A rumor online states that Chipotle is giving away free burritos to anyone who kisses in one of their locations, as part of a Valentine’s Day promotion. Is this real or fake?

It’s not true.

2013 Origins

The rumor first circulated in February 2013. At that time Qdoba Mexican grill offered a similar promotion, and some consumers appeared to inaccurately attribute this promotion to Chipotle.

The official Chipotle Twitter account answered several of the many tweets on the topic with such responses as:

• I assume you are talking about the “free burrito on v-day” rumor? If so, I am sorry to let you know it is not true. -Rusty
• I’m sorry. That’s just an internet rumor. We aren’t doing that promotion in our restaurants. -Myra”
• In this case, I have to deny. Unfortunately, that’s just a rumor. -Myra
• It’s just a rumor. We aren’t hosting any kissing event. -Myra

2014 Version

The rumor resurfaced again in 2014 as Valentine’s Day approached. Once again, Chipotle had to field questions on social media about the rumor, and stated they have no promotions planned for Valentine’s Day 2014:

2015 Return

As we began to see activity on this post, we reached out to Chipotle to confirm they were not holding a Valentine’s Day promotion. They quickly and graciously responded:

@wafflesatnoon We aren’t hosting any national promotions that day. I’m sorry. -Myra

— Chipotle (@ChipotleTweets) February 10, 2015

Qdoba Mexican Grill

Qdoba Mexican Grill has in fact run a buy-one-get-one for a kiss promotion since 2013. In 2013 Qdoba’s VP of Marketing David Craven stated, “Our third annual BOGO for a Kiss Valentine’s Day promotion enables our guests to share the fresh, delicious Qdoba food they love with their loved ones. Last year Qdoba guests smooched their way to thousands of free entrees. This year, we expect even more of our guests to turn up the heat this Valentine’s Day and we look forward to rewarding them with a little love of our own.” In 2014, Qdoba announced they would be offering a second free entree for customers who share a kiss on Valentine’s Day, as seen in the tweet below from February 10, 2014. Qdoba once again announced their Valentine’s Day promotion for 2015, and it was covered in the media, such as this USA Today article. The current promotion holds that customers can order one smothered burrito on February 14 – and a second free smothered burrito will be included if guests perform a consensual kiss.

Do it for the burritos. Smothered for a Smooch, 2.14.15. #Smothered4aSmooch pic.twitter.com/KVZbrjQLLG

— Qdoba Mexican Grill (@QdobaMexGrill) February 10, 2015

Bottom Line

Chipotle is not offering free burritos to anyone who kisses in their locations on Valentine’s Day. This rumor first circulated in 2013, perhaps due to confusion with a similar promotion offered by Qdoba Mexican Grill, which does offer a second free burrito to customers who kiss in their locations on February 14.

Updated Feb. 10, 2015
Originally published February 2013