Yes, Virginia, it is possible to eat healthy while out on the open road! You need not stop for burgers that come with deep fried sides - unless that's what floats your boat! I was in the middle of a road trip that started in Bakersfield and was headed towards San Francisco when I realized that in my haste to pack and get going I'd forgotten to eat... all day. I pulled off at the exit for Kettleman City expecting to grab a generic burger and get back on the road. And then I saw it. The Shell gas station on the right hand side of the road with signs advertising Quiznos and Baja Fresh. Baja Fresh? Isn't that a HEALTHY food place? What's that doing here at an exit more famous for unhealthy fast food? I parked in front of the Shell Food Mart and headed inside. The convenience store, Baja Fresh, and Quiznos all share the same building. The shared restrooms are in the convenience store. The line to order was not too long. The menu seems pretty comprehensive, though they may not offer everything another full service Baja Location might. There are six different types of burritos offered, including the bare burrito which comes in a bowl and which I chose. There are two different taco platters and two salads. Next, you choose your meat: chicken breast, steak, park carnitas, or veggies. You can add on salsas, guacamole, or sour cream. They also have a separate a la carte menu to choose from. I choose a bare burrito (bowl) with park carnitas and hot salsa - lots of hot salsa. A large drink is only $0.20 cents more than a medium drink, $2.09 vs $1.89 but you get a sturdy reusable plastic cup, so I thought why not. The fountain gives you the diet soda options of Diet Coke or Coke Zero. How is that a choice? There are also four different varieties of ice tea. I took my bare burrito to eat on the go driving down the freeway and it wasn't as awkward as I would have thought. It was fresh, pretty tasty, and the pork was moist and not overly chewy. The plate was perfectly sized to sit on my lap and catch any spills so I managed not to get any of my lunch on me. Bonus. The workers were friendly yet efficient, and the restaurant was clean and there were tables available. I'd definitely stop here again while I'm on the road. read more

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I made the drive up to Sonoma from L.A. recently, a long day alone with the 5 and an audiobook of One Hundred Years of Solitude. The highlight of the drive was supposed to be lunch at the Kettleman City In-N-Out, and I was pretty sad when I missed my exit. I considered turning around, but when I saw a Baja Fresh off the freeway, I decided to take it as my consolation prize. I hadn't eaten at a Baja since high school, maybe early college, when I used to get the shrimp tacos on a fairly regular basis. This Baja was inside a gas station/convenience store, nothing more than a food stand with a single employee manning both cashier and grill. He was pleasant enough. I got a shrimp taco combo, which came with two soft tacos, rice, and black beans. The tacos were exactly as I remembered them, more satisfying than I thought they'd be after a decade in which I developed a taste for non-fast food chain tacos. Obviously, Baja is not on par with most of those tacos, but they hit the spot anyway. I love the self-serve salsa station, mainly because I can take a million jalapeños and no one can stop me. I got my lunch to go, as I wanted to make good time, but it didn't take long for me to figure out I couldn't eat it while driving. I scarfed it down in the front seat of my car. It'll probably be another while before I have Baja again, but these tacos saved me from my burgerless grief. I made it to Kettleman City with a full stomach, and got my In-N-Out fix on my way home. read more

This is one of many fast food chain places at the kettle man city area off I-5. It sits next to a Little Caesars and Wienerschnitzel in this plaza. Baja Fresh is the only other Mexican type food here other than Taco Bell. I ordered a chicken burrito with cheese, whole black beans, pico de gallo, salsa, and lettuce. I thought it was decent for what it was. It's not taqueria quality you'd find in most cities, but fine for quick Mexican food in the area. read more

Live and learn... Here are, recorded for your acceptance or dismissal, a few things I've taken away from my experience at this place: 1. When a known chain restaurant like Baja Fresh is attached to a gas station, you're gonna have a bad time. 2. It seems the attachment of the qualifier "Express" further declines the overall quality, selection, freshness, and service. Perhaps "Express" refers to the manner in which they hired their workers? Or the way they prepare your food? Or the lane in which you will have to drive to find a restroom within a few hours while continuing up the 5 from Kettleman City? Maybe it's all of those things... 3. Proximity to cattle operations means flies. Lots of flies. Flies land on manure. Then they land on food. Then you eat the food. So by the Transitive Property of Equality, loosely applied, you're eating manure. And in the immortal words of Mad Dog Tannen from Back to the Future 3: "I hate manure...." 4. I should have looked under the seats for gummies and goldfish crackers dropped by my kids. Would have been better. Since I'm not a germophobe, we kinda just went with it. No salsa bar, here-- they give you pre-dredged containers. And since I was more thirsty than hungry, the self-service soft drink fountain squeezed a weak second star out of an Uno! experience. From now on, I'll look for stand alone fast food places and use gas stations for fueling my truck. Kettleman City, we hardly knew ya. read more

