While traipsing around New York last month, my wife and I seemingly passed one Chipotle Mexican Grill after another — some spaced just blocks apart. It reached a point when I wondered aloud: "Who do they think they are, Starbucks?" Curiosity compelled us to walk into one and take a look. The room was warmly appointed with woods, framed photos, and Mayan-inspired sculptures. Some of the multiethnic clientele dined at tables; others consumed their burritos while poring over laptops and newspapers at a long communal counter. It is only a slight stretch to suggest this particular Chipotle channeled more Kerouac than Kroc. Said burritos went untasted by my wife and I, though — we were, after all, in the nation's gastronomic capital, so I wasn't about to clutter precious stomach capacity with food that could be found anywhere. Or at least, according to current count, in 640 outlets stretched... More >>>