Last week Panchero’s Mexican Grille had their grand opening for their new location on 102 E. University in Urbana. After deciding to check it out, I was surprised that to find that when I arrived, the line was out the door and around the corner. However, I soon realized this shouldn’t be a surprise, as the promotion that day was $1 burritos.
After walking in, I was pleasantly surprised with the interior décor inside the restaurant. With open seating, bright colors, and a TV, Panchero’s was an exciting place to be. As I waited in line for my burrito, I finally got to the register where the friendly and efficient staff awaited me. I ordered my burrito with chicken, tomatoes, salsa, beans, rice, and the whole works. I sat down with my roommate and we chowed down on some of the greatest burritos we had ever had. It may have just been that we were extremely hungry, but the tortillas were fresh, the meat was tender, and the ingredients weren’t overloaded with salt.
Panchero’s relates similarly to Chipotle or Qdoba in the “fast” Mexican food category. They offer tacos, burritos, salads, and burrito bowls with your choice of ingredients. I had never been to Panchero’s before, but after attending the event last Wednesday, I have already been back once. I was greatly impressed with the good food, good service, fun atmosphere, and the great informational website that Panchero’s had to offer.
I found that when comparing Panchero’s to similar restaurants, such as Chipotle and Qdoba, Pancheros Grille had many positive attributes.
Positives:
They prepare their own tortillas. Panchero’s takes pride in preparing their own tortillas fresh in store, and made fresh to order. The tortillas definitely lived up to the name, as they were some of the best tortillas I have ever had.
Their food is healthier than most: You can get fresh salads at Panchero’s, and not all of the ingredients are loaded with sodium. The food tasted and felt lighter than Chipotle or Qdoba. The website assures its customers that all of their ingredients are gluten free and there are vegan friendly. They promote a healthy a low cholesterol franchise.
Their food is cheaper: Their burritos ranged from 5.95-6.95, which is cheaper than the burritos at both Chipotle and Qdoba. Chipotle burritos range from $6.00-7.50 and Qdoba burrito prices range from $6.50-7.89, depending on which one you order. The prices in general are better at Panchero’s, as you could get quesadillas for as cheap as $4.50 and salads for $5.95. Most of the sides and drinks were cheaper as well.
You can get more options: Panchero’s has the option of salads, taco salads, and quesadillas, but you can also get chips and salsa, chips and queso, and chips and guacamole. Qdoba may have some of these options, but Chipotle definitely does not.
Although Panchero’s has many positive attributes, there are some factors that may hinder the restaurants success.
Downsides:
Not much variation: The food overall was great, but many of the items offered are the same types of options that Chipotle and Qdoba have as well. Other than the meat and tortillas, most of the other ingredients are pretty standard and taste the same as any other Mexican food restaurants. These standardized food choices may make it hard to compete with other Mexican restaurants and fast food places that offer more variety.
Not close to campus:
Panchero’s is located on University in Urbana. Although this isn’t too far of a hike if you have a car, it’s not an ideal location because it is off campus. Many students don’t have the desire or time to go off campus for food. Also, many students don’t have access to a car, which makes it inaccessible.
They don’t deliver:
Once again, this makes their food less accessible to students on campus. Unlike Qdoba, Panchero’s isn’t open late and doesn’t have delivery available to students.
Overall rating:
The food at Panchero’s was great and in my opinion healthier than other places. Although this restaurant may be a bit off campus, if you are looking for fast, cheap, and good quality Mexican food, this may be your best bet.
So this week, because I reviewed a Mexican restaurant, I thought it would be fun to post some simple Mexican-style recipes that I came up with. They are all super easy and fun to make!
Super Easy Guacamole:
Ingredients:
2-3 ripe avocadoes, peeled, pitted and chopped into cubes
½ cup medium salsa (store bought)
¼ cup chopped onion
¼ chopped tomatoes
1-teaspoon limejuice
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon of sour cream
Directions:
In a medium size bowl, mash the avocadoes. Add the salsa, onion, tomatoes, limejuice, and garlic powder. Add the sour cream and salt. Season with the pepper and serve!
Note: If you would like to add more spice to your guacamole, add hot sauce or cayenne pepper for some nice kick.
Serves: 2-3 people
Awesome Taco Dip:
This dip is great because you can treat it like a taco salad, or you can eat it with chips. The combination of flavors makes for a great dish.
Photo
Ingredients:
Chicken or ground beef depending on your preference.
1 package of taco seasoning mix
1 can refried beans
1 can of sour cream (8 ounces)
4 cups of Mexican cheese blend (packaged at the store)
8 ounces of guacamole
8 ounces of salsa, medium
1 can of black olives
1 cup of shredded lettuce
½ cup cooked corn
1 cup of chopped tomatoes
¼ chopped onions
Directions:
1. In a large skillet brown the ground beef or cook the chicken until tender.
2. Mix the taco seasoning with the refried beans. Place the refried bean mixture into the bottom of a serving platter.
3. Place half the cheese on top of the refried beans.
4. Add the beef to the top of the cheese.
5. Spread the sour cream on top of the beef.
6. Order in the follow layers: guacamole, salsa, olives, shredded lettuce, corn, chopped onions, and tomatoes
7. Lastly, top with the other half of the shredded cheese.
Chill in the refrigerator before serving. If you like a warm dip, place in the oven at 325 degrees for 10 minutes.
Note: If you aren’t a fan of any of the ingredients, simply just don’t add them!
Serves: 5-6 people
Iced Margarita:
Margaritas are great, but here’s an even better variation on the classic Mexican margarita.
Ingredients:
6 ounces of tequila
2 ounces of Cointreau
2 ounces of limejuice
10-12 small scoops lime sorbet
½ pint chilled lemonade
Directions:
Mix the tequila, cointreau, and lime juice in a jug. Scoop the sorbet in to the glasses. Pour an equal amount of the drink into each glass. Top each glass with lemonade.
Serves: 4 people