Chipotle uses fresh ingredients, and when possible, the chain restaurant uses organic, local meat and produce. That alone is enough to make anyone think he is making a healthier choice than eating from a typical fast food restaurant's drive-through window. The truth is, your Chipotle meal is only as healthy as the menu options you choose.
Serving Size
Chipotle is known for its gigantic burritos. One of its recent advertising campaigns compared its burritos to the size of the city bus. Giant burritos also mean giant calorie counts. A typical burrito and fountain drink combo can run you upwards of 1,000 calories, according to the Chipotle website. If you choose your ingredients carefully, you can lower your calorie count significantly. Otherwise, consider placing half of your meal in a take-out container to eat on another day.
Calories
If you skip the flour tortilla and opt instead to have the contents of your burrito served in a bowl, you immediately save 290 calories. According to the Chipotle website, each burrito or bowl contains 4 oz. of meat. Barbacoa, a spicy shredded beef, contained the fewest calories at 170 per 4-oz. serving. Chicken, steak and carnitas, or pork, each net 190 calories per 4-oz. serving. If you opt for a vegetarian bowl and choose black or pinto beans as your protein, you'll take in 120 calories per 4-oz. serving. Meals come with both meat and beans.
Saturated and Trans Fat
None of Chipotle's menu items contains trans fat, according to the company website. Chipotle also offers several menu items with no saturated fat. Beans, fajita vegetables, all four types of salsa and the romaine lettuce contain no saturated fat. Rice contains just 0.5 g of saturated fat. Meats contain between 6.5 and 8 g of total fat and 2 to 2.5 g of saturated fat per 4-oz. serving. Cheese has a whopping 8.5 g of fat and 5 g of saturated fat per ounce. Sour cream is worse with 10 g of fat, 7 of them saturated, in each serving.
Sodium
Chipotle's biggest disadvantage may be the amount of sodium in its ingredients. The U.S. Department of Education's 2010 dietary guidelines recommend 2,300 mg of sodium or less per day, and 1,500 mg or less for people with heart disease, diabetes and other medical conditions. One Chipotle meal can easily exceed your daily recommended sodium intake.
For example, a burrito with rice, pinto beans, barbacoa, tomato salsa, cheese and guacamole contains 2,320 mg of sodium. If you add chips, you take in another 420 mg. If you opted for salad in an attempt to make a healthier choice, you'll get 700 mg of sodium from the Chipotle vinaigrette.
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