Healthy Options at Baja Fresh

Healthy choices at Baja Fresh

One of my first posts was a story of eating at Baja Fresh with a close friend.  It’s time for me to come back to that and delve a little deeper into some of their healthier options.

Baja Fresh touts themselves as providing, well, fresh Mexican food.  They do not use freezers or microwaves, and both their Vision and Mission statements emphasize the “F” word as well.

Unfortunately neither of their guiding statements mention anything about nutrition or health, and “fresh” doesn’t necessarily mean “healthy.”  However, I nearly fell out of my chair when I read two magic words on their company info page:  “Eat less.”

It’s a shame they don’t actually encourage that behavior.

Moreover, most of the foods are so outrageously high in sodium (meaning:  more than you should eat in an entire day), it rules out a lot of options.  (And I thought Rubio’s had a lot of sodium!)

Nevertheless, it is possible to have a delicious, healthy, and filling meal from Baja Fresh.

If you take away only one thing from this post, I hope it’s this:  Get tacos instead of a burrito.

Tacos – Better Choices

Tacos are one of the best “entrée” choices on the menu, so let’s start there.  The numbers here are for ONE taco.

Original Baja Taco, all types
200-230 cal, 1-2g sat fat, 5-8g total fat, 230-280mg sodium, 28-29g carbs, 2g fiber, 10-12g protein

Grilled Mahi Mahi Taco
230 cal, 1.5g sat fat, 9g total fat, 300mg sodium, 26g carbs, 4g fiber, 12g protein
Most of the fat comes from actual avocado slices, so it’s all good.

Tacos – Worst Choices

Americano Soft Taco, all types
230-260 cal, 4.5-6g sat fat, 10-13g total fat, 490-640mg sodium, 20-23g carbs, 2g fiber, 10-17g protein
I’m ruling these out because of the high sodium content.  Still much better than the burritos, but the other taco options are the clear winners.

Baja Fish Taco (Breaded & Fried)
250 cal, 2g sat fat, 13g total fat, 420mg sodium, 27g carbs, 2g fiber, 8g protein

Salads & Soups – Better Choices

The numbers for salads do NOT include dressing, which is listed separately below.

Side Salad
130 cal, 1.5g sat fat, 6g fat, 430mg sodium, 16g carbs, 4g fiber, 5g protein

Baja Ensalada – Charbroiled Shrimp
230 cal, 2g sat fat, 6g total fat, 1,110mg sodium, 18g carbs, 6g fiber, 28g protein

Baja Ensalada – Charbroiled Chicken
310 cal, 2g sat fat, 7g total fat, 1,210mg sodium, 18g carbs, 7g fiber, 46g protein

Baja Ensalada – Charbroiled Steak
450 cal, 7g sat fat, 18g total fat, 1,240mg sodium, 18g carbs, 6g fiber, 54g protein

Baja Ensalada – Pork Carnitas
370 cal, 6g sat fat, 18g total fat, 1,410mg sodium, 20g carbs, 7g fiber, 35g protein

Salads & Soups – Worst Choices

Tostada Salads, all types X
1,010 to 1,230 cal and 1,930 to 2,520 mg sodium.
…and that’s before adding dressing.

Mango Chipotle Chicken Salad X
930 cal, 9g sat fat, 52g total fat, 1,960mg sodium, 67g carbs, 13g fiber, 43g protein
This includes the tortilla shell.

Chicken Tortilla Soup (with or without Charbroiled Chicken added) X
2,600 to 2,760mg sodium
That’s like a heaping teaspoon of salt, and more than a day’s supply.

Salad Dressings – Better Choice

Consider topping your salad with some fresh salsa instead!

Fat Free Salsa Verde
15 cal, no fat, 370mg sodium, 3g carbs, 1g fiber, no protein

Salad Dressings – Worst Choices

Olive Oil Vinaigrette X
290 cal, 4.5g sat fat, 31g total fat, 290mg sodium, 2g carbs, no fiber, no protein

Ranch Dressing X
260 cal, 6g sat fat, 26g total fat, 470mg sodium, 4g carbs, no fiber, 2g protein

Burritos – Better Choices

To qualify for a Burrito “best choice,” I’m begrudgingly narrowing it to 800-calories-or-less and under 2,000 mg of sodium. Herein lies the four options that meet those criteria:

Mahi Mahi Baja Burrito
780 cal, 15g sat fat, 38g total fat, 1,890mg sodium, 66g carbs, 7g fiber, 51g protein

Mahi Mahi Burrito Mexicano
790 cal, 3.5g sat fat, 13g total fat, 1,970mg sodium, 117g carbs, 18g fiber, 49g protein

Grilled Veggie Burrito
800 cal, 17g sat fat, 33g total fat, 1,880mg sodium, 94 gcarbs, 16g fiber, 32g protein

Veggie & Cheese Bare Burrito (served in a bowl, no tortilla)
580 cal, 4g sat fat, 10g total fat, 1,950mg sodium, 101g carbs, 20g fiber, 19g protein

Burritos – Worst Choices

Burrito Ultimo, all types X
860-950 cal, 18-21g sat fat, 36-44g total fat, 1,950-2,330mg sodium, 84-96g carbs, 8-9g fiber, 41-54g protein

Baja Burrito, all types except Mahi Mahi X
790-850 cal, 16-18g sat fat, 37-46g total fat, 1,900-2,280mg sodium, 65-78g carbs, 7-8g fiber, 40-52g protein
The Baja Burritos swap the sour cream for guacamole, so although the fat content is still high, they’re a better choice than the Ultimo burritos.

