Baja Bistro's salsa bar offers several types of house-made salsa: mild, medium and hot, plus pico de gallo and a "salsa of the week."

Salem's new Baja Bistro Fresh Mex Grille, located in the space formerly occupied by Dickey's Barbecue Pit, offers a build-your-own burrito experience similar to that of larger restaurant chains Chipotle and Moe's Southwest Grill. The fare also includes quesadillas, tacos, nachos and salads. According to the manager, the menu is essentially just a list of suggestions; customers should feel free to customize their burrito, taco, or quesadilla from the ingredients offered.

My recent trips for lunch ended with mixed results.

THE VIBE

Baja Bistro is sort of like Subway, where you order upon entry and work your way toward the register while directing employees to add or avoid certain toppings -- a format that is especially adept at offering a quick lunch.

The burnt-orange walls with blue trim impart a low-key Tex-Mex feel. Patrons have a choice of tables or booths from which they can see at least one of the two flat-panel TVs.

THE FOOD

My first trip to Baja Bistro resulted in a disappointing burrito experience. My burrito, dubbed "Thai One On" ($6.49), contained shredded chicken (it doesn't carry chicken strips) with spicy peanut marinade, white rice, cheese, lettuce, and an overly sweet mango sauce. The combination of peanut marinade and mango sauce mercilessly condemned the burrito to an unappetizing purgatory somewhere between a standard chicken burrito and an Asian chicken wrap.

I was more pleased with my second visit, when I ordered a Baja quesadilla ($6.49) filled with my choice of chicken or beef (I chose chicken), cheese, lettuce, tomato and jalapeno peppers. Although the quesadilla came with sour cream, I asked for guacamole -- for which I should have been charged according to the menu -- but (happily) was not. The quesadilla was large, appropriately crispy on the outside and contained an adequate amount of fixin's. According to the manager, all the ingredients are made in-house, which includes chopping the vegetables daily, making the sour cream and guacamole, and sauteing the onions and peppers.

My brother, who had been ambivalent about his prior trips to Baja Bistro, and I were pleasantly surprised about the taste and heft of the Ultimate Nachos ($6.49) he ordered on this occasion. The menu indicates this large order of nachos comes with your choice of beef or chicken, plus rice, beans, lettuce, cheese and sour cream. Taking advantage of the menu customization, however, my brother arrived at the table with beef strips, melted cheese, black beans, jalapenos and sour cream. I would have opted for ground beef over the strips, if only because strips are unwieldy when trying to scoop with a nacho. Nonetheless, the nachos made a good, gooey, cheese-laced lunch -- a fact my brother quickly noticed as I constantly grabbed "just one more" chip.

THE SERVICE

The only service to speak of at Baja Bistro comes from the employees who make your entree and take your money. On both visits the line moved quickly, and the speed of service was a plus at lunch.

The soda fountain is self-serve, as is the salsa bar offering several types of house-made salsa: mild, medium and hot, plus pico de gallo and a "salsa of the week." The chips, which accompany most entrees, are standard Mexican restaurant fare.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Baja Bistro offers a quick and inexpensive meal with a build-your-own system for Mexican fare. Despite the fact that most of the food is made in-house, I found it undistinguished overall. Avoid the mango sauce.