"Since we have Chipotle in Lakewood, it's only fair that Bellflower should get a Chipotle too,"…read moresays this Lakewood resident lol.
Yet it seems Chipotle is becoming a dime a dozen with how many locations there are in and around the LBC.
But the ubiquity can't be said for a location like this Bellflower location, not because it's the only location in the city, but rather, it's one of the few Chipotles in the area that actually has a drive thru feature.
Oh? A drive thru you say? Tell me more Derek!
Well, "drive thru" might not be the best choice of words to use here. That's because there's no intercom where you speak to an employee before pulling up to the window to pay and take your order. Rather, you place your order online, then arrive around your scheduled pickup time, and then (hopefully) pick up your order after you say your name to the attendant at the window. Instead of drive thru, Chipotle calls it the Chipotlane, though the email will mention the words "drive thru window" in the instructions.
This Chipotle recently opened in the Belle Fleur Center on the northeast corner of Bellflower and Cedar. It's about 2-3 blocks south of the 91 freeway, so if you're looking to hop on and off the freeway to get some Chipotle without having to shut off the engine of your vehicle, this would be an ideal location to do so. If you recall where Global Tires used to be, that's where Chipotle is now, though the building has since been replaced to make room for the new Belle Fleur Center.
This summer, Chipotle is offering a promo called Summer of Extras where you try to earn as many badges as you can by ordering entrees during the summer months of June, July, and August. You get a badge or extra points after every milestone, equivalent to an entree purchase, up to 7 per month. If you're able to reach the 7th milestone before the end of the month, you get rewarded with a free entree or the equivalent in points.
Recently, Chipotle revamped their rewards program to give members a monthly drop reward. For the month of June, I got a free side of guac with a minimum purchase of $5, but note that you may get a different reward than I did.
I ordered a burrito bowl with Chipotle Honey Chicken, which is available for a limited time. I ordered extras of most everything, except for white rice and the beans, the last of which I requested half and half.
I ordered ASAP pickup, and I arrived practically on the dot of my scheduled pickup time. There weren't any other customers in the Chipotlane, so I pulled up and saw a female employee approach me. I showed her my name on my phone, and she had my order ready to hand over.
When the employee handed me my bag, I noticed a piece of cheese had fallen onto the seat of my car?! I didn't even open the bag, but luckily, nothing else spilled out, except maybe the grease that sept onto the bottom of my takeout bag.
I was pleased to see that they filled my burrito bowl to the brim, as pretty much requested by yours truly. And the taste was pretty much what I expected, though I wish there was a little more flavor in the Chipotle Honey Chicken. Guac was pretty good and fresh with minimal browning on it.
However, it was kind of disappointing to see that besides the guac, all the other ingredients I requested on the side were only filled halfway. For Chipotle orders, I like ordering the two tomatillo salsas as well as the sour cream on the side so I can save them in the fridge for lunch the next day without the bowl getting too soggy overnight.
It's also worth mentioning that I wasn't given a bag with handles, so I had to hold onto the bottom to make sure my rather heavy Chipotle Honey Chicken Bowl wouldn't fall straight through the bottom of the bag.
In spite of all the grievances I've spelled out in this review, I believe this Chipotle deserves 4 stars out of 5 for meeting my standards on the contents inside the bowl, which remained good to eat for lunch the following day. It also helped that I could get my Chipotle order without having to leave my car, but be forewarned you can't actually place your order in the drive thru like at a fast food spot; the Chipotlane is only for customers who placed digital orders. And there also aren't that many Chipotle locations with a drive thru option. Closest ones from Bellflower would be Norwalk and Long Beach on Atlantic.