Chipotle Goes Vegan, If You’re Into It [Video]

Burrito giant Chipotle has embraced vegans with both hands, introducing an option above and beyond the “veggie bowl” or burrito this carnivore opts for each time we visit, because the guacamole is like angels dancing on your tongue.

Chipotle’s vegan push involves a tofu option slowly rolled out to some test markets. Tofu sofritos are the company’s first entry to the small but vocal vegan arena, and it opens up a larger number of options for diners who stick to the strict animal products free way of eating.

Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold said that Chipotle’s vegan tofu sofritas already are grabbing sales shares in test stores, explaining that if the trend continues, all Chipotles may soon be vegan friendly:

“Where we offer it, it already accounts for 4-5 percent of sales… We don’t have any specific timeline but we are definitely considering making it available in other markets by the end of the year.”

Charles Stahler, co-director of the Vegetarian Resource Group, commented on Chipotle’s vegan initiative, saying that often groups of diners are boxed in by one or two vegetarians in the group. Stahler says:

“When a group of people go out, it’s more and more likely that one of them will be vegetarian, so the group has to choose a place that has at least one vegetarian option on the menu… You have to be able to please everyone in the group or they can go somewhere else.”

Dietitian Cynthia Sass was a dissenter, however, noting that going vegan alone is not a road to pristine eating. Sass sasses:

“There are so many vegan products on the market now that it’s easy to be what I call a ‘junk food vegan.’ Years ago vegans had to make most of their meals from scratch and rely on whole foods like lentils, beans, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds… Today there is an endless supply of highly processed vegan foods, from faux pepperoni pizza and hot dogs, to cookies, candy and ice cream.”

Veganism aside, Chipotle has been called the “healthiest fast food” by some experts.

Will Chipotle’s new vegan sofritas help calm your vegan friend down?