One Chipotle customer says a worker was “rude” to her all because she asked for a side of guac. Another shared that at his local Chipotle, a worker refused to sell him a side of vinaigrette to put on his bowl since he didn’t order a salad. A woman just joined a chorus of complaints about “rude” Chipotle workers. She says she was made to feel like “the villain” while ordering a bowl.
“I get so confused when going into, like, a coffee shop or a restaurant, and the employees act like it is the biggest inconvenience that I am there,” TikTok user Margaret Skiff (@margaretskiff) starts her video.
Before she dives into her experience, she adds, “I just went into Chipotle, and I understand that Chipotle is probably not the most fun job.”
Skiff says that when she was ordering her bowl, she found out that the restaurant was out of some of the ingredients she wanted in her bowl—at least on the in-store side.
When Skiff asked for chicken to be added to her bowl, she says the worker told her, “‘We don’t have it.’”
Another worker who overheard the interaction chimed in, Skiff recalls. “‘No, we have chicken. We have it over here where they do the to-go orders,’” she says he shouted out.
Then, she says she asked for lettuce to be added to her bowl. “‘We’re out. We don’t have any,’” she says the worker said again.
The prompted Skiff to look over to the to-go station, where there was “a huge heaping pile of lettuce.”
When Skiff pointed this out to the worker, she says the worker who was making her bowl rolled her eyes.
Skiff also notes at the start of her video that she was kind to the worker and understands Chipotle workers have difficult customer-facing jobs, as some customers are not the nicest. So Skiff felt the worker’s reactions were unwarranted.
“I don’t feel like I’m asking for too much here,” she says, adding in the caption, “I feel like being a customer automatically makes me a [villain.]”
@margaretskiff I feel like being a customer automatically makes me a villian #serviceworker #chipotle #rant @Chipotle ♬ original sound – Margaret Skiff
Viewers feel the same way
Skiff’s video racked up over 263,000 views, and viewers shared the sentiment Skiff expressed in her caption. “Especially when you walk in and you’re the only customer and they’re still so mad,” one viewer said.
“No chipotle workers are always so baffled that you’re there ordering food,” a second wrote.
“And then they want a 30% tip,” a third added, remarking on the state of tipping culture.
What is Chipotle’s to-go worker station?
Chipotle sees its fair share of both in-store customers and customers who place their orders online. That’s why Chipotle has two worker stations—one for to-go orders and one for in-store orders.
Over on the Chipotle subreddit, a worker posed the question, “Why is the Takeout station even a thing?”
They said they had been working at Chipotle for four months and their location rarely uses the to-go station. “What’s even more annoying is that we have to clean TO when you close line which is just a big waste of time when no one uses it in the first place,” they complained.
However, an overwhelming number of workers said their stores receive so many online orders that it makes sense to have one whole work station dedicated to them.
“My store won’t go five minutes without an online order,” one said.
“Because online orders for some stores is big, and Chipotle’s recent financial success is largely through them. My last store for example does almost forty percent of orders on the TO,” another worker claimed.
Despite customers complaining that they receive less food when placing their Chipotle orders online, mobile-ordering remains popular. At one point in 2022, online ordering reportedly accounted for 20% of all of Chipotles sales.
Update May 2, 6:23pm CT: Skiff told the Daily Dot this took place at a Chipotle in Westbrook, Maine.
“It seems like 9 times out of 10, I feel like I am inconveniencing the workers at Chipotle by being there,” she shared via Instagram direct message.
She said doesn’t plan on returning to Chipotle any time soon.
The Daily Dot reached out to Chipotle via press email.
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