Chipotle executives have sworn up and down that the restaurant chain doesn’t have a portion problem, but an analysis by Wells Fargo begs to differ. To finally put the "weight debate" to rest, Wells Fargo analyst Zachary Fadem and his team bought and weighed 75 burrito bowls. The analysts studied the burrito bowls at 8 different Chipotle locations in New York City, with half the orders placed digitally and the other half in person. Throughout the study, the analysts found that the bowls’ weights were wildly inconsistent. The median bowl ordered online and in person weighed about the same, but the weight of the burrito bowls varied drastically in each category. For in-person orders, the heaviest bowl weighed 47% more than the lightest. The weight varied even more for digital orders, with the heaviest bowl weighing 87% more than the lightest bowl. At 13.8 ounces, the smallest burrito bowl weighed just a little more than the average can of soda. Apparently, there’s at least one New York City Chipotle that may also be worth avoiding, as the analysts found that many of the 10 lightest bowls were from the same unnamed store. Although the varying bowl sizes may have looked bad for the chain, Chipotle’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Laurie Schalow, said the variability was totally normal because of the number of ingredients a guest selects or if they choose to make an ingredient extra or light when ordering from the list of ingredients, whether in person or digitally.
