Chipotle Mexican Grill — Restaurant in Manor

I want to share my recent Chipotle visit with my family. Before I describe that visit, I need to give some history that explains why I have high expectations and why customers deserve better.

Back in 2010, I worked at a Chipotle in Boca Raton, Florida, under a manager named Ceasar. He was an immigrant who worked his way up when Chipotle still marinated their chicken in-house. I started on the line, worked my way to cashier, and was close to becoming a cook before I left.

Back then, prep started early, the line moved with urgency, and every detail mattered. Counters had to shine, burritos had to be perfect, and if you had time to lean, you had time to clean. More than anything, there was camaraderie. We held each other accountable, and the mission was simple: keep the line moving, serve fresh food, and make sure customers left full and happy. Even during slow periods, I would sweep up rice from the floor, wipe counters, or restock rags and anything that was needed. Everyone had each other’s back, and the process was always on deck.

That’s why this visit stood out, for the wrong reasons. At one point, I even had to tell the line to help check out a customer, and then overheard them say his second entrée still wasn’t ready. There was no dedicated cashier. People just walked in circles, looking lost.

The tables were dirty from the moment we walked in until the moment we left. Only one person was working the line, and nobody stepped in to help. There were no callouts for chicken or steak like we used to do to stay ahead. The steak I ordered was tough from sitting too long. The Tabasco bottles were missing. No trays were available. On top of that, I overheard the crew talking about running out of oil and struggling with inventory and putting out things like rice.

I had met some of the regional managers before, but honestly, they seemed out of touch with the day-to-day reality. When they left, I saw the same thing reflected in the store: no urgency, no pride, and no teamwork. The diversity and work ethic I remember from my college days, when many of us were hustling to pay for school, just wasn’t there.

The food was okay, but the experience overall was disappointing. I’d rate it a 2 out of 5. Chipotle can make money, but only if the service is sharp and the team takes ownership of the line. This isn’t a job you can just put anybody into, it takes people who care.

I’m not saying this to offend the manager, but to challenge them. Bring back the pride. Ask old-school leaders like Ceasar what it takes to run a store the right way. It was immigrants and hard-working crews who built Chipotle into the standard it once set. The issues I see now, dirty stores, lack of urgency, poor service, aren’t unique to this location or other restaurants. They’re becoming more common, and that says something bigger is wrong. I hope this is a wake-up call for everyone. Chipotle once set the standard. It can...

It's a shame. They did better a couple times, when I came in at 10pm and ordered twice. I come back and yet again they are slow, and all the cold items are out inside but available for to-go orders? Ffs, it's like they want you to order online, so they can intentionally skimp on the portions. It's a shame. I'm too addicted to quit, but chipotle is going downhill fast. This should be the best of the best as a new location but this is the worst location I've ever been to.

Other times I've been here they have been slow even with 8 people working. There's no sense of urgency ever. They have always been out of chips or other items for inside orders but to-go orders are always fully stocked?

Update: 7:23pm August 31st, whoever the manager on duty was should be fired. I dont think she realized that customers could hear but I was sitting in the lobby and she is screaming/venting and cussing frustrated to her employees about how customers can't read signs when coming in and that the customers are upset the cooler is down inside. I get it's out of their control to an extent but my god, no wonder the morale at this chipotle is so bad. If that's management, I understand why the employees generally seem like they don't want to be there. It was so bad that I almost went up to her and told her that's the worst attitude I've ever heard from an employee, let alone from a manager and that she should be reprimanded or fired. It's not just the cooler being down today either. It's the fact that every time we come in here, the service sucks and they are out of something.

I will be contacting chipitle corporate about this experience....

So today was my first time having Chipotle. Everyone in the Manor Fb groups was so excited and kept posting about it I decided to try it. I drove up to the drive thru not realizing it was a pick up lane only and I had to preorder my food. The nice guy at the window tells me to order on the app or come inside. No biggie, the drive up”Chipotlane” was completely empty and the parking lot wasn’t even full so I didn’t think the wait would be too long. I was wrong. I pull over tonight download the app and order. I placed my order at 4:28, it says it’ll be ready at 4:50pm, I’m like damn ok whatever, it’s not busy it’ll be ready faster than that. Nope. Wrong. I get a notification that my order went from received to ready at 4:58pm so I got get in the “Chipotlane” and the line is wrapped around the bldg. That lane did not move an inch/car for over 10 minutes. Finally it starts moving at a normal pace and I get my food at 5:15pm. I get home at 5:25. My burrito was cold and subpar, the chips are lime flavored and chewy. The queso was cold. Really the only thing decent item was the Coke in a bottle and the corn salsa was surprisingly good. I do not get the hype though. The portions of the chips and queso were a joke for what they are priced at and them being chewy was adding insult to injury. Luckily I had chips at home. Not impressed. But the guy at the window was super pleasant I will say but I’d rather get Taco...