At Chipotle, if a customer asks for more, employees will generously oblige. They’ll add rice, beans or salsa. But they are trained to be stingy with the “critical seven,” expensive foods including steak, carnitas or pork, a braised beef called barbacoa, chicken, cheese, guacamole and sour cream. If pressed for more, they explain that a full scoop of meat is an extra charge.
At Chipotle, guacamole is made from scratch in each of its almost 1,800 outlets. Tortillas are fried into chips, then doused in fresh-squeezed lime and sprinkled liberally with salt. Onions, cilantro, lettuce and jalapeños are chopped into small pieces. Cheese is shredded.
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February 27, 2015 2:56 AM
Two key items from the above article, neither one concerning the food:"Diners will be able to tap on a screen to customize burger toppings in about 2,000 of its more than 14,000 restaurants by next year." (concerning McDonalds)"Here, 10 employees spend four hours each morning chopping and prepping food before doors open at 11 a.m." (concerning Chipotle)McDonalds seems to be, at least in part, showing the future to minimum wage workers (tap the screen rather than telling an order taker). At $15 an hour rather than $10 (+/-) an hour how soon will Chipotle cut the 10 workers to 9 or fewer.
February 27, 2015 2:56 AM
I can go to a little authentic taco joint not far from home where everything is done by hand and is fresh. It is also cheaper than Chipolte.I understand why people go to Chipolte so no hate on them but move to the Southwest and you'll never go to Chipolte again.
February 27, 2015 2:55 AM
As a 22 year old college student, I often hear "Chipotle" is life. Students willing to either skip out on beer or just rack up more debt to eat it. More often than not students will load the burrito hoping it will bust, and then recieve an additional shell. The only justification is, "its all I'll eat all day."
February 27, 2015 2:55 AM
Nice story -- good blend of business and human-interest reporting. Think it would have been interesting and highly relevant to cite the fact that McDonald's once had a stake in Chipotle, no?
February 27, 2015 2:55 AM
I am a 50 year old health conscious adult, and I unabashedly love Chipotle!
February 27, 2015 2:54 AM
not much meat. mostly rice and beans. fills people up with cheap ingredients and it works.
February 27, 2015 2:53 AM
Remember a few years ago when BP said it stood for 'Beyond Petroleum'? Greenies gushed over them, Wall Street rewarded them, but it was all BS. Same thing with Chipotle....it's bad for you food sold with the image of it all being fresh and healthy. Marketing 101, but wake up people and understand what it is all about.
February 27, 2015 2:53 AM
More guk to feed the american masses....
February 27, 2015 2:53 AM
Why not just go to a real taqueria? The food is better, and usually cheaper.
February 27, 2015 2:52 AM
for any dc folks: check out the well-dressed burrito at 19th and m. great hole in the wall burrito shop.but i still love chipotle. for the haters, please just stop kidding yourselves. the food is delicious
February 27, 2015 2:51 AM
Informative, interesting article on "quick food" that I find myself craving now and then. The irony is that McDonalds, which now finds itself attempting to reinvent parts of its business model, missed a huge earning opportunity when it sold off Chipotle in its infancy: Unfortunately for the Golden Arches, it truly is the one that got away. As for me, kicking myself every time I buy a burrito, that I didn't buy Chipotle stock at its initial $45.
February 27, 2015 2:51 AM
Ate there yesterday. I marvel at the simplicity of the menu, the no-nonsense interior, the simple packaging, and the tastiness of the end product. Wish I thought of the concept!
February 27, 2015 2:50 AM
Fools following a fad to feel good. Chipotle serves huge masses of calories in the form of rice, beans, and bad vegetables in a huge tortilla. I'll take two McDonald's burgers and a smoothie instead.
February 27, 2015 2:48 AM
Chipotle? Ho-hum.We like Pieology. Custom-made personal thin-crust pizzas with unlimited toppings.
February 27, 2015 2:47 AM
Probably one of the most consistently nasty restaurants I have ever visited. Tried a few locations while traveling. The food is tasteless, overly salty, and often unappetizing. Another consistent observation is cleanliness, or lack thereof. Very dirty restaurants.Also, it is ironic that the restaurant calls itself "Chipotle Mexican Grill". On occasions when I have visited their locations for lunch with colleagues and customers of Mexican descent I have been repeatedly told that "Chipotle is not anything like real Mexican food".
February 27, 2015 2:47 AM
Wow. Fascinating article indeed. Chop the onions just right, don't cut the beef strips a millimeter too wide or thick, or else you eat into profits, present fresh food as if it is a God given rarity, when in fact in a sane world it should be a default affair...the wonders of Capitalism just never cease to amaze. I feel shivers at the moment and I sincerely believe that Adam Smith's invisible hand is caressing me. I don't deserve to be in such noble company, nor can my intellect absorb more of this miracle. Thank you WSJ and Chipotle.
February 27, 2015 2:46 AM
Chipotle is the gold standard of fast food. It's the only fast food my family eats more than once per year. This article just made me even more of a fan.
February 27, 2015 2:46 AM
American marketing at its best. Take a high salt, high fat food product and have it hand assembled by tattoo/body pierced teenagers and suddenly its a cool food to eat with overtones of green and nature.Only wish I had thought of it first.
February 27, 2015 2:45 AM
Chipotle- well, the stores are busy and making money, so it is hard to argue with success.
February 27, 2015 2:44 AM
I read this article because my family are fans of Chipotle. The most intriguing part came toward the end:"In New Jersey, the crew is guided through daily tasks by Mr. Santos, a restaurateur, Chipotle’s term for an especially good restaurant manager...He is largely evaluated on how well the people around him develop and perform. Every two weeks he meets with each employee to talk about how work is going, how other employees are performing and to chat about their lives in school or at home."A good model for managers in any business.
February 27, 2015 2:43 AM
Aha. Enlightened here. I noticed the change re tomatoes. Suddenly the pico was mushy, and still is.
February 27, 2015 2:42 AM
remember the original on Evans. it was good.
February 27, 2015 2:42 AM
I heard how great Chipotle was before I ate there. Granted, I prefer aged strip steak and seared scallops, but I was hungry in midtown after shopping at Saks.The food was awful. I mean, it was just college cafeteria grade food. Nothing special.Maybe it's better than Burger King, but I haven't been to Burger King in 25 years.What IS good is Dig Inn. That may be in only Manhattan. I'm not sure. But I'm a big fan of Dig Inn. For 9 bucks, you get delicious lemon chicken or salmon, bulgar, collard greens, and brussell sprouts. Dig Inn is the future.
February 27, 2015 2:42 AM
Good for them. It's good food, reasonably priced. I like it.
February 27, 2015 2:42 AM
They may have great food, but their sustainable, environmental, green marketing pitch is primarily bull!For example, Chipotle doesn’t do all of its own cooking: some is done by an outside company, the same one that makes McDonald’s McNuggets, Big Macs, and McRibs. Chipotle’s website says its “fresh cooking” is done “using classic culinary techniques — no shortcuts.” But Chipotle doesn’t do all of its own cooking: two outside processing companies in Chicago, OSI and Miniat Holdings, braise the carnitas and barbacoa, trim the steaks, cook the beans, and make the bases for the restaurant’s green and red tomatillo salsas.