Back in Ohio, I was an avid consumer of Chipotle (And I without a doubt will be when I return home). So when I arrived in Ireland and found out that there was something similar here, I was thrilled. In my eyes, Boojum is the Irish take on Chipotle. I’ve had the idea to write this blog for awhile, but I wanted to try Boojum several times before writing a proper review. I wanted to make sure I tried some different things, and made sure I got the full experience before doing this.
For starters, I am far from a food expert. If you know me pretty well you understand that me writing a food review is kinda laughable in a sense. In reality though, this would be one of the few I’m suited to do. I could go into detail about comparing each and every last aspect about the two places, but that’s not what I’m aiming for. I’d like to give a more general sense of my opinion, based on 5 key categories (Also note that these categories are based off my personal order, which truly doesn’t differ much between the two restaurants. I haven’t tried every topping at each restaurant, and never intend to) :
So a few more things to add before I dive into this. The first is that I don’t have a predetermined winner for which one I think is better. I’m pretty torn at the moment so I’m going to kind of let this decision be made for itself as I write the review. Second, if you don’t like my personal Chipotle or Boojum order, then just be glad you never have to eat it yourself!
Primary Components: I’m already torn here, as I know I like Chipotle rice better, but I’m not sure on the chicken. Ireland does have higher food standards than the U.S., but Chipotle does pride itself on going above and beyond to use fresh ingredients. I’ll give the nod to Chipotle on this one.
Secondary Components: So what stands out immediately to me is the corn and the mild salsa. For starters, I really like corn (*Insert Midwestern joke here*). But in all seriousness I’ve grown up eating fresh sweet corn and there’s nothing like it. And for whatever reason, the corn at Boojum tastes better. Moving onto the salsa, I’m just not a huge fan of Chipotle’s mild salsa. Because of this, I’d have to put some hot sauce on my Chipotle order to add a bit more flavor to it, and truthfully that makes me sweat a little bit when I eat it. Luckily, the Boojum mild salsa gets the job done, and allows me to be more comfortable while I eat. This one goes to Boojum.
Price: Obviously this is an important factor for a college student. So Boojum offers a student discount, which seems like it would be enough to give it the nod. However, with the conversion from Euro to Dollar, I think Boojum is about $1 more expensive. Chipotle takes this one.
Chips: Ignoring the fact that chips typically mean fries over here, this one is tough. My first experience with Boojum chips was poor, like not good at all. However, I’ve had them twice since and the most recent time they were still warm and wow they were amazing. I can also think back to several experiences where I’ve had poor chip experiences at Chipotle. I think the only fair way to judge this one is to call it a draw.
Atmosphere: These were actually strikingly similar between the two. Granted, I’ve only been to one Boojum, but it has very similar vibes to any Chipotle I’ve ever been in. Hate to do this again, but it’s gonna be a draw here as well.
So overall, it’s 2-1 in favor of Chipotle, but there’s one more factor to be considered. Boojum offers a rewards card, so for every 10 bowls/burritos I get one free. And, if I get all the way up to forty meals there (easily achievable by next May), I get a free t-shirt. I like that quite a bit, like why doesn’t Chipotle have that?
But is this enough to push Boojum over the top? Truthfully it’s not. I boldly said a couple weeks ago that I like Boojum more, but I think that has to do with the fact that I was not expecting to eat Chipotle or anything like it for a year. So when I first had Boojum, I’m thinking, “Wow this is so good it’s probably better than Chipotle.” But after some time to reflect and think deeply, I give the absolute slightest nod to Chipotle. Honestly, if I only had the ability to eat at one of these places for the rest of my life, and not the other, I would not complain with which one it would be. That’s how close it is.
Thanks for reading! Tune in next time as I talk about something that I haven’t yet in my first 5 blogs.
