Chipotle has had a tough run in the past couple of years, with a string of food poisoning cases hampering the restaurant’s push for real fresh ingredients in their food. They’ve tried many things to turn the tides of the bad press, including free burritos, introducing “clean” tortillas, and introducing dessert to the menu. There’s also apparently a secret menu you have to try, but their latest addition might make you forget everything judging from previous reactions.
As we reported during the summer, Chipotle was testing a release for their own queso, finally fulfilling a longtime request and jumping on the bandwagon of putting queso on just about everything. After making its debut at the restaurant’s test kitchen, Chipotle is now unleashing it on their restaurants around the nation and they’ve made sure it is up to their current standards with only high quality ingredients:
“Although queso was the number one requested menu item, we never added it to our menu before now because we wouldn’t use the industrial additives used in most quesos,” Chipotle CEO and Founder Steve Ells said in a statement. “Additives make typical queso very consistent and predictable, but are not at all in keeping with our food culture. Our queso may vary slightly depending on the characteristics of the aged cheddar cheese used in each batch, but using only real ingredients is what makes our food so delicious.”
You can take a look at every ingredient over on the official Chipotle site, once again making clear that they are preservative free with exception to the lemon and lime juice. According to Thrillist, you’ll be able to order the cheesy concoction in the same manner that you enjoy guacamole at the restaurant. Add to your burrito or on the side for $1.25 or get it on its own with some chips for $5.25 — though they add the prices could vary depending on your local Chipotle. You can start ordering the chain’s queso on September 12th and see how it stacks up to what you’re used to.
