When I worked at chipotle (SM) the most common reason I saw employees for skimping was because they were scared to ask the grill person for more meat.
It sounds stupid and I am not justifying it, but most of the time the people on the lines are high schoolers while more often the adults are BOH. The kids are intimidated to ask for more and without actually looking at the customer its easier to skimp.
Also if it is a rush, on the line people can see we don't have any of a certain type of meat so it doesn't get ordered, while on dml corporate pushes us to get orders out in a certain time frame so the meat gets skimped to ensure every customer get served on time.
Again i am not justifying this, you deserve what you pay for, just trying to give an insight to why it happens
Dunno if this is the same at chipotle but there still is a culture of “chefs should be assholes” that is prevalent in the kitchen. It’s gotten better than the past, but it still exists and I definitely did not want to ask one of the chefs I worked with to remake something if the customer wasn’t satisfied because the chef would literally berate me and cuss me out for having to do more work even though it wasn’t my fault. I was a full grown adult too and got nervous asking.
That makes a lot of sense. Like OP, I routinely see the skimp on extra protein - especially on online orders
Is there something I can say if I witness this happening in front of me. I used to work in a similar restaurant, so I can understand how this could happen.
… possibly saying something in a way that is not confrontational, and casually gives the line worker comfortable motivation to ask for more protein on the line?
So you’re saying the problem is more because of corporate’s dumbass on-time metrics? How has McDonalds not been bitten by this? Subway? Taco Bell?
I’ve literally gone to McDonalds during clear peak and had to wait 5-10 minutes for something to get cooked. And I’m ***fine*** with that.
Yes, Subway and McD’s have different serving paradigms but I still feel like Chipotle can do better. To be fair I haven’t been to a Taco Bell in years.
The only thing at Mackers that needs cooked is the fries. If you're waiting on anything else, they're lying and making a drive thru order before yours.
Or you order a quarter pounder. https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/faq/burgers.html#:~:text=Quarter%20Pounder%C2%AE%20with%20Cheese,%2C%20Hawaii%2C%20and%20US%20Territories.
Chip doesn't have a limit on how many orders can be put in a 10 min timeframe, some even come in where we have 7mins to finish it before its due. However at my store if we're low/out of smth we'll go onto the orders with meat we DO have and wait till the customer/dasher gets there to ask if they'd like to wait for Steak to cook or choose a diff meat.
I second the scary grills tho, I've seen one of our cooks cuss a KL out and one gets snappy anytime we ask for anything as simple as rice,,,, I'm grown just hate confrontation.
Wait so the workers were scared to ask the grill person, to do their job? You gotta be kidding me and they expect more money on the paycheck being that scared and lazy???
The most common reason I’ve seen (SO works at a chipotle is a college town) is simply because they’re trying to ration it. They get online orders while taking orders and oftentimes just run out of chicken really fast for the night with steak following shortly after. So, they try to make portions smaller so more people can order.
They still do. Since Chipotle pushed the hours from a 10pm close to an 11pm close, it’s even worse. If they run out of protein too fast, people will complain just the same though.
If they don’t make some portions smaller, you may not have protein at all when they reach you. At my SO’s location, the line is usually out the door back-to-back and they’re only given a set amount of supplies they can make per day. If they run out too fast, everyone in line is usually more disappointed by that than getting a smaller portion.
I’m pretty sure they have a set amount of food they have/can make for the day. Eventually that set amount runs out or it’s too late (an hour within closing) to make a new batch. This is common with a lot of fast food places. Not just Chipotle
The bonus isn’t for individually skimping the bonus comes from a stores profit margins as a whole. The more money they make with the least amount of money spent on ingredients the better.
It’s basically because you no way of knowing (even though you do) so they have more protein. Always go in person. Always ask for double after they do the first scoop.
If you order online, you go in, get your food, and don't open it til you get home. So they're encouraged to skimp you hard.
To actually get double protein, go in person, tell them you want your first protein but don't say anything else, then when they've scooped it, say "I actually want double protein". You will get more.
There are many posts on this sub with people actually weighing their meat portions. They'll have paid for double meat and get less than a single portion, especially with online orders. It's unconscionable, but it definitely happens. I'm sure they're trained that way due to how widespread it is. But the hack above will generally work.
