California Tortilla — Restaurant in Maryland

I remember going to Pam’s CalTort in the 90s when she first opened. I went back after several years today. What a disappointment. The chicken was rock hard, unchewable and flavorless except for being way too spicy. I ordered the blackened chicken Caesar, and there was so much greasy tasteless dressing that I couldn’t find the other ingredients. I asked for guacamole, and somehow this mound of this grayish brown mess was plopped in the middle of this bowl of Caesar dressing.

If your ingredients like the guacamole and the chicken are that old it means you are being extremely cheap. And sacrificing quality for savings.

They also don’t want you staying in the restaurant to east as the seats were hard and uncomfortable, and the ratio of table height to seat was so bad that clearly they had a consultant tell them how to get a customer out of there in three minutes or less by making the seating so uncomfortable.(Yes this is part of restaurant design, how long you want customers to stay). I had always thought the brand stood for quality. Evidently not.. Somewhere written is their slogan they “never want to lose a customer”,...

The only positive feedback I really wanted to include in this review is a huge shout out to the prep cooks and station cooks for putting out consistently great tasting food. Other than that, front of house needs work. I have to admit every time I come here, my order is made incorrectly due to negligence and trying to just get orders out fast, I guess? Anddd every table was visibly dirty from the previous customer. I understand lunch rushes and being in customer service, but there’s never a need to be yelling at your coworkers across the store while a line of guests are in your face.. please just don’t multitask if you’re not capable of doing so with ease. None the less, I grabbed the meals for my coworkers and just about each one of our modifications were added correctly to all 3 different entrees. It’s like I got questioned for asking for the side sour cream and pico de gallo that are supposed to be included with our quesadillas. It was kind of funny though, the worker took my receipt because I kept finding mistakes on each...

California tortilla is now a national chain and not local spot anymore. That said, it's hard to find a place that specializes in burritos in Potomac Maryland. And when you add an upgraded array of non-fountain soda drinks, this makes CalTort rise above many of the fast fresh chains and outlets.

However the same thing that makes their burritos fantastic, makes the rest of their menu somewhat ho-hum. Their burritos are great because when all things are added together, and then doused in one of the 75 sauces that are featured on the wall of pain, what could be bad? Taken individually the ingredients are a little bland. So the fajitas lack the sizzle necessary to create that crusty crunchy goodness. The vegetables which sit in chafing dishes are a little soggy.

What's also missing is Pam's fantastic humorous newsletter littering the counter! Also it could be just where we are with the covid thing, but the staff seemed a...