Mexican food is rarely considered to be at the same level as say French or Gastropub experiences. I don't think it has anything to do with racism, but, rather with the type of food normally associated with the cuisine - comfort, down-to-earth, even peasant like and served in tacquerias, bodega and such. Chipotle came in and tried to make it cooler but all still stayed within the $10 range. In our minds, therefore, it has firmly been marked as cheap and abundant value!