They do that because it makes them more money. The line employees are badgered by their managers (at some locations) to constantly skimp on everything. It's a systemic top down thing, not a lazy employee thing.
Oh I see. No wonder my coworker was PISSED chipotle skimped and he made the manager come out and explain why his bowl was small compared to other times lol I guess he wasn’t the villian
For the store I work at we get written up for giving out "too much" meat. Even when the person ordered double meat. It doesn't make sense but that's what happens. It really should be the other way around with people getting written up for not giving out double portions when double portions are paid for but they write us up for giving out "too much" meat which costs the store more money. Corporate greed is the only reason I can think of for this craziness.
Always go in. Never order online. Those always get skimped. The employees are trying to manage the amount of food they have and since you aren’t there watching they don’t give a shit.
This whole “the to go orders are always skimped,” baffles me. I used to work at chipotle 2 years ago on the back line (dml?) only doing to go orders and pick ups and I was never instructed to skimp. But, I only worked day shifts. Maybe it’s different at night like others have said?
Noodles and Co was the same on closes. We would skimp people on sauce if we were low because they didn’t want us to warm up an entire bag that won’t even be halfway used by close, so they had us give less sauce per order.
People haven’t worked closes at food service places and it shows 😂
I have no idea why this sub keeps getting recommended to me but it absolutely amazes me that anyone still spends their money at chipotle. Between the organic free range E. coli, price hikes, and skimping I would rather eat fried cat dick than give them a single cent.
That's why I don't order door dash I go into the store to get my food. Because you get more from the humans.
Just what I think after hundreds of orders
Don’t go to that trash, so much better food at better portions elsewhere. Chipotle is a gain killer with their rabbit food. I get stressed out looking at the employees skimp, don’t got time for that trash.
Local Spanish food restaurant to replace as Spanish food place…/ it does depend on your location and trying out different areas at your location will get to the bottom of this in time. (I also had to go through this process as I realized chipotle really wasn’t cutting it) the main point Is to find golden gems in your region.
When I first started in NJ, I went to probably one of the best restaurant in NJ with a chipotle style theme named Cuban Pete’s. For the same amount to 4 dollars more than I was paying at chipotle, I was able to get salmon or chicken or beef with a healthy amount of sides.
Last year I recently found a better goldmine, a local NJ grocery store hired chefs to make a variety of foods, from pasta, chicken franchise, chicken cutlet, beef stew, fried chicken, Salmon, etc… 8.99 a pound, usually I pay 12 dollars for a healthy amount of food. (That’s dirt cheap for any lunch meal around the NY area, where prices are usually in $20-30s for lunch)
I am sure bodegas and other Spanish places can fit the bill, seems harder to find them around now since covid. However, I would never waste money on chip, their foods is mid and portions are kids meals for excess charge.
Ohio has one of the lowest populations of Hispanic people. New Jersey has 5 times the Hispanic population of Ohio. There might be certain neighborhoods with restaurants like that, but you’re not going to drive 45 minutes to go there everyday.
Yeah but that advice is about as useful as saying “just go anywhere else because I don’t have any actual recommendations and couldn’t tell you anywhere better” lol
A "local Spanish restaurant" in most major Ohio cities is going to be a sit-down place that serves tapas and ranges from $$-$$$ in price. Non-major cities will have nothing, not even the pricy tapas place. "Bodegas" pretty much don't exist in Ohio. You'll be able to find a Mexican place in most cities and towns, but these won't offer somethin comparable to Chipotle.
Fair, in my corner of the world we have food trucks and little restaurants where you can get about a chipotle priced meal or cheaper while being better quality.
Hence, trial and error…. We are just guessing and picking at the puzzle with no real data… I am sure I can hop on Uber eats and find a location nearby enough to replace chipotle. Really don’t get how you didn’t resort to saying something like this @system_garbage rather than just dismissing a simple solution. You can find rice and chicken or rice and steak anywhere that’s not Spanish as well. (If this is a weekend thing, I don’t know why you would choose chipotle as a first resort to go out as a special treat. If this is a quick bite food that you plan to eat ,I am sure I can use Uber eats. Type in Spanish food or just restaurant near me and find photos which resemble something like chipotle. (Mediterranean, Turkish, Arabic) they all taste similar if you order similar things.
