the chain gang

Chipotle Will Dump Chorizo to Focus on Its Subpar Queso

The chain already admits that it went back and improved the taste “slightly.” Photo: Chipotle

Chipotle has bad news for that tiny sliver of customers who crave authentic Mexican burrito meat, but want it covered in America’s most infamous cheese sauce. To free up space for the queso it added to the line last week, “Chorizo is going away,” spokesperson Chris Arnold informs CNBC. “While we really liked the chorizo (and many customers did too), the efficiency of our model has always been rooted in part, in doing just a few things so we can do them really well.” It was never a big seller, to put things kindly; analysts estimate that the spicy sausage accounted for barely 3 percent of Chipotle’s total protein sales, noting that customers weren’t impressed since it “isn’t a mainstream American consumer ingredient.”

The tubs of queso — a product they spent months testing, and already tweaked once — posed an opportunity for at least minor redemption. If that’s the plan, things are frankly going poorly: The all-natural dip isn’t meeting Americans’ admittedly low standards for queso, which can basically be summarized as “gooey Velveeta with peppers.” Chipotle’s stab at it reportedly tastes “grainy,” and doesn’t pair well with the salt-and-lime chips.

The reviews right now are disastrous … and that’s almost being generous.

Chipotle Will Dump Chorizo to Focus More on Its Subpar Queso