Food: 2/5. Price: 4/5 Service: 3/5 Ambience: 1/5 Bare bowl with carnitas - rice, beans, roasted veggies, onions & cilantro, salsa verde, fresh lime. Basically a huge pile of rice and beans with minimal roasted veggies and meat. Surprised it didn't have fresh vegetables like chipotle. Chips and queso - light chips and good rich cheese dip. Ordered: * Bare bowl with carnitas ($9.29) * side - Chips and queso($0.99) read more

Baja Fresh - Bare bowl with carnitas ($9.29) & side - Chips and queso($0.99) - Mexican Near Me - Kettleman City, California

Glad there's a decent Mexican Food options at this exit. This Baja Fresh is small and is inside a larger building holding more than one eating establishment. This Baja Fresh is a counter near the end of the building beside Togo's Sandwiches. Ordered a Burrito and was told they ran out of some of the ingredients. So I ordered and paid for a Tostada with Carne Asada. It took a longer amount of time than I expect to make it. ESPECIALLY since they ran out of several other ingredients (like avocado and cheese) to put in it. Which they told me after I was called to pick up my order. There are enough parking spaces in the area. read more

Horrible experience. Horrible food. Unbelievably expensive. Disgusting bathroom. Music so loud inside with every other word the n word and f word. Not a family environment for sure. Got a few burritos on the way south. With in 30 belly hurting. Within an hour severe nausea. Few more hours explosive (pull to the side of the highway to crap but not making it in time resulting in throwing away you underwear) diarrhea. Eat anything else. Anything. Wish I had. 2 days later I'm still sick. read more

Like several other folks, we went here because every other place had lines out there door. The fact that McDonald's was crushing it with customers while this place was pulling in mostly flies should have tipped us off as to where it ranks in the Kettleman City quality food index. Be very clear when you order here, and have multiple back up plans for when they tell you that they are out of one key ingredient from everything you try to to order. Also bring a large reservoir of patience, because the cashier appears to learn how to work the register system anew with every customer and expresses this through looks of general confusion and resignation. Luckily, the cook can come by and occasionally help out. I did appreciate the efficiency of not removing the sanitary gloves in between touching the register, the food, and other items. Because really, why? Pro tip: come prepped with a handful of Altoids to cleanse your palate after going here. read more

Really off that people hate on this location so much. Yes, it has a limited menu. It's an Express in the middle of nowhere. Yes, the bathrooms aren't the best. Did you notice they're next door and the Baja Fresh isn't responsible for them. Correct, they have no breakfast burritos. It's a chain, none of them do so far as I know. I think the low reviews are because every customer who eats here is three hours into a six hour drive from SF to LA (or the inverse) and they're cranky. This was a totally chill Baja Fresh in the Central Valley where there's nothing else but McDonalds and Subway every 50 miles for hours. Chill out and enjoy, kiddos. It was fine. read more

Baja Fresh provides good quality food. I had their steak taco from this location and I was not disappointed. Okay, maybe I should mention that the chopped raw onions in the taco was a bit on the strong side. The sauce and meat was consistent with their company's flavor. For a four dollar taco, I was expecting something much more than the 3-bite taco "sampler" that I found wrapped in paper wrapped in foil. And, I don't care how much free chips and salsa comes in the bag, it's the damn taco that I paid four bucks to eat for dinner. I will look for another Baja Fresh and give it another try. Chips and salsa were deserving of an honorable mention, though. read more

Baja Fresh - Mexican Near Me - Kettleman City, California

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All I gotta say is all yall are ridiculous! I'm giving this baja fresh 5 stars. Let me break it down for you and literally refute all of these bad reviews. 1. Convenience: This is right off of the highway! There are LIMITED food choices on the 5! You are lucky your only choice isn't Taco Smell! 2. Health conscience food: There is none. I didn't want greasy in n out after my over indulgent weekend. Baja Fresh has... omg salad! And burrito bowls! If you are ordering a quesadilla and are complaining it's cold you deserve taco smell anyways. 3. Service: Was exceptional! The checker was super friendly and accommodating! I subbed my beans for double rice and got TWO kinds of salsas. 4. Food: BOMB! I am looking forward to my next stop in Kettleman city so I can get this baja fresh. The burrito bowl with chicken was on point. Fresh fajitas! Fresh lime! Hot rice! Perfectly grilled chicken! Delish pico de gallo! BEST PART the fresh hot chips! They literally were hot out of the oven. So crunchy and good. Better than el torito. This Baja Fresh is in the middle of no where, you shouldn't be coming here with high and mighty expectations. Let's keep it real people. I enjoy clean Chipotles in my nice sunny neighborhood of Los Angeles too, but this is Kettleman city...c'mon. read more

