The Burrito Battle

If you don't spend 90% of your time at Mizzou's J-school, you may be unaware that Moe's opened a location directly across from it and, if you're like me, you have no idea what Moe's is. 

Moe's is basically a Chipotle with a cinema theme and a different color scheme, which is interesting because they opened their new location right next to a Chipotle. And so the burrito battle was born. 

People have chosen their sides. I remained loyal to Chipotle, but I figured it was about time to give Moe's a chance. But I couldn't just eat their food without answering the big question- Who is the real winner of the burito battle? 

I enlisted my roommate, Devan, and her boyfriend, Seth, to help me decide. We were embarrassing thorough. 
We spent about $50 combined on food. I got my usual at Chipotle: burrito bowl with brown rice, veggies, carnitas, hot salsa, pico, and quac. I got as close as I could to that order at Moe's to try to keep my findings fair. 

Chipotle was better. Much better. 

But wait! There's more!! 

I was surprised to find that Moe's quac was better than Chipotle's, and Moe's has queso so obviously they get brownie points there. However Moe's chips are not great. Actually, I think it would be a compliment to call them adequate. Chipotle on the other hand has great chips. They're salty with a hint of lime and ironically go perfectly with Moe's quac. 

So here's what I recommend- go to Chipotle. Get you're burrito bowl, your quesadilla, tacos, whatever, and a bag of trips. I don't care how weird the look they give is, the combination of Chipotle chips and Moe's quac/queso will be worth it. Then go next door and get your queso and quac. 

So I guess there isn't a winner, except me because I was a very full and happy girl after this experiment. 

Diner Standings Thus Far

Coffee Quality

In high school I self medicated my ADHD with Diet Coke, then was prescribed adderall, then I stopped taking adderall and now I'm back to coping with my ADHD with caffeine. Except my caffeinated beverage of choice is now coffee. I take my coffee very seriously. I will drink a cup of crappy coffee, but my morning is made that much better when I get to drink a really good cup of coffee.

1. Cafe Berlin-not only is their coffee really good, but sometimes they give you abnormally large coffee cups. When it comes to coffee cups, the closer it gets to a bowl the happier I am.

2. Ernie's- also has excellent coffee, but not quite up to Cafe Berlin's level. Their cups are quite small though, making frequent refills a necessity, and if you have ever been in Ernie's on a Saturday morning you know flagging down your waiter or waitress every time you require more liquid happiness is nearly impossible.

3. JJ's Cafe- JJ's has the same issue that Ernie's has- tiny cups. It's coffee is only a few steps above crappy.

4. Broadway Diner- tiny cups and crappy coffee = bottom of the list.

Quality of Food

Breakfast food is among my favorite kind of food. It makes me sad that we relegate eggs, bacon, and waffles to the very early hours of the day. It makes me even sadder when I don't have time to sit at my kitchen table (of a diner booth) and sip a warm cup of coffee while eating an omelet with a side of bacon.


1. Ernie's- Ernie's is at the top of this list because it is genuine diner food and it is genuinely delicious.

2. Cafe Berlin- Don't get me wrong Cafe Berlin's food is fantastic, but I have issues with calling it diner food. It's artisan food, which doesn't make it bad, it just makes me hesitant to put it at the top of a list judging diner food.

3. JJ's Cafe- JJ's is definitely diner food, but isn't has good at Ernie's.

4. Broadway Diner- poor Broadway Diner at the bottom of the list again. It's nothing personal, but when your coffee is crappy, you have to make it up with having amazing food. The food is only adequate, which isn't enough to redeem the coffee.

Ambiance 

This is a tough call. They all have very distinct personalities so its difficult to rank them, but I'll do my best. 

1. Broadway Diner- See I have some love for the Broadway Diner. It has a cozy, classic diner interior, which almost redeems the crappy coffee and only adequate food.

2. Ernie's- Ernie's is sticking to what's worked. It's retro vibe gives the place a character all it's own.

3. Cafe Berlin- Again, Cafe Berlin rocks, but it doesn't have a diner personality. It has a cafe personality, and that's awesome, but a cafe personality does not deserve to be on top of a list rating diners.

4. JJ's Cafe- JJ must have been very conflicted when he sought to decorate his diner. There is everything from pictures of tigers, to cityscapes, to framed cross stitchings. Also, my roommate and I could not decide if the building used to be a Mexican or Chinese restaurant. All in all, it's very confusing.

Overall

1. Ernie's- Good food, good coffee (just please get bigger coffee cups), and a fun atmosphere places Ernies at the top.

2. Cafe Berlin- Great food, great coffee, and a cafe vibe put Cafe Berlin in second place because this is a list of diners.

3. JJ's Cafe- Confusing atmosphere, but good food, and adequate coffee= third place.

4. Broadway Diner- If your looking for some food at 4:00 a.m. this 24 hour diner is your place. Otherwise, head a few blocks northeast to Ernie's.

Yes Another Diner

If you haven't guessed from the frequency of my breakfast themed posts, I love breakfast food. So I ventured to the north part of town to try JJ's Cafe. 

This morning my lovely roommate joined me largely because of the total lack of food in our apartment. 

The coffee is not as good as Cafe Berlin's so if you're a coffee snob I'd stick to Cafe Berlin. I am not a coffee snob. Caffeine is caffeine. 

The food was excellent. I liked it much better than The Broadway Diner. 

Devan had the biscuits and gravy and I had the supreme skillet. Both of us were very happy. Money well spent. 

Recovering With Food and Friends

For the past 10 weeks I have been taking what has to be the most difficult class ever required by an academic institution-Journalism 4804. We work on a two week cycle. One week we find a story, pitch it that Friday, and then must produce a media package by the following Thursday at 6 pm.

I'm sure everybody has their own recovery routine after deadline day, but this is mine. I call my mom on my way home from the lab. She likes to know how my stories go, and she's is very concerned I'm losing my mind. Once in my apartment I tell my roommate how my story went. After eating for the first time since 7 am, I crawl in bed around 8:30 pm and slip into a mini coma until about 7 am.

Usually the morning after deadline day entails showering for the first time in days and rethinking everything I did the week before. 

But on this Friday after deadline day I did a something a little out of the ordinary. Instead of obsessing over something I can't change, I went to Cafe Berlin to eat breakfast with three empathetic friends. 

We read over the menus while drinking coffee, which I must say is much better than Broadway Diner's. Also Cafe Berlin's mugs are bigger too so you don't constantly have to ask for refills. 

I ordered the Starving Artist. It might have been the post deadline productivity hangover, but oh my goodness it was so good. I woke up this morning craving it.

They have a very creative menu, but they have the typical breakfast options as well. So they have a little something for everybody. 

It was the perfect way to start my day. Not only did get to eat great food, and drink great coffee, I got to spend time with three of the best people I have been privileged to meet through 4804. Not bad at all.