After facing a storm on social networks Earlier this year, because of its seemingly lackluster portion sizes, Chipotle began taking steps to regain its reputation for serving generously sized burritos and bowls. According to a new company update, these efforts are already paying off.

In July, former Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol (who has since taken on the role of CEO of Starbucks) announced that the company had rated all his restaurants “with the intention of always serving our customers delicious, fresh and personalized burritos and bowls with generous portions.”

I’ve tried signature burritos from Taco Bell, Chipotle, and Qdoba, and only one is both tasty and filling

Employees at Chipotle locations with “aberrant portion scores” were then retrained to ensure they were serving correct and consistent portions to customers, Niccol said at the time. Additionally, Chipotle has emphasized the importance of offering generous portions at all of its restaurants.

On October 29 call to investorsinterim CEO Scott Boatwright revealed that customers are already noticing the improvements.

“We are committed to ensuring that we are giving the right portion to every guest that comes into the building. We have seen a big improvement, even through our social media channels,” he said. Boatwright added that they’ve seen customers post about the large burritos and bowls and are “really excited about (the) portions they’re getting in the Chipotle brand.”

Chipotle launched these efforts in response to a growing barrage of criticism against its food and dining experience. The chain, once praised for its fresh ingredients, affordable prices, customization potential and, perhaps most importantly, its massive portions, has lost that stellar reputation in recent years as customers said the quality had become inconsistent, with higher prices and much more stingy portions.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

6 major changes underway at Chipotle

These criticisms only intensified in 2024 when many customers turned to social media to show off small Chipotle burritos and skinny portion bowls. Despite all the backlash, Chipotle has maintained that it has never asked its employees to serve smaller portions. However, Niccol revealed in July that these comments had prompted the company to re-evaluate its restaurants and trainers in some stores to ensure proper portioning.

During this week’s earnings call, Boatwright said he was pleased with Chipotle’s progress on the initiative.

“We know we’re making great progress. We know we’re delivering value to the consumer, especially in this very tense environment. And we’ll continue to build on that.”

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Zoe Strozewski