Burrito Mexicano, all types except Mahi Mahi X
770-850 cal, 3.5-7g sat fat, 15-18g total fat, 2,040-2,420mg sodium, 117-129g carbs, 18-20g fiber, 37-50g protein
These skip the cheese, sour cream, and guacamole, but add in rice and black beans (hence the lower fat, but higher carbs and fiber).

Diablo Shrimp Burrito X X
1,000 cal, 12g sat fat, 34g total fat, 2,930mg sodium, 130g carbs, 19g fiber, 56g protein
See also: this story.

Nacho Burrito X X X
1,250 cal, 17g sat fat, 42g total fat, 3,200mg sodium, 145g carbs, 23g fiber, 75g protein
In a class all on its own, this monster is half your days’ calories, almost your entire day’s fat, and nearly a day and a half’s worth of sodium.

Salad Burritos X
940-980 cal, 19-20g sat fat, 50-52g total fat, 1,770-1,930mg sodium, 75-81g carbs, 8-11g fiber, 48-50g protein
Don’t be fooled by the word “salad!”

Bean and Cheese Burritos, all types, with or without meat X
840-1,030 cal, 17-21g sat fat, 33-42g total fat, 1,790-2,370mg sodium, 96-108mg fiber, 39-67g protein

Bare Burrito, all types except Veggie & Cheese
640-700 cal, 1-4.5g sat fat, 7-15g total fat, 2,330-2,480mg soidum, 97-99g carbs, 19-20g fiber, 37-45g protein

“Enchilado Style” X (can be added to any burrito), adds:
630 cal, 19g sat fat, 40g total fat, 1,450mg sodium, 45g carbs, 7g fiber, 23g protein
Seriously?  The topping on your burrito shouldn’t be an entire meal’s worth of calories and day’s supply of saturated fat.

“Baja Favorites” – Better Choices

The Chicken Taquitos aren’t great — they’re fried, after all — but they’re probably the best thing on the “Favorites” menu, meeting the same criteria as the best burritos (under 800 cal and 2,000mg sodium).  I’d recommend the beans on the side (instead of rice), since they’re higher in fiber and protein (without any more fat, and not much more sodium).

Chicken Taquitos with Beans
780 cal, 12g sat fat, 40g total fat, 1,810mg sodium, 68g carbs, 17g fiber, 39g protein

Chicken Taquitos with Rice
740 cal, 11g sat fat, 40g total fat, 1,770mg sodium, 66g carbs, 8g fiber, 30g protein

“Baja Favorites” – Worst Choices

Quesadillas X X
1,200 to 1,400 calories, and 2,140 to 2,730 mg sodium. 
Next!

Nachos X X
1,890 to 2,120 calories, about 110 grams of fat, and 2,530 to 3,120 mg sodium.
So much for “eat less.”

Fajitas
On the low end is the Mahi Mahi with Corn Tortillas (840 cal, 1,960mg sodium) and at the top is the Breaded Fish with Flour Tortillas (1,340 cal, 3,020mg sodium) or the Steak with Flour Tortillas (1,240 cal, 3,440mg sodium).

Salsas

BF provides nutritional stats for an 8-ounce portion (who eats one cup of salsa?), but at least that makes it easier to compare.  They vary slightly in calories and fat content, but the biggest differences are in sodium.  Here are the numbers for 2 ounces of Salsa, from least to most:

Pico de Gallo – 223mg sodium

Salsa Baja – 243 mg sodium

Salsa Roja – 270mg sodium

Salsa Verde – 293mg sodium

Menu Mondays are my recommendations for the most healthful options at chain restaurants. Although it may be tough to find “perfect” options when eating out, it’s important to choose “better” whenever possible, and I hope these guides will help make that easier for you.

indicates the “best-of-the-best,” and X indicates the “worst-of-the-worst,” more or less.

Baja Fresh Nutritional Information

Photo by hhllbbhh.

A photo of Andrew Wilder leaning into the frame and smiling, hovering over mixing bowls in the kitchen.

Welcome to Eating Rules!

Hi! My name is Andrew Wilder, and I think healthy eating doesn’t have to suck. With just three simple eating rules, we'll kickstart your journey into the delicious and vibrant world of unprocessed food.

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Donald
February 2, 2020 7:19 pm

The bare burritos are quite good (over lettuce). You can skip the rice and get black and pinto beans. And if you think chicken is a better choice over pork carnitas, think again. The pork is less fat, calories, sodium and saturated fat. I don’t know how they accomplish that, but it’s all in their nutrition breakdown. The salsa Verde makes a delicious dressing too.

Michelle
September 16, 2014 8:27 am

This was very helpful. Thank you!

March 14, 2013 10:51 am

Well this just changed everything I was planning to eat for lunch today. Thanks for the heads up!