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Chipotle insists its portions haven’t shrunk, after TikTokers claim they did
Fast-casual Mexican food chain Chipotle is shutting down rumors that there’s a way to get servers to fill your burrito with more meat or veggies: film them.
TikTok users, including influential food reviewers, have shared images of paltry looking food portions allegedly from Chipotle. The portions they claim are a far cry from the days when the chain would load up customers’ plates with enough food to last days. Fast-food sleuths then allege that when they filmed Chipotle workers fulfilling their orders, they received larger portions.
Chipotle called the claims false, and said it never instructed workers to serve bigger portions to customers with cameras or phones.
“Our intentions are to provide a great experience every time, and our meals have always been completely customizable so guests can vocalize or digitally select their desired portions when choosing from the list of real ingredients,” Chipotle chief corporate affairs and food safety officer Laurie Schalow said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch. “There have been no changes in our portion sizes, and we have reinforced proper portioning with our employees. If we did not deliver on our value, we want our guests to reach out so we can make it right.”
It’s unclear what type of compensation the company plans to offer to any customers who might feel like they were slighted.
TikTok user Keith Lee, who has 16.3 million followers, said in May 3 video that he used to love Chipotle, but lately has been disappointed by the food. The post has more than 2 million views.
Lee filmed himself eating a few items from Chipotle’s menu, including a bowl in which he struggled to find chicken. He ultimately found just four pieces, which he described as flavorless and cold.
TikTok user Drew Polenske chimed in too, addressing the alleged portion-size issue head on. “I speak for everybody when I say I am sick and tired of the Chipotle portion sizes and it needs to change.”
“You remember peak chipotle. you know how they used to load those bowls up. they would give you enough food to feed a small village,” he said. “And now I’ll walk into Chipotle, I’ll get three grains of rice and a piece of chicken if I’m lucky. I can’t do it anymore.” He urged people to leave one-star reviews for the company online.
Another TikTok user posted a video showing a Chipotle worker fulfilling his burrito order, which appeared to be stuffed to the gills with ingredients.
“The rumors are true. I held my phone up at Chipotle and they loaded my burrito,” read a line of text in the video.
Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol weighed in on the social media trend, dubbed the “Chipotle phone method,” telling CNBC he thinks it’s “rude to our team members.”
“We’re not going all-you-can-eat, we are going great ingredients, great culinary, great bowls,” he added.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
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A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
CBS Philadelphia
Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.