Chipotle CEO says company will “re-coach” employees to fix inconsistent portion sizes

Chipotle CEO and Chairman Brian Niccol said the burrito chain would “retrain” and “re-coach” restaurant operators on proper portion sizes in the wake of widespread social media complaints.

During a call with investors Wednesday, Niccol said, “[T]here was never a directive to provide less to our customers. Generous portion is a core brand equity of Chipotle. It always has been, and it always will be.”

In recent months, a growing number of consumers accused the chain of “shrinkflation” — the practice of reducing a product’s amount while still offering it at its original price. Angry customers flooded the Chipotle app. with negative reviews, while others took to TikTok, Reddit and other social media platforms to post their scathing remarks. A trend soon emerged in which customers recorded Chipotle workers making their order, then walked out mid-order if the portions seemed too small to their liking.

Online rumors claimed that if customers filmed Chipotle workers making their orders, they would receive larger portions per company protocol. Chipotle later came forward, saying the rumors were untrue and the “hack” was misleading.

Niccol first addressed the issue in May, telling Fortune that the restaurant’s “portions have not gotten smaller.” He also demonstrated a specific look that customers could give their server if they wanted “a little more rice” or “a little more pico.”

On Wednesday’s earnings call, “Niccol seemed more willing to admit that portions were indeed inconsistent,” The Hill reported. However, he asserted that only “about 10% or more” of the chain’s restaurants required retraining or re-coaching to Chipotle’s standards.

In a quarterly report also issued Wednesday, Chipotle reported an 18.2% increase in total revenue compared to the same quarter in 2023. The company also reported an increase in transactions (8.7%) and an increase in the average amount spent per transaction (2.4%).