Dive Brief:
- Chipotle’s Chicken al Pastor will return for a limited time starting Feb. 10 as part of the fast casual giant’s effort to improve traffic by increasing the cadence of its limited-time offerings, the company said in a Tuesday press release.
- Chipotle said its Chicken al Pastor — marinated chicken with pineapple — is its most-requested LTO, with roughly double the number of consumers asking for its return compared to other protein launches.
- Despite a position as a relative value leader in the fast casual segment, Chipotle’s same-store traffic fell in the third quarter by about 0.8%. Premium protein pricing on LTOs helped offset this decline and keep the company’s comparable sales growing ever so slightly at 0.3%.
Dive Insight:
Chipotle is increasing its number of major LTOs — in addition to sides and dips — from two per year to three or four in 2026, CEO Scott Boatwright said on the chain’s October earnings call. That move could help the brand recover traffic since new items and the return of popular past LTOs helps drive trial, frequency and brand relevance.
“Internal data shows that new and existing guests who purchase an LTO increase frequency and spend over the following year compared to guests who do not purchase an LTO,” the company said in the press release.
To promote the return and draw consumers into its loyalty program, Chipotle will give its rewards members access to the LTO on Feb. 9. Consumers can order it both as a protein in entrees and in the brand’s recently launched snack portion protein cups, according to the press release.
Chipotle first began testing Chicken al Pastor in select markets in 2022, before bringing it to wider audiences in 2023 and 2024. The spring 2024 deployment was particularly successful, helping the brand drive considerable transaction growth. It has been nearly two years since Chipotle served Chicken al Pastor, giving the brand ample time to build buzz and anticipation.
Chipotle is set to report its earnings on Feb. 3, and the brand has faced pullback by key consumer groups that have seen shifts in income and price sensitivity. With long-term unemployment rising and continued market uncertainty driven by U.S. trade policy, an organic recovery in consumer spending is far from a safe bet. A strong LTO play early in the year could help the brand offset those issues.