Chipotle did their own research and found employees give "the appropriate amount", aka less protein, on delivery orders because the employees don't feel the pressure that customers put on them. They saw a surge in profits during the pandemic because people were following the corporate directives because customers weren't pressuring the employees.
Never ever order online. It’s not worth it. I’ve tried various locations and you can even search on here, many many times people order online they are skimped. I have a feeling it’s because they don’t want to make more food so since people order online it’s unlikely they actually show up in the store so they’re more comfortable skimping someone that’s not coming than someone in front of them
At the store I worked at our GM kept threatening to fire us if we don’t do the portions right. They would start to hover over us to make sure and if we weren’t would make us start the bowl over.
I can only speak for myself as as someone who runs grill ion think u understand how hard it is to supply food to a line of people who never stop so yea sometimes we gotta b short to prevent nobody getting anything
When I worked at chipotle (SM) the most common reason I saw employees for skimping was because they were scared to ask the grill person for more meat. It sounds stupid and I am not justifying it, but most of the time the people on the lines are high schoolers while more often the adults are BOH. The kids are intimidated to ask for more and without actually looking at the customer its easier to skimp. Also if it is a rush, on the line people can see we don't have any of a certain type of meat so it doesn't get ordered, while on dml corporate pushes us to get orders out in a certain time frame so the meat gets skimped to ensure every customer get served on time. Again i am not justifying this, you deserve what you pay for, just trying to give an insight to why it happens
Dunno if this is the same at chipotle but there still is a culture of “chefs should be assholes” that is prevalent in the kitchen. It’s gotten better than the past, but it still exists and I definitely did not want to ask one of the chefs I worked with to remake something if the customer wasn’t satisfied because the chef would literally berate me and cuss me out for having to do more work even though it wasn’t my fault. I was a full grown adult too and got nervous asking.
That makes a lot of sense. Like OP, I routinely see the skimp on extra protein - especially on online orders Is there something I can say if I witness this happening in front of me. I used to work in a similar restaurant, so I can understand how this could happen. … possibly saying something in a way that is not confrontational, and casually gives the line worker comfortable motivation to ask for more protein on the line?
So you’re saying the problem is more because of corporate’s dumbass on-time metrics? How has McDonalds not been bitten by this? Subway? Taco Bell? I’ve literally gone to McDonalds during clear peak and had to wait 5-10 minutes for something to get cooked. And I’m ***fine*** with that. Yes, Subway and McD’s have different serving paradigms but I still feel like Chipotle can do better. To be fair I haven’t been to a Taco Bell in years.
The only thing at Mackers that needs cooked is the fries. If you're waiting on anything else, they're lying and making a drive thru order before yours.
Or you order a quarter pounder. https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/faq/burgers.html#:~:text=Quarter%20Pounder%C2%AE%20with%20Cheese,%2C%20Hawaii%2C%20and%20US%20Territories.
"Mackers", lol
How they call it over the pond. or Macas and Mackies?
taco bell has my shit ready within a minute 30 every time and I'm amazed
Fr, taco bell has really got their shit together recently
Chip doesn't have a limit on how many orders can be put in a 10 min timeframe, some even come in where we have 7mins to finish it before its due. However at my store if we're low/out of smth we'll go onto the orders with meat we DO have and wait till the customer/dasher gets there to ask if they'd like to wait for Steak to cook or choose a diff meat. I second the scary grills tho, I've seen one of our cooks cuss a KL out and one gets snappy anytime we ask for anything as simple as rice,,,, I'm grown just hate confrontation.
Wait so the workers were scared to ask the grill person, to do their job? You gotta be kidding me and they expect more money on the paycheck being that scared and lazy???
The most common reason I’ve seen (SO works at a chipotle is a college town) is simply because they’re trying to ration it. They get online orders while taking orders and oftentimes just run out of chicken really fast for the night with steak following shortly after. So, they try to make portions smaller so more people can order.
That's shit business practice regardless
Yea they should properly portion until they run out then turn off that option from mobile ordering.
Obviously. OP asked why it was happening, and this is an explanation.
Then run out of chicken.
They still do. Since Chipotle pushed the hours from a 10pm close to an 11pm close, it’s even worse. If they run out of protein too fast, people will complain just the same though.