Baja Fresh - The bare burrito bowl with chicken - Mexican Near Me - Kettleman City, California

Stopped at this place for a bite to eat on my way to LA... felt very disappointed with what I got. If you're coming closer to closing time, I wouldn't recommend going here. I decided to order a bowl and soon found that they were missing SEVERAL of the key ingredients in the bowl, including rice. By the time I finished ordering, I already was worried that there was almost nothing in my bowl. They even charge extra for sour cream, which I don't understand, but I was willing to pay because I was trying to fill my bowl up as much as possible with whatever was left. They also don't make any pricing changes even when they're missing about half of the normal bowl ingredients. What was even worse was the COVID safety. The employee at the register kept taking her mask off. Both of the employees were not very friendly or communicative either. As expected, the food was very subpar. It's definitely edible, but I would NEVER come back here again. Perhaps it would be better if you come earlier in the day when they have more of the ingredients, but I still don't think the quality is worth the hefty price tag. I was left feeling unsatisfied and disappointed after my meal. There aren't a lot of food options in this area, but I would highly suggest just going to the In-N-Out next door. I was seriously wishing I had! read more

Menu is very limited. I wanted to order nachos but didn't see it on the menu. I did see that it was an add-on for a plate which I attempted to order but they told me that it was "just chips" which was odd because the menu showed a list of other ingredients so it wasn't really "just chips". My Mr.Pibb had such a weird taste. I guess the only good thing was the gentleman that helped me was nice. The women working were less friendly and it seemed that they just wanted to get us in and out as fast as possible. I don't recommend this location. You're better off eating at the other fast food places in the area. read more

This place is a legit option at the I-5 / Hwy 41 intersection. You need to own the fact that you have put yourself in the position of being hungry (possibly with cranky kids) in Kettleman City, while trying to eat quickly and stay close to the freeway, and you have decided against going to In-n-Out. You've made all the choices that put you in that situation. Accepting that reality... This place has a limited, but flavorful, Baja Fresh menu with friendly and efficient service, and clean tables. Even the guacamole was fresh! My experience was that the staff deftly dealt with a line of about 8, and got hot food out quickly. That all said, I did not appreciate the mark-up. The $6.89 burritos you find at every Baja Fresh are $8.99 here. So, at the point that you're committing to a $9 burrito, you may want to think about what other sort of delicious snacks (a pint of Ben & Jerry's? beek jerky?) you can purchase int he attached convenience store might make your soul happier as you continue your drive. read more

Fast food place conveniently located in Kettleman City - the halfway point between SF and LA. Shares building space with Quiznos Sub and gas station, so formation of lines can be awkward and might extend through the gas station store. Workers are particularly in a hurry to serve travelers, which I both appreciated and didn't appreciate. I mean, just take a little care when talking to customers and not make customers feel hurried or anything. Pork Carnitas Tostada (~$9.95) - The pork carnitas are SO good but there is a substantial amount of oil left on them. The oil dripped all over my tostada salad. The salad is actually a non-healthy option since it comes with guacamole and sour cream glops. Take care since one order of this is approximately 1,600 calories! Suggest eating the tostada first since it's not crunchy as a leftover. read more

I'm glad this place is here and open. Service is kind. However, the menu says romaine lettuce in the salad and they only use iceberg. I probably still would have wanted the salad but wish the menu was accurate. Also, the portion on carnitas in the salad was on the small side. read more

I only blame myself for not trusting Yelp on this one. We usually depend on Yelp to find something besides a fast food chain on our I-5 trips, but time was short so we settled for this. There used to be one in our local mall and it was decent. This one sadly was not. Definitely built to just take advantage of the travelers looking for something besides a burger. Almost looks like it was squeezed into this complex as an afterthought. read more

We were told it would be a 15 minute wait. It took almost 30 minutes and after waiting all that time, they ran out of rice AND beans. My salad was lettuce and guacamole. They could have at least offered me some meat. Geez! Don't stop there. Wait of your time and money and we didn't get any protein. My husbands veggie burrito didn't get beans either so he got tortilla with lettuce and cheese. Major disappointment after being on the road for hours. read more

