I slid my check across the counter to the Chicago bank teller. The amount was nothing special; thirty dollars for a 10-minute set at a comedy club the previous evening.
“Deposit or cash back?” the teller asked.
“Just cash it,” I replied.
The teller handed me a twenty and a ten. Rather than put the bills in my wallet, I simply stared at them.
“Something wrong?” the teller asked.
“Could I have a little more?” I replied.
“A little more what?”
“Money,” I responded. “More cash.”
The teller’s eyes signaled his confusion. “Do you mean different denominations?” he asked. “I can give you a ten and four fives. Or six fives. You don’t want thirty singles, do you?”
The Bank Test: Asking for More Money
“No, I want more money back,” I said. I figured all I had to do was ask. Like Chipotle.”
“I thought Chipotle served burritos,” the teller said. “When did they become a bank?”
I explained the comments made by Chipotle CEO Scott Boatwright earlier this month. Stung by social media posts claiming Chipotle portions were getting noticeably smaller, Boatwright offered a simple solution:
Just ask for more.
“If you want more, just ask the team member,” Boatwright told “Power Players” podcast host Brian Sozzi. “I promise you, there’s never a team member on that line who’s going to say ‘no’ to you.”
Chipotle Isn’t Alone: Other Chains Suffer from ‘Shrinkage’
Mind you, Chipotle is not the only fast-food franchise where customers claim they are paying higher prices and getting less in return. Portillo’s, a Chicago-based “street food” franchise known for Italian beef sandwiches, has been dealing with complaints on a national level now that restaurants are popping up nationwide.
Perhaps that’s why McDonald’s introduced the Big Arch in March. Available for a limited time, the burger features a half pound of beef and THREE slices of white cheddar cheese, along with other toppings. No need to ask for more.
Unlike my Gen Z daughters, I’m not a huge Chipotle fan. While I find the food tasty enough, watching my burrito being prepared assembly-line style grates on me. I’d rather just order and wait for staff to call my number, signaling it’s time to eat. It would also eliminate waiting in line behind customers who consistently tap on the glass partitions separating themselves from the food and point to the ingredients they desire.
As if the staff doesn’t know where the black beans are located.
I fear asking for more will only intensify my disdain for the way Chipotle prepares its food. Who wants to wait behind the customer who consistently says “more lettuce, more salsa, more sour cream”?
More headaches. For me.
However, if asking for more is the only way to keep consumers satisfied, then why not put the “Chipotle rule” to the test at every retail and commercial establishment? OK, it didn’t work at the bank; but maybe at the gas station? Next time you purchase gas and the pump clicks off signaling the tank is, allegedly, full, ask the attendant if you can have more. I mean, who’s going to miss another half gallon?
Take that car to the Starbucks drive through and ask the barista for more vanilla sweet cream cold brew. We all know there’s a little room at the top of every Starbucks cup. Why should it remain empty?
Finally, spend the weekend with a relaxing round of golf. Play 18 holes. Better yet, play 20. Just tell the pro shop attendant you wish to play more. If he attempts to charge you, invoke the Chipotle rule.
As outrageous as this all sounds, it might be the only way to deal with skyrocketing prices for all consumer goods and services.
But at least Iran won’t have a nuclear weapon.