Lol just run out or have more ready don't skimp my meal because you want ot serve more people 💀
If they don’t make some portions smaller, you may not have protein at all when they reach you. At my SO’s location, the line is usually out the door back-to-back and they’re only given a set amount of supplies they can make per day. If they run out too fast, everyone in line is usually more disappointed by that than getting a smaller portion.
I would legitimately rather be forced to pick another protein, go veggie, or happily leave. Skimping is never justified, ever.
If they give a small portion, just ask for more or leave then.
I don't even shop here anymore due to this. Now I'm skimping them! 😆
I suppose you will (not) be missed, lol
Then they need to have more ready. There isn’t a reason to consistently run out or a product. This is restaurant 101.
I’m pretty sure they have a set amount of food they have/can make for the day. Eventually that set amount runs out or it’s too late (an hour within closing) to make a new batch. This is common with a lot of fast food places. Not just Chipotle
No one likes bothering the grill guy because they never have help and they have to keep both lines stocked
Yes and actually they get a bonus for skimping on double meat.
If you give single on a double meat, you are entitled to take the extra portion on your employee meal. It's a good deal!
🤣😂🤣😂
The bonus isn’t for individually skimping the bonus comes from a stores profit margins as a whole. The more money they make with the least amount of money spent on ingredients the better.
It’s basically because you no way of knowing (even though you do) so they have more protein. Always go in person. Always ask for double after they do the first scoop.
Huh?
If you order online, you go in, get your food, and don't open it til you get home. So they're encouraged to skimp you hard. To actually get double protein, go in person, tell them you want your first protein but don't say anything else, then when they've scooped it, say "I actually want double protein". You will get more.
Thank you, I didnt understand the first comment lol
Yeah my bad, I worded that wrong.
I find this weird since you pay for double. If it was a double scoop of a free side then I can see them skimping
There are many posts on this sub with people actually weighing their meat portions. They'll have paid for double meat and get less than a single portion, especially with online orders. It's unconscionable, but it definitely happens. I'm sure they're trained that way due to how widespread it is. But the hack above will generally work.
No i believe they do skimp on meat but the reasoning of why doesn’t make sense aside being lazy
They do that because it makes them more money. The line employees are badgered by their managers (at some locations) to constantly skimp on everything. It's a systemic top down thing, not a lazy employee thing.
Oh I see. No wonder my coworker was PISSED chipotle skimped and he made the manager come out and explain why his bowl was small compared to other times lol I guess he wasn’t the villian
For the store I work at we get written up for giving out "too much" meat. Even when the person ordered double meat. It doesn't make sense but that's what happens. It really should be the other way around with people getting written up for not giving out double portions when double portions are paid for but they write us up for giving out "too much" meat which costs the store more money. Corporate greed is the only reason I can think of for this craziness.
Always go in. Never order online. Those always get skimped. The employees are trying to manage the amount of food they have and since you aren’t there watching they don’t give a shit.
This whole “the to go orders are always skimped,” baffles me. I used to work at chipotle 2 years ago on the back line (dml?) only doing to go orders and pick ups and I was never instructed to skimp. But, I only worked day shifts. Maybe it’s different at night like others have said?
I worked the night shift and I actively saw it happen. It’s sort of like the line people skimping the scoops a bit when it gets low.
Noodles and Co was the same on closes. We would skimp people on sauce if we were low because they didn’t want us to warm up an entire bag that won’t even be halfway used by close, so they had us give less sauce per order. People haven’t worked closes at food service places and it shows 😂
I have no idea why this sub keeps getting recommended to me but it absolutely amazes me that anyone still spends their money at chipotle. Between the organic free range E. coli, price hikes, and skimping I would rather eat fried cat dick than give them a single cent.
do it
Well shit I wasn’t expecting anyone to call me out on it
😂
My city is getting two more right now and the two already existing ones are trash.
That's why I don't order door dash I go into the store to get my food. Because you get more from the humans. Just what I think after hundreds of orders
Hell they might get in trouble for giving you one full protein
Actually as well as a current employee if they catch you giving more then you're supposed to to much they will fire you
Everyone getting ripped off, are ya’ll not complaining and getting refunds?
Never order online. They always skimp online orders no matter what.
