Chipotle to start offering queso dip at all restaurants

Chipotle Mexican Grill will start offering queso dip at all restaurants next week.

The fast-casual restaurant chain announced it was going to “fulfill the wishes of queso lovers from coast to coast” by adding queso to its menu at all stores on Sept. 12.

The company has been testing queso in 350 restaurants in Southern California and the Colorado area.

Customers can order queso on their entrée or on the side in two sizes with chips. Prices vary slightly by city, but range from $1.25 to add it to an entrée to $5.25 for a large side order, the company said in a statement.

"Although queso was the No. 1-requested menu item, we never added it to our menu before now because we wouldn't use the industrial additives used in most quesos," said Steve Ells, founder, chairman and CEO at Chipotle. "Additives make typical queso very consistent and predictable, but are not at all in keeping with our food culture. Our queso may vary slightly depending on the characteristics of the aged cheddar cheese used in each batch, but using only real ingredients is what makes our food so delicious."

Chipotle, which opened its first restaurant in Denver in 1993, now operates more than 2,300 restaurants.