Chipotle says restaurants will give bigger servings after complaints over measly portions

Tired of measly Chipotle bowls? The company’s CEO said Wednesday all restaurants will serve bigger portions following social media complaints against the Mexican grill chain over smaller servings. 

Brian Niccol, the head of the company, said during an earnings call to investors that “there was never a directive to provide less to our customers,” but the company noticed the concerns about portion size on social media. 

“Getting the feedback caused us to relook at our execution across our entire system,” he said. “We have focused in on those outlier portion scores based on consumer surveys.”

He noted about 10% of restaurants were outliers that needed to be retrained up to the “right standards.” The chain has about 3,500 locations in the U.S.

“We are re-emphasizing training and coaching round ensuring we are consistently making bowls and burritos correct. We have also leaned in and re-emphasized generous portions across all of our restaurants,” he added, noting that “it is a core brand equity of Chipotle.” 

He said the company is already beginning to see those actions “positively reflected” in consumer scores. 

Earlier this year, several people posted videos to TikTok complaining about Chipotle portions.

Food influencer Keith Lee made a video for his 16.3 million followers in May doing a taste test review of three items on the menu. In that clip, he complained about a lack of chicken in his bowl. 

Another TikToker, who goes by Jack’s Dining Room, said in a video also in May: “When I get a bowl and they give me two pieces of chicken, I’m like, ‘Can you just add one more scoop?’ and they’re like, ‘You want double meat?’ and I’m like, ‘No, I just want the chicken I asked for.’ … Like, am I crazy? Is that not fair?”

Following a flurry of critical videos, some TikTok users began posting videos showing themselves recording Chipotle workers as they were making their food, insinuating the pressure of the camera yields bigger portions. However, that too faced backlash for harassing workers.

But the complaints do not appear to have hurt the company’s business. Chipotle reported quarterly earnings and revenue Wednesday that topped analysts’ expectations as it saw higher traffic at its restaurants, bucking an industry slowdown.

Shares of the company rose about 13% in extended trading before losing most of those gains and settling around 3% higher. As of Wednesday’s close, Chipotle’s stock had slid 17% this month, hurt by investor concerns about the health of the restaurant industry. In late June, the company executed a 50-for-1 stock split.

Demand for its food peaked in April, Niccol said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime” on Wednesday. Same-store sales settled around 6% higher in June.

Traffic to its restaurants increased 8.7% despite the backlash on social media.