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Eviction Notice North face of completed building. East face when under construction.

Location

237 D Street

Hours

10:00am - 10:00pm

Phone

(530) 792-7000

Website

http://www.bajafresh.com

Owner(s)

Names of owners/proprietors here

Established

2010-12-18

Closed

2012-01-10

Baja Fresh is chain of Mexican-ish restaurants selling burritos, tacos, quesadillas, fajitas, nachos, etc. One opened Saturday, December 18, 2010, at the former location of the Davis Holistic Health Center. After extensive remodeling it has plenty of window lighting. Nutrition info here: http://www.bajafresh.com/nutritionals.php A single Baja Taco on corn tortillas seems a reasonable food choice, at 230-250 Calories each. Burritos weigh more than a pound, and nachos contain a full day's worth of calories. Baja Fresh contains freshly made food right on the spot, never frozen!!!

It stuck around for just over a year before closing in January 2012. The Davis Enterprise reported on January 9, 2012, that Baja Fresh has no immediate plans to open another one in the area.

The location will be replaced by El Toro Bravo, a new installment from the owners of Burgers and Brew and Crepeville.

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2010-08-23 02:15:22   Yay, excited! I know its a chain, but I love this place! —mperkel

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2010-10-18 11:25:01   Anyone know when it's supposed to open? —BrianDoherty

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2010-12-13 11:37:33   I just got off the phone with corporate and they are looking to open before Jan. 3rd before the students come back. —ashleyinthemist

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2010-12-20 13:52:15   Got a grilled veggie burrito to go today. Pretty tasty, ingredients are fresh, and the woman at the counter definitely knew what she was doing. Definitely a positive addition to quick-service food in Davis. —IAmNewHere

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2010-12-21 07:30:09   Yay! Something that isn't Thai or FroYo! —jsbmeb

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2010-12-21 09:00:49   The food here is good and not too heavy, sort of like gourmet Taco Bell. However, I have found you can get much better quality and quantity for the price at El Mariachi (but that is just my opinion). —DagonJones

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2010-12-22 17:35:55   It's chipolte competition from socal that is good! —StevenDaubert

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2010-12-31 15:52:43   Just came back from Baja, it was disappointing. Indeed, fast-food will always be fast-food, but the service was quite bad. When I first entered the store, I was greeted by the register, within the 3-4 mins of me studing menu, she asked me if I were ready three times. It was quite annoying. Obviously she "definitely" didn't know what she was doing.

Then, I ordered a Mexicana burrito with pork carnita, not to be exaggerated, it was by far one of the worst burrito I have ever eaten. The burrito suppose to have rice inside, but the registrar girl came over and told me that the rice won't be ready for another 10 mins, and so, they just gave me a burrito with black beans and pork and told me that the rice will come in a separate plate for another 10 mins. It was just laughable, the burrito turn out dry, flavorless and barely warm. We also ordered the mango chipotle chicken salad, psh, forget about it. By the time I was half finished the burrito, the rice still hadn't came yet. I left.

I will never come back again. —manyip

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2011-01-08 23:29:05   So, I used to eat at the Baja Fresh in Berkeley during undergrad. Yeah, it's a chain and it's essentially gringo-mexican but it was still decent fast food for those long study nights. Went to the new one in Davis today and was sorely dissapointed even with those standards in mind. I was studying for exams so I looked at the online menu and ordered take-out over the phone. Got the Grilled Mahi Mahi Taco which was supposed to have "Sliced avocado, cabbage, Pico de Gallo, and a zesty avocado dressing" Instead it had a sad little piece of fish with plain tomato and browned lettuce in a hardening tortilla. The BF got a Santa Fe chicken burrito that was dry and flavorless. Pretty sure it was supposed to have more than just rice and chicken in it. Could have had a better taco & burrito at Guads for 1/2 the cost. Oh well, learned my lesson! —Daimyo

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2011-01-17 09:28:37   Not bad. I got a 3 Baja tacos plate with drink and a quesadilla. Total was 18.90. Other than being a bit expensive, the service was good and fast. Meal was ok, nothing spectacular- but its a 5 minute walk from our house to get a quick meal. —jsbmeb

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2011-01-25 23:18:11   Baja Fresh is absolutely amazing. I don't know about the above posters, but I had a great experience with my mom today. The girl was totally sweet and very knowledgeable about the menu and gave amazing service. I got a black bean burrito and a regular soda and my mom got two tacos, which totaled to just over $11. Not bad at all.

Really, I don't think you can expect a place that just opened up to have top-notch service both right before Christmas and right after. Give them a break and try again! —HannahFolkes

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2011-02-19 20:56:59   I really liked my burrito from there but I found 2 pieces of metal in it. After I found the first one I was a little put off, but after the second, it was pretty weird. They were all black, but they basically looked like what used to be a metal twist tie. UPDATE: a photo of what I found —RohiniJasavala

• That looks like what could possibly be left behind after opening a can of something... I would definitely bring it up to a manager/supervisor/someone at the restaurant. —JenniferCook
• My fiance went back and requested a refund which they did give him and also mentioned they should check the carnitas since he didn't find any metal in his chicken burrito. —RohiniJasavala

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2011-03-18 23:54:00   They recently just opened up. But even though it is a franchise store, and the owners are doing their best to keep the prices reasonable and customer service great. There are coupons everywhere and campuscreed deal was amazing. Running a business is difficult but overall it seems like they have regular customers and people enjoy the food. —puneetkdhillon

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2011-03-22 21:59:36   Stopped by here today and, just for fun, decided to buy a burrito and then bought one from Chipotle so I could compare them. I picked up a Carne Asda Burrito at both establishments with the same ingredients and here's the results.

