the “Art Vandelay” is clearly a Seinfeld reference.
Not a fan at all. The salsa bar is pretty much the only good thing about this place. About a year ago they gave my store a bunch of free burritos as a promotion and half of our employees got sick.
I live less than a mile from this place, and it’s great every time! Personally, I rank Moe’s between Qdoba and Chipotle, the latter being best. Qdoba doesn’t sit right with me, for some reason. But yeah, aside from the weird menu item titles, I always enjoy what I get here.
If it wasn’t for the free salsa and chips, I would never leave Qdoba for this place even though I live a few blocks away.
While I would pick Qdoba over Moes any day, I thought the menu names were cute. I don’t think I’ve ever ordered using them actually, but they give me a little smile while I’m choosing what I want. And like the person above said, they are references from different movies/tv shows. The first time we went, we actually had fun as we waited in line trying to figure out each reference.
It should also be said that upon entering a Moes you are greeting by the entire staff calling out ‘Welcome to Moes!’ Scared my socks off the first time I went it.
I’m going to somewhat echo Adam and Danielle.
I’m rarely critical of you guys (in fact, I don’t think I have ever been until now), but your busting the names is way off-base.
As I scroll through the menu, I catch (and this is just me, personally):
Back to School (Triple Lindy)
Art Vandalay (Seinfeld)
Super Kingpin (Kingpin?)
Close Talker (Seinfeld)
And I wish I knew all the rest, but it’s more than Friends.
Now, I also like Moe’s far less than Qdoba and Chipotle, but c’mon, there’s nothing wrong with fun. This looks like a chain who tried to include a pop culture element with their food. They obviously aren’t going to have better food than the local Mexican joints, but you have to realize how many consumers are stupid and would just rather die laughing about ordering the Art Vandalay. It’s hard to destroy them calling it that instead of the “veggie burrito” for me. They are trying to mix it up and it doesn’t hurt anything.
Just my two cents.
In the interest of fairness, I do want to add I agree with pretty much everything else in the post. Maybe I shouldn’t have focused too much on one sentence.
LOL, looks like WIBIA touched a nerve! I do agree that naming the food after TV shows/movies is kind of a cute idea. It would work even better if the restaurant’s decor mirrored that idea.
wibia? you bet. your site. thanks for the advice. happy thanksgiving sir. , by the way, would I buy an indoor electric turkey fryer. I mean, it steams and boils also…no. i got three george forman grills. all under the sink, he is a good fighter, ( well actually the best, in my oppinion) a good preacher. but I stilll cook burgers in the frying pan. why?it is easy to clean. and I got a big pot to cook a crabboil in. same with steammed vegies. or soup. as far as turkey, well , i dont usually use 2 or 3 gallons of oil (25 bucks one time). kind of like bread makers. nice in theroy, but somebodys got to clean up. plus, all the oil fried turkey I ve tasted was not that great. kind of like omaha steaks, or heavenly ham or… just my oppinion, but I like your blog… thanks…
With so many good mexican restaurants around…I never go to Moe’s, Qdoba, or any of those places. Simply no reason for me to!
@ show… took me a while… I get it…but the humor fell short on me. In fact, I feel like a moron ordering a joey bag of DOUGHNUTS and getting a burrito.
What I didn’t go into and should have….the place is a little to shickty to me….
@danielle….perfect example…. WELCOME TO MOES!!!! The only other place that I know does that it CiCi’s.
The whole place is just too cute to me. I don’t mind non authentic mexican, but i prefer if a place is moderate that it faces authentic mexican. Qdoba has a Mole and Ancho BBQ burrito. Not perfect, but it is a start.
@ryan…thanks for the tip, that might be pretty good.
btw….sorry about the “Friends” comment. I have watched 3 episodes for friends and Seinfeld combined…but a friend mentioned that they were “Friends” references. So yes, long story short… I have no idea what I am talking about…. except for the food… I am always dead on there
Regarding the mole & ancho burrito: I love me some good mole, but it’s tough to find at restaurants! The best restaurant mole I’ve had is at one of the local mexican joints in my town. The absolute best mole ever was made by the wife of a Hispanic fellow I used to work with. That shiz was the BEST!