Chipotle Mexican Grill — Restaurant in Harlem Township

The following was emailed to Chipotle on Sunday 7/2/23. Their response is at the end of this review.

Waited in line for ten minutes to order two bowls exactly the same. The first person that I dealt with had no problems. White rice, steak, 1/2 half chicken on each bowl.

The second person, again having been told that the two bowels are exactly the same, frankly, was laughable. Corn and she asked "and the second bowl?", picante and she asked "and the second bowl?", sour cream and she asked "and the second bowl?". SHE FINALLY GOT IT both bowls are exactly the same!!!!! Got the cheese, guacamole and lettuce without her asking and the second bowl. As deficient as this service was it is not the main issue.

I always order bowls with vegetables --THEY WERE OUT. Not a big deal but after waiting in line for ten minutes and dealing with an individual who had difficulties understanding what two bowls exactly the same means I requested a price adjustment for lack of vegetables. The employee at the register said she could not do that so I asked to speak with the manager. The manager said he could not adjust the price and I told him to keep the bowls. As I was walking out he did say "sorry we did not have the toppings you wanted".

What could management have done better? Post a sign on the door or in the store saying OUT OF VEGETABLES so a customer would not have to waste ten minutes in line to find out. I did not ask for a specific dollar amount adjustment but $2.00 per bowl would have seemed fair. $2.00 per bowl would have been more cost effective for the store than throwing $28.00 or $30.00 bucks worth of food in the garbage or selling it at a significant discount or using them as employee meals. Poor, poor, management choice.

A different issue -- On or around June 23 at about 8:30PM I went to this store to get two bowls and the store was not open to customers. Chairs up on the tables, employees behind the counter appearing to be doing cleanup. The side (west door) was open as employees or more likely friends of employees were going in and coming out. The hours sign on the front door states that the store is open until 10PM. Would it have been a hardship to post a CLOSED sign?

"Chipotle Support

Jul 3, 2023, 11:05 AM

Thanks so much for getting in touch, and please accept my apologies. We’re serious about our hospitality and taking great care of our guests and I can assure you this is not the norm nor the standard for Chipotle. I’ll share your message with our Rockford Machesney team and our regional Field Leaders so we can dig into what happened, and make sure our team is living up to our high service standards. I know we can show you improved service on a future visit.

Sincerely, Devon

Customer Care Coordinator Chipotle Mexican Grill"

From recent reviews doesn't look like anything has happened yet! To Bad. You can only live on a great reputation...

Update on my review: I posted a negative review about a month ago. I am AMAZED at the TURNOVER! I feel like I was actually listened to! Thank you Chipotle 173! I am no longer hesitant to take DoorDash orders from your Chipotle because now they are ready to go when I get there! This has helped me earn more money and keep my customers happy! 😊 There is a huge difference from before, where I can see the hustle and bustle of the employees and I feel like a priority with my takeout orders. I’m so happy about the improvements you’ve made! 😀

My original review: All I can say is I believe this restaurant is poorly managed. I am a Doordasher. I go to other Chipotles and there is no problem. They have about 4 to 5 people working to get the take-out orders ready on time. At this Chipotle on the other hand, they often have just one person putting the takeout orders together. And it’s as if they don’t care what time the order is supposed to be ready, they’ll get to it when they get to it. In the meantime, oodles of people can walk through the door and have their meals prepared immediately.

Imagine delivering to a customer that has a 1/2 hour lunch break, and you have to deliver 15 to 20 minutes late because Chipotle couldn’t get it ready on time. I feel bad for my customers and I feel bad for myself when it reflects on my tip or lack there of… when I had to waste more time waiting for the order to get ready. How hard would it be to put two or three people together to get these takeout orders ready on time? Do you need to hire more employees? Do you need to pull staff from other areas to get the job done so that take out customers feel like a priority too? I don’t know, but somehow all the other Chipotles seem to be able to handle it. I hope 2024 is a better year for you...

I normally love Chipotle, but within the last year or two, I haven't had the best experience with them. When it's good, it's great, but it's SO inconsistent, I never know what I'll get each time I order. Maybe I make the mistake of ordering online when I should just go into the store to order, but I should be able to expect the same quality either way.

The last order I placed on 3/25 was by far the worst I have ever received. I suppose I should've been suspicious when they pulled my sticker off of a bag in the garbage, and told me that they were working on my order right then but I didn't actually see them make my food. The bag I got wasn't even sealed properly with the sticker, and the sticker was all crumpled up. The bag was also ripped through from being so soggy from the beans on the bottom of my bowl. It was a mess. Also, the actual bowl itself was only about 1/4 of the way full with food, and it was literally nothing but soup. It had hardly any meat, and it was mostly sour cream and beans. It was missing at least 3 of the things I had requested to be in my bowl, and it was cold. I also got chips and guac and the guac was sweet and creamy instead of savory. I couldn't even finish it it was so disgusting. My meal was a total waste of $18. And, not to mention, I showed up later than the time my food was expected to be ready, and I had to wait 10 additional minutes. Terrible food and service. I won't be returning anytime soon, if ever again thanks to...