* Size:

Chipotle wins here with a burrito with approximately 1/3 more girth and length overall.

* Tortilla:

Again Chipotle wins with a softer, tastier and seemingly fresher tortilla.

* Meat:

While Chipotle wins with amount, Baja Fresh wins with Taste on the meat. Well cooked and seasoned and just seemed to melt in your mouth with goodness. (sorry Vegans/Vegetarians.)

* Beans:

Went with Pinto Beans on both. Baja Fresh wins with amount and taste as well as texture. Chipotle's beans just tasted like over-boiled mush.

* Rice:

Chipotle wins with amount, flavor and texture of the rice. Baja Fresh might have just had a bad day, but the rice was sloppy mush. Chef Ramsey would frown on this.

* Cheese:

Baja Fresh wins this round with a choice of cheeses upon request. I went with the regular melted Jack Cheese. Chipotle only has one type of cheese and it was kind of tasteless. In the Baja Fresh Burrito you could really taste the flavor of the cheese without it being overpowered by any of the other ingredients.

* Lettuce:

Chipotle wins on the Lettuce. Not only was it fresher and crisper, Baja Fresh charged me extra for mine as it only comes included in the Veggie Burrito. Boo on you Baja Fresh.

* Salsa:

Baja Fresh wins this one too. Their salsa was much tastier and not overwhelming. Chipotle's salsa was just kind of bland. I ordered no sour cream or guacamole, and also specifically asked for no cilantro which Baja Fresh put on my burrito anyway. I hate cilantro. It is the bane of my existence, same with Guacamole ( I know, I'm a bad Californian.).

* Price:

Perhaps the biggest difference between the two when it's all added up. I paid nearly $1.50 more for the burrito from Baja Fresh. Chipotles was $6.50 pre-tax and Baja's was $7.49 plus .50 for the lettuce. I was disappointed by this.

* Bottom Line:

While Baja Fresh comes close and even does better in some categories, their price, extra fee and addition of Cilantro when I asked for it to be excluded really took them downhill for me. They need to get better Lettuce, or at least prepare it better. Same with the rice... maybe it was just a bad batch, but if it's like this all the time, I'll take the other guy every time. I love their choice of cheeses, their steak was delicious and their choice of seasonings was applied with perfection. Get everything else down, and even with the slightly higher price, I'll go to Baja, but for now I'm sticking with Chipotle if I had to choose between the two.

—Wes-P

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2011-06-28 14:58:59   Worst Mexican food I had in my entire life! Paid the same amount that i usually pay when i go to Dos Coyotes or Chipotle, but it was not like the size of a Chipotle burrito and it did not come with chips like Dos Coyotes. My burrito tasted more like an Indian food rather a Mexican food. Very disappointed at this place. Would never go here again and will not recommend it to anyone. Go to Chipotle or Dos Coyotes and enjoy your meal. —AmirAnjomshoaa

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2012-01-10 20:04:29   Hard to believe its's already closed after all the demolition, remodel, sidewalk closing and inconvenience at the corner of 3rd and "D" Streets over the summer and into the Fall. Obviously, a lack of promotional effort, connection with the student community and/or lack of support for Mexican cuisine. Plus, obviously, questionable overall management and attention-to-detail for a new, well-located eatery.

—fknochenhauer

Seems unlikely to be the lack of support for Mexican cuisine, given the longevity of other Mexican-ish restaurants such as El Mar, Taq D, Dos, etc. —CovertProfessor

• The English/Spanish name said it all; the cuisine was inauthentic Americanized, plastic Mexican. People in town know real Mexican and voted Baja Fresh out of town by not patronizing this fast food wannabe Mexican restaurant. ChristopherHitchens
• Why would the Davis community suddenly be concerned about inauthenticity and plasticity? It has hardly bothered anyone before. In fact, inauthenticity is often craved whole-heartedly by the masses when marketed correctly anyway. I think the restaurant's biggest problem was that the Subway-esque interior wasn't hip enough for the generally privileged, trend-seeking student market. After all, they simply love Chipotle and Dos Coyotes. Remember, these are the kind of kids who are ashamed to set foot in a Dairy Queen because of the image factor and are yet willing to support 4 or 5 yogurt places until that plastic trend bursts sometime within the next few years. -SM

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2012-01-31 04:59:21   I think it's a little weird that they were so unpopular, given that Chipotle is practically a goldmine in Davis. Having said that, Davis taste seems to be at least somewhat random and unpredictable. —ScottMeehleib

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2012-03-25 23:23:43   I was looking forward to this place, having frequented another one. However, the one time I ate there the cashier seemed bothered to take my order and the food was unremarkable/dull. I think the real reason they closed was simply inferior food -not Davisites fickleness or untrendy image or whatever. —SteveDavison