Baja Fresh - The Choice Dilemma

For some reason I wasn't a fan of Baja Fresh growing up. I think it was because the food seemed decidedly...healthy. Don't get me wrong, you can make a high calorie meal here, but for the most part it's many steps above something like Taco Bell. Not a lot of cheese, lighter sauces and breadings, the like. Maybe not what I preferred at 16, but 10+ years on I see the benefits and can certainly appreciate them. They also seem to take more care and pride in food prep, the wait times increase accordingly, but it's a small price to pay for something that's cooked fresh versus sitting under a heat lamp all day. This stop was not random, but a request from my dad, so off to a late Father's Day lunch we go!

This stop represents a first; both grilled and fried on the menu. The rules have a provision for this, which I followed by ordering one of each. It does however, pose a small dilemma in how to score them. To me the logical choice is to score the better of the two since they are independent on the menu. You don't have to get a grilled taco to get a fried one and vice versa. Spoiler alert - I prefer the fried one, though my dad likes grilled. He's getting old, something's probably broken in his brain, I'll forgive him for that misguided preference. Anyway, if you think there's a better way to score, feel free to let me know. I'll probably ignore you as this is a taco dictatorship (tactatorship) not a taco democracy (tacmocracy), but you can feel like you were heard.

Presentation - I just realized that the floor here is identical to the one in our old Colorado house. I miss that diner feel. The place is simple, clean, not much to it but it works fine for a fast casual. I like the salsa bar and free chips as well, makes it easier to wait for your food to cook. The plating was simple but adequate, no complaints and no undue praise. 3/5

Aroma - The sauce on the fried taco had a nice nose, otherwise pretty much par for the course. I've yet to find an exceptional smelling taco. Maybe my nose is broken. 3/5

Value - $8.29 for two tacos, rice and beans, and chips and salsa (though the latter is advertised as free), really about right for a fast casual. The total for two identical meals was a bit over $20, so drinks were about a buck fifty each. On par, not a deal, not a rip off. 5/10

Fish - We'll start with the grilled wahoo (ono, which is apparently a Hawaiian and Caribbean fish) as it wasn't my favorite.  Good flavor and simple, no obvious marinade or spice, just fish. Honestly a bit dry, but a good sized portion. The fried piece was larger (one piece per taco as seen in the photo above, though the single piece is not small) and a lot more flavorful.  I don't think it was spiced, but the breading kept it from drying out. Good breading, both in flavor and quantity, and just the right amount of unhealthyness. 7/10

Not Fish - I'm still trying to make sense of the menu. I believe the ones I got were in the lower section under "Seafood Tacos", however it appears you can also do them "Baja" or "Americano" style as shown in the "Classic Tacos" section towards the top. I didn't specify and was a bit surprised that the grilled and fried were different. The grilled was a bit basic, not bad but not overly flavorful. The fried was better, tasty salsa that is rightly described as tangy. I wish there was avocado on that one too. Both had the proper two corn tortillas and while they only included one lime, more were available at the salsa bar. 6/10

Overall Taste - Good, not great. On the mild side, unoffensive, not too spicy, well rounded to appeal to a wide audience. I'm sure I could have spiced them up a bit with salsa, but they're decent as is. 6/10

Bonus Points - Nothing to report, fairly standard fast casual with no gripes. +0

Overall Overall - 30/50

I think the center bias is continuing, probably because I haven't found any that are really bad yet. It would take a lot for me to rank something in the bottom 20-30%. Maybe I just need to arbitrarily knock everything down 10 points or something. Time will tell.