Chipotle blocks ‘$3 burrito’ menu hack after complaints from employees

Chipotle has nixed a “menu hack” that allowed customers to get a burrito for $3 after the trick reportedly drew complaints from employees.

The hack, which went viral on TikTok and other social media platforms, revealed customers could order a single taco through Chipotle’s online system with all available free toppings on the side. By combining the ingredients with a plain tortilla, customers can create a burrito that would otherwise cost much more than $3.

Chipotle executives learned of the hack and informed store managers this week that the ability to order a single taco online would be taken down “until further notice,” according to an email obtained by Insider.

A company representative later confirmed that customers are “currently unable to order a single taco from our online ordering systems.”

“While we have long embraced customizations and even released our own hack menu, the current social media trend is resulting in a poor experience for our food, our employees and our customers waiting for orders,” Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Laurie Schalow told the outlet in a statement.

The Post has reached out to Chipotle for further comment on the situation.

Insider said it spoke to five Chipotle workers in five states, all of whom described the menu hack as an obstacle that slowed down production and wasted too much plastic. One New York-based worker said fulfilling the “$3 burrito” orders was “beyond annoying and disruptive.”

A Chipotle manager in Ohio lamented the fact that customers “would get aggressive when we put the proper taco-sized portions in the cups.”

“It was horribly obvious what [customers using the hack] were trying to do and it was just annoying for everyone trying to just do their jobs,” the worker added.

Menu hacks are nothing new at Chipotle and other fast food chains as customers attempt to secure bargains. Another version of the “hack” directed customers to order a tortilla with beans and cheese to get a “burrito” that cost just $2.36.

Meanwhile, companies across various industries are still in the midst of labor shortages and supply chain issues that have made operations more difficult over the last year.

Earlier this week, a viral TikTok showed a customer who became so impatient about the wait for her food at a Chipotle in Florida that she jumped behind the counter and began working the cash register.