If you’ve ever been to a Boloco, you know why it’s awesome. They provide a very interesting, and (often) healthy twist on classic burritos, and are one of my favorite places to eat in the Boston area when I need something quick but don’t want to deal with the aftermath of fast food. Beyond just the burrito and smoothie options (and quite delicious coffee, which you wouldn’t expect from a burrito shop), one of the best things about the company is their employees, and their attitude towards the brand – it’s simple, bold and clean, with tongue placed firmly in cheek, just the way I like it.
As a fairly loyal customer, I get occasional e-mail updates (happily) from them letting me know what they’re up to. Every year, they send out a mailing on April Fool’s day that borders on brilliant. Generally, it deals with some knock that they’ve had in the media, or “major change” they’re rolling out, and this year was no exception. What was an exception, however, was that the “major change” they were talking about actually seemed like a great idea. From the campaign:
But here’s why all of this matters… we’re pulling out of the “bigger is better” race. Yes, officially, we give up. Even though our recent test size “XL” and our recently implemented “Original” size (larger than large) had some fans saying to themselves “Wow, boloco finally gets it”, we’re just tired of playing a game that can’t be won – by anyone. Therefore, we’re going to make a hard, swift, 180 degree turn effective immediately. Beginning today, boloco is no more. We are now:
And we EXCLUSIVELY sell only mini things in all of our restaurants. Mini burritos, mini bowls, mini shakes, mini salads, mini wraps, mini smoothies, mini chocolate chip cookies, mini breakfast burritos, mini everything.
Here’s the thing: I love burritos, but one of the things that keeps me from going to places like Anna’s and Chipotle et al. is that for whatever reason, these restaurants think that a normal burrito has to be some oversized bohemoth of rice and meat that no human should actually try to fit into their stomach all at once. This is one of the things I love about Boloco, in fact – the fact that their “regular” size is actually a normal human-size burrito, and the fact that I can ask them for things like “half rice, twice the veg” and, for the most part, they understand and gladly accommodate.
So why not put a mini-burrito on the menu? Not the snack-size burritos that they normally make (which, while delicious, are rarely quite what I’m looking for), but an actual, half-size burrito? When I handled the food for Design4Drupal in Boston last year, they gave us buckets of said mini-burritos, which gave the attendees the option to sample different flavors, and also the option to have a snack later if they needed it. Why not make it a permanent addition to the menu (if they haven’t already)? I’ll bet there’s a bunch of people out there like me who would love to see that when they’re hungry, but don’t necessarily need a huge meal.