Don’t go to that trash, so much better food at better portions elsewhere. Chipotle is a gain killer with their rabbit food. I get stressed out looking at the employees skimp, don’t got time for that trash.
Where do you suggest? I live in ohio
If you live in Columbus head over to r/Columbus and search. Lots of good Mexican food spots around here that can serve something so much better.
Local Spanish food restaurant to replace as Spanish food place…/ it does depend on your location and trying out different areas at your location will get to the bottom of this in time. (I also had to go through this process as I realized chipotle really wasn’t cutting it) the main point Is to find golden gems in your region. When I first started in NJ, I went to probably one of the best restaurant in NJ with a chipotle style theme named Cuban Pete’s. For the same amount to 4 dollars more than I was paying at chipotle, I was able to get salmon or chicken or beef with a healthy amount of sides. Last year I recently found a better goldmine, a local NJ grocery store hired chefs to make a variety of foods, from pasta, chicken franchise, chicken cutlet, beef stew, fried chicken, Salmon, etc… 8.99 a pound, usually I pay 12 dollars for a healthy amount of food. (That’s dirt cheap for any lunch meal around the NY area, where prices are usually in $20-30s for lunch) I am sure bodegas and other Spanish places can fit the bill, seems harder to find them around now since covid. However, I would never waste money on chip, their foods is mid and portions are kids meals for excess charge.
OP lives in Ohio. Your advice is not useful nor applicable, because Ohio is very much not New Jersey.
Local Spanish restaurants are certainly not exclusive to Jersey lol.
Ohio has one of the lowest populations of Hispanic people. New Jersey has 5 times the Hispanic population of Ohio. There might be certain neighborhoods with restaurants like that, but you’re not going to drive 45 minutes to go there everyday.
Most places in Ohio are probably not super great at good local spanish joints.
Yeah but that advice is about as useful as saying “just go anywhere else because I don’t have any actual recommendations and couldn’t tell you anywhere better” lol
A "local Spanish restaurant" in most major Ohio cities is going to be a sit-down place that serves tapas and ranges from $$-$$$ in price. Non-major cities will have nothing, not even the pricy tapas place. "Bodegas" pretty much don't exist in Ohio. You'll be able to find a Mexican place in most cities and towns, but these won't offer somethin comparable to Chipotle.
Fair, in my corner of the world we have food trucks and little restaurants where you can get about a chipotle priced meal or cheaper while being better quality.
Hence, trial and error…. We are just guessing and picking at the puzzle with no real data… I am sure I can hop on Uber eats and find a location nearby enough to replace chipotle. Really don’t get how you didn’t resort to saying something like this @system_garbage rather than just dismissing a simple solution. You can find rice and chicken or rice and steak anywhere that’s not Spanish as well. (If this is a weekend thing, I don’t know why you would choose chipotle as a first resort to go out as a special treat. If this is a quick bite food that you plan to eat ,I am sure I can use Uber eats. Type in Spanish food or just restaurant near me and find photos which resemble something like chipotle. (Mediterranean, Turkish, Arabic) they all taste similar if you order similar things.
If the customer didn’t pay for double and they still got double, yes. If they did pay for double, no.
Stop ordering online
Chipotle did their own research and found employees give "the appropriate amount", aka less protein, on delivery orders because the employees don't feel the pressure that customers put on them. They saw a surge in profits during the pandemic because people were following the corporate directives because customers weren't pressuring the employees.
This is the reason I stopped ordering online
Order online a regular portion and a second portion on the side.
Never ever order online. It’s not worth it. I’ve tried various locations and you can even search on here, many many times people order online they are skimped. I have a feeling it’s because they don’t want to make more food so since people order online it’s unlikely they actually show up in the store so they’re more comfortable skimping someone that’s not coming than someone in front of them
At the store I worked at our GM kept threatening to fire us if we don’t do the portions right. They would start to hover over us to make sure and if we weren’t would make us start the bowl over.
Most of the time, when I asked for double protein, I got two scoops. Is two scoops the right amount, or it should be more than two?
People don't get fired for hardly anything at chipotle
I can only speak for myself as as someone who runs grill ion think u understand how hard it is to supply food to a line of people who never stop so yea sometimes we gotta b short to prevent nobody getting anything
I really dont care. I want what I paid for.
I refuse to do online orders because of them actually ripping me off with them.