TL;DR
Chipotle is testing queso in New York City as part of its comeback efforts after a poor 2016. The brand is trying to meet customer demand for queso while adhering to its standards of not using industrial additives.
Chipotle is continuing to fight back from a poor 2016 and is betting on a new dish to help its comeback. According to a recent QSR Magazine article , Chipotle is testing queso in New York City at its NEXT test kitchen along with other dishes and drinks.
“All of our competitors sell queso, and we know some customers don’t come to Chipotle because we don’t offer it,” CEO Steve Ells told QSR Magazine. “But because we refuse to use industrial additives, added colors, flavors or preservatives in our food, it’s very difficult to make queso that meets our standards.”
Ells also mentioned that queso has been the most requested dish that is not currently on the menu and in fact, in its 24- year history, Chipotle hasn’t added very many new items to the menu. As the brand continues to come back from its 2016 sales slump, the addition of queso could bring more customers back to stores and away from competitors.
In this story
This story was originally published in 1851 Franchise on July 11, 2017. Burnaze summarizes and links to the original reporting.
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