Wow! Baja Fresh really lived up to their name. I had the taco platter, Baja style of course. Don't forget my spicy salsa. The pork carnitas was delicious! Rice and beans were only 99 cents. My three kids each had a bare burrito, my youngest said it was "bomb". Kid tested, parent approved. read more

Driving to San Jose and stopped at kettleman to get a bite to eat. I decided on Baja and walked in and it was totally empty at around 2 on a sat. When I was looking up at menu on top the worker ask me may I help you. I should have walked out when he wasn't wearing a mask since this delta variant is getting worse. Maybe that's why it was dead inside but hot dog stand next door was crowded. After he made my buro I asked u don't have to wear a mask and he said it's optional and I said isn't there coronavirus over here that's when the other guy in back said something like it freedom of speech I jus keeped nodding my head. I would not return ever to that location. Lady that came after wearing a mask I could tell was thinking the same and walked out. She was smart not like me read more

I would give it zero stars if I could Cheese quesadilla is 8$ something. It's the worst cheese quesadilla I've ever had. There was no cheese anywhere to be found inside the quesadilla. Gross. Went to In N Out on the way back and got a grilled cheese animal style with jalapeños for 2.63$. Huge burger, cheap and oh so good. Never again going to this Baja. read more

The service was outstanding. The gentleman working was very nice and helpful. The food was amazing! The facility was clean and well maintained. I do have to say that the best part was the service. This is always the most important thing I take into consideration when I'm picking somewhere to eat! I will definitely be back here!! Thank you for amazing customer service!! read more

Came here on one of the worst days - Thanksgiving weekend. Everyone was on the roads and it was raining, so naturally dinner time here was packed. The staff seemed stressed but they still managed to get food out as quickly as possible - kudos! This Baja Fresh is located inside of a Shell Gas Station. It used to share space with a Quizno's, but Quizno's has closed and a Wienerscnitzel and Little Cesar's will be joining it, although construction hasn't started on the other two restaurants so that's months away. In a sea of roadside McDonalds, Carls Junior, Taco Bell, and the like - Baja Fresh is a welcome sight. Ordinarly, I'd rate this restaurant lower, but compared to the other options when you're driving out here this is probably your best choice. We ordered the Baja Steak Tacos and a Chicken Quesadilla. The chicken was especially good. read more

This Baja Fresh is connected to the Shell gas station in Kettleman City. Bathrooms are in the convenient store area of the gas station. The two restaurants in this area are Baja Fresh and Quizno's. Came here with the USC band, and about 30 kids of the 300+ in our group went to this Baja Fresh/Quizno's spot. I decided not to wait in line for In N Out like the rest of them band. Having a door that connects to the gas station convenient store and restroom was clutch. Since the first tip for this town on Foursquare says "Don't drink the water", I decided to save myself the extra water-born sickness and opt for a big-a$$ bottle of water at the gas station. Ambience 1/5 The place is very small. I'm sure it's more spacious when a whole bunch of college kids aren't crammed inside, but that was my experience. This place sees bus loads and groups all the time, so they don't get sympathy from me. Also....flies. There were too many flies for my taste....and I'm assuming most people don't like flies flying around things you want to put in your mouth. Put up some flypaper! I digress. Service 2/5 A couple people I was with have specific digestive needs, and are very specific when they order. I understand that you're swamped, but when an order/request is made and is shown on the receipt, it is the cook's/preparer's responsibility to get it right. In the case of preference, it may not be that big of a deal, but if someone was allergic to something you accidentally put in their food, things could go pretty badly for that person. Food Wait 4/5 Actually didn't have to wait too long for my food, which I was definitely happy about Food 2/5 I chose Baja Fresh over Taco Bell because I wanted decent Tex Mex. Baja Fresh is normally decent, and the food is usually quite good. I ordered a Carnitas Baja Burrito, and it was definitely forgettable. I mean I didn't get food poisoning so I hooked you up with a second star. Overall 2/5 Eh. I could do without the flies, and definitely wish the food tasted better. I was starving so I inhaled the hell out of my burrito, sadly without enjoying the flavor. The search for the Kettleman City Oasis continues..... read more

This is barely a Baja Fresh; very limited menu compared to a typical one. No salsa bar, chips and salsa only given in small containers on request and they didn't have the mild one I always get at other Baja Fresh's. No shrimp or fish options. I know one could argue you wouldn't eat it fresh, but then my pork carnitas and steak tacos weren't cooked fresh either. In fact I never saw anything cooked while I sat and ate and other people served, so not sure anything was 'fresh.' The carnitas taco was hot, but the steak was room temperature, and strangely, had a slightly fishy flavor; I didn't finish it. And to top it all off, the service was sullen and reluctant. Worst experience I've had in any restaurant for a long time. Decor was almost non-existent, making it look like it was a fly-by-night location pretending to be a Baja Fresh. Although I'm driving by this constantly for my current work project, I'll never be back to this spot. read more

