Pay scale problems, but rewarding. - Kitchen Manager Chipotle Employee Review

3.0
Jun 8, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Co workers and Co managers are like a family to me, and my job has provided me with cooking and management skills that I can use for the rest of my food career. Promotions are given to those who want them

Cons

The amount of work that you have to do for certain positions (back of house) versus the amount of work for other positions like Tortilla, Salsa, or Expo is extremely skewed. Having worked all positions, that is firmly what I believe. Every crew member gets paid the same give or take the 6-month raises Chipotle provides. This creates low incentive to want to progress towards promotions and management, as it is generally required to know the back of house positions well to become a Kitchen Manager. Always changing procedures and guidelines. Also, since the end of the unique team based culture, the upper management style is now more akin to a typical corporate restaurant. We get frequent changes, which are difficult to implement sometimes. This also has management pushing themselves and their crew harder than before with labor variance and the importance of good business numbers.

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5.0
Jul 17, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great staff Great location Food is great Employees are fantastic

Cons

Bad scheduling Bad communication when team isn’t on one accord. Food runs out fast during a rush General manager sometimes can’t be found.

2.0
Jul 4, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Somewhat easy to pick up short term work, and depending on the location co-workers can be cool. The free meals are also pretty good, and there is a significant employee discount usually.

Cons

Extremely inconsistent experience between stores. One store I worked at had a really chill manager, while other ones would have management that made the experience absolutely miserable. I had one store that "unofficially" hired me for 18 hours one week and then refused to pay me for those hours, so I guess make absolute sure that all of your hours are recorded in their system. Because portions aren't standardized very well, a significant amount of customers will be angry at you if you don't give enough food, or if you give too much food your manager will yell at you. The fact that the food is made in front of the customer leads to significantly more negative customer interactions. If you do work at a Chipotle, make absolute sure it is one that isn't very busy, as it can be the difference between a relatively chill job and a stressful nightmare.

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