I'll need a little help from my fellow LA/Orange County denziens here... Does anybody know the backstory to the standalone Green Burrito location in Cypress at Valley View and Ball? I do know the history more or less up to the 2001 CKE acquisition of GB (this location was a Del Taco till about 92 or 93 when Del Taco moved out and Green Burrito moved in) and I know that CKE now integrates Green Burrito into many of its restauraunts. But what of this little anomaly? I went there today out of nostalgia, and they still feature the full menu not found at Carl's Jr locations (specifically the Big Ed Burrito) and the whole ambiance is still of the small chain from the 90's. In fact, aside from the name itself (even the logo hasn't been updated) there are no ties whatsoever to Carl's Jr to be found.
So is it still owned by CKE? Their locator site doesn't list it (though there's an old Google search listing to a defunct CKE site)... Is it an independent licensee of the name by some special arrangement?
Can't help too much with your questions, but I do know there's also one more stand-alone (i.e., non-Carl's Jr.) Green Burrito--it's in La Habra on Whittier Blvd. I think the Cypress location and this one are the last of the original chain that began in Hawaiian Gardens.
In the mid/late 80s, there was a Green Burrito in Downey, near the intersection of Lakewood and Firestone. I frequently stayed at the Embassy Suites in Downey, and on nights I had work to get done before morning, I'd walk up to the Green Burrito and take food back to the hotel.
Their signature dish was the "Big Ed" burrito, the thing was massive. I made the mistake of ordering it, but just once. I was there one evening when a tiny teenage girl, maybe 14-15 years old, took the Big Ed challenge and won. I don't remember what the time limit was, but she devoured that huge burrito with time to spare. I was impressed.