Five Chipotle secrets that fans may not know – including why the chain is making customers pay 4% more
FIVE Chipotle secrets have been revealed that even the biggest fans of the brand might not know.
One secret has even spilled why the beloved chain restaurant is charging more than they ever have before.
Mexican-inspired food brand Chipotle has a mass of fans across the United States but there are plenty of things about the company that those who love it may not be privy to.
There are five major facts the average Chipotle eater isn't likely to know, despite frequenting the restaurant, according to
Foodborne Illness
This restaurant has gotten attention frequently for food safety slip-ups.
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While the pans of hot, selectable foods are a part of Chipotle's appeal, it is a restaurant science keeping each pan at the proper temperature and subbing out a fresh edition of the right food item at the proper timing.
From 2015 to 2018, reportedly more than 1,100 people caught sickness due to Norovirus, E. Coli, and Salmonella, "connected to restaurants in the Los Angeles area, Boston, Virginia, and Ohio," a news release from the stated.
The foodborne illness outbreak saw a lengthy investigation and even caused their stock to temporarily drop, according to
In the resolution, Chipotle agreed to pay a $25million fee for the charge, the largest from a restaurant at the time, the DOJ news release said, in addition to agreeing "to develop and follow an improved, comprehensive food safety compliance program."
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The company stated in a 2015 response to the E.Coli spread, "The source of the problem appears to have been contained during a period in late October," according to Business Insider.
"In response to this incident, Chipotle has taken aggressive steps to make sure its restaurants are as safe as possible."
Their site features an entire that reads in part: "Looking at the supply chain, we have created new models which allow us to further mitigate risk, such as sous vide meats and secondary inhibitors in beans and corn.
"Additionally, we are contributing financial resources and industry expertise to assist smaller, local growers in enhancing their systems to meet our food safety standards as opposed to mandating requirements and walking away if they can’t be met."
Downsizing Portions
Large portions are a notorious Chipotle pleasure, but these huge sizes may be facing uncertain times.
A rise in digital orders, partially due to the pandemic, allegedly made Chipotle get hip to the fact that their costs could be cut by keeping their portions consistent instead of going overboard on each item the way many customers like, Eat This claims.
While there is no solid proof of this, one Redditor noticed.
In a titled "Are employees instructed to give smaller portions to online orders?", a user who described themselves as trainer for the store responded, "We give you the real portion size on digital orders.
"In line, we give larger portions to stop customers from asking for more. It’s just faster."
A Day's Worth of Fat
As delicious as it is, just one Chipotle burrito can contain as much as a day's worth of nutrients, like fat.
Their carnitas burrito done up with guacamole and brown rice has 49 fat grams, 970 calories, and 94 grams of carbs.
Daily, a person should consume between 44 to 77 grams of fat, depending on their weight and other factors, which puts a consumer of one burrito already into this range, Eat This says.
More Money for Workers, Less For Customers
There's no doubt Chipotle workers are doing a much-desired service, and their wages recently increased in turn.
However, the company didn't simply shave dollars off of the top to give to its employees.
Instead, menu prices were merely raised by 4% to keep a fair, competitive wage for the food handling and customer service gig, in addition to offsetting rising food costs, according to
Unfortunately for Chipotle, this doesn't make them angels when it comes to labor laws.
A lawsuit was filed against the company from New York City.
Chipotle was reportedly changing workers' schedules right before shifts, demanding employees to work doubles, and from April 2014 to January 2020, only 24 hours of yearly sick time was granted instead of the legally required 40, according to the
This year, company agreed to pay $20,000 in award to approximately 13,000 workers who experienced the alleged violations, per the lawsuit.
Rat Scares
Humans aren't the only ones that love some Chipotle.
For one New York City location in November 2020, the store underwent forced closure due to several workers suffering rat bites, and reviewed one of its workers who were there during the rat scare.
"I was worried about what kind of diseases I could catch," he told the outlet through a translator.
Still, the final straw wasn't until the rat problem got so bad, the pests chewed through the computer wires and employees could no longer fulfill the orders.
As they say, the show must go on.
In a statement, Chipotle said that they closed down the restaurant during the time of the infestation and that the cause of the rats was adjacent restaurants on the same street, according to
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Previously, The Sun reported on which item not to order at Chipotle.
Read here about what Chipotle did after fans discovered a special $3 menu trick.