Beginning today, Chorizo, the staple Mexican meat sausage, is now available in burritos, tacos, burrito bowls, and salads at Chipotle restaurants, however at select locations only.
The company plans to roll-out the specialty ingredient to all of its stores this Fall.
Participating cities for the soft-launch include, Colombus, OH; New York City (in Manhattan locations); Sacramento, CA; and San Diego, CA; one location in Denver and another singular location in Washington, DC's Dulles Interanational Airport.
Chiptole's team of chefs developed the recipe for their spicy sausage which is made from a blend of pork and white-meat chicken. The meat is seasoned with paprika, toasted cumin and chipotle peppers. The sausage is seared on a hot grill at each restaurant to "give it a perfect char," states the company in a press release.
“Since we opened the first Chipotle 23 years ago, our menu has changed very little, and our focus has been on constantly improving the quality and taste of the food we serve,” said Steve Ells, founder, chairman and co-CEO of Chipotle. “While we have never been opposed to changing our menu, we only do so when we think there’s an opportunity to add something that is really unique but that fits within our overall menu, and where we can find ingredients that meet our high standards.”
Like other sourced meat products at Chipotle, the company states the the pork and chicken used to make the chorizo is Responsibly Raised™.
Chorizo is typically found on breakfast and brunch menus in California and other nearby regions, so the addition seems like it could be the answer to McDonald's all-day breakfast, Chipotle-style.
There's a Chipotle around the corner from our Deli Market News office, in Sacramento (yay!), so you can be sure we'll follow-up to this story with photos and a review.
More to follow.
