Burrito Overload

Mark it: 2007 was the year we succumbed to the national phenomenon known as “Chipotle creep”—the unchecked, Starbucksian proliferation of chain burrito joints. Denver-based Chipotle opened three locations in and around Boston in the past year, Qdoba debuted four, and local chain Boloco added three more. Count the 10 restaurants those companies are expecting to open here in the coming months, and you’ve got a bona fide frenzy on your hands.

“The whole niche of the business, ‘fast casual,’ is popular for a lot of reasons,” says local Qdoba franchise owner Jeff Ackerman. He says the burrito barrage targets people who want to eat a quick meal without suffering the full-bore cardiac assault of, say, a Burger King.

The chains insist the competition only benefits area burritophiles, but Roberto Rendón, owner of Somerville’s beloved and newly expanding Taquería la Mexicana, isn’t sure. “I’m afraid it’s gonna kill the competition,” he says, referring to establishments like Boca Grande and Anna’s Taquería, the local pioneering burrito shops. Boca Grande did suffer a brief dip this year, but owner Mariko Kamio reports sales have been going up. “We’re happy with the boom.”

Is a reckoning upon us? Boloco’s dodged one already—it began life as the Wrap, but switched when the wrap craze collapsed—and Cambridge’s Jonah Feld, who runs the website Burrito Blog, is showing signs of burnout. “I’ve been a burrito analyst for four years,” he says, “and it’s hard to keep up the motivation. I’ve got, like, 500 posts now, and it’s like, ‘Am I really bringing the camera to lunch again?’”