I got the Tostada bowl and the beef was chewy. Service was quick around dinner time on a Sunday. read more

Baja Fresh - Small place - Mexican Near Me - Kettleman City, California

This was not the Baja Fresh Standard as it was dirty. A Homeless man came in while we were eating. He washed his face at Soda Station. He could have used the bathroom. The place is not Sanitary. read more

Don't go here. Terrible service. Have been waiting for a to go order for over a half hour. Dirty with lots of flies. Not even a full menu. Don't go here. read more

Baja Stale. Yowza! It has all been said before: flies, dirtiness, incompetence, inability to execute on a formula. Has corporate HQ ever sent anyone to look in on this franchise? Apparently not. Those looking for a place to recharge off of I-5: don't kid yourselves! You really think all these reviews are wrong? Avoid. read more

Burrito bowl wasn't bad. I enjoyed it, even though the vegetables didn't taste super fresh. The guac was good, definitely worth a dollar extra. Pretty filling meal for not too much money. If you're debating between here and Carls Jr, go here. The guy at the cash register was very nice and deserves a promotion. You heard it here first. read more

I've been to several Baja Fresh places and this was by far the saltiest Baja steak burrito I've ever had at one. Someone there is either sodium chloride deficient or a creature from Star Trek planet M-113. Otherwise service was fast and the people were nice. Parking was a pain though with the Chevron place across the street doing a whole renovation so everyone was coming over here. read more

Worst experience ever. No salsa bar then ran out of sauces completely. Waited 30 min for food and they ran out of steak and rice so I got a warmed bean and cheese burrito. Brian Scott is the manager but I don't think he was present because a lot of customers were complaining and the staff was less then helpful. read more

I got carnitas nachos but they used liquid cheese instead of shredded cheese. It was good at first but when you reach the bottom layer, it's not very appetizing because all the chips are soggy. read more

Absolutely disgusting. I spat out my Chicken taco because it tasted foul and for fear of food poisoning. Rotten food all over the floor and work services. Public health need to shut this place down before someone dies. Awful. Avoid. read more

Awful! Worst place ever! If this was my first time at baja fresh, I would never eat there again. Overpriced. No salsa bar. No lime. Burnt pieces of who knows what in the chicken made me gag. read more

We had excellent food and service while stopping through to LA. We arrived 7 min before they opened at 11AM and the one employee, assuming a shift manager, was very polite and let us know that he'd be with us as soon as possible. We ordered and got our kids a pizza next counter over (a little food strip attached to the gas station) The food came out fresh, with their delicious grilled chicken and before our kids finished their pizza! I feel for and commend the gentleman who served us Sat. 2/17/18, since the line only grew just after opening. Great job. I don't understand the low reviews other then that the location is still a corporate chain in a gas station. The men's bathroom was out of order but I don't feel that should reflect the food and service from provided. read more

Well its a Baja Fresh at a truck stop so c'mon, its not gonna be good. First off, they do not have the full salsa bar that you would get at most BFs. It shares a space with a Quiznos which was closed when we went in, otherwise I would have opted for something at Quiznos. Went for my go-to, the Baja steak burrito. Probably the worst one I have had at any Baja. Including the sales tax I had to pay, I felt really screwed. The staff was not friendly. Sorry that I am coming into your business to give you money, is it so much to ask that I get a half decent burrito? I should have went to In-N-Out across the street. No matter their location, they have standards. We were quick to hop back in the mini-van and gun it to L.A. read more

Ordered a steak burrito with no rice and black beans. Waited 40 minutes for it. I got to my car to find I had a veggie burrito with rice. No steak, no beans, and was charged $10. What a rip off. Never coming back! read more

Wow, best food ever. Thank you, Samantha, great service. Everything was perfect, fresh tortillas, fresh guacamole. The pork was perfect, not watered down, but not dry, great flavor. Beans and rice perfect. This was the best food I've ever had at Baja Fresh. read more

Dirty. Tables, floor, soda fountain area could all use a scrubbing. Had to wipe down the table with a napkin before sitting down. Got 2 out of our 4 meals completely wrong and not even an apology. Keep in mind it is also shares restrooms with the Shell station. Two toilets were clogged and a sink too. YUCK! read more