Chipotle Now Giving Away Free Booze At Some Midwest Locations
Free burritos, a loyalty program, and constant reassurances that its food is safe hasn’t exactly been enough for Chipotle to win back customers following very public foodborne illness outbreaks. Now the fast-casual restaurant is taking another approach to bringing customers in the door: giving out free booze — at least in the Midwest.
Chipotle, which has served margaritas and/or beer at 1,700 of its locations for quite some time, is hoping to become the next happy hour (or happy four hour) hot spot for those over 21.
The company recently began offering the boozy deals everyday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at 300 locations in Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
The promotion, which runs through September, has two variations, a spokesperson for the company tells Consumerist.
For example, stores in Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, and Wisconsin offering “get two margaritas or beers for the price of one,” while Kansas and Ohio have a “get half off ‘adult’ beverages” deal.
Those hoping to down their burritos with a table full of drinks, may want to rethink their plan: the promotion has a one limit per person per day stipulation.
We ran (really we drove) to a Chipotle in Des Moines to check out the deal. While it wasn’t quite 4 p.m., we thought we’d at least take a few photos of the promotion signs.
Only, there weren’t any. No signs on the doors, the registers, or the menu board.
An employee of the store confirmed that the location was participating in the deal, but was unsure why there were no signs.
The rep for Chipotle did not answer Consumerist’s inquiry on whether or not the promotion could expand.
However, the spokesperson said that alcohol, sold at stores deepening on state liquor licensing requirements and costs, only makes up a small percentage of total sales, about 2%.
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