National Burrito Day 2022 Deals: Chipotle, El Pollo Loco, Moe's, More

ACROSS AMERICA — Let’s get one thing straight: National Burrito Day on Thursday isn’t a real holiday you have to buy a card for — unless it’s a card redeemable for freebies and other deals on burritos. There are plenty of those deals around.

According to the nationaldaystoday.com website that curates days designated for one purpose or another, National Burrito Day didn’t get started until 2017. The website says this tortilla-wrapped goodness traces back to about 10,000 B.C., to Mesoamerican people of Mexico.

Burrito means “little donkey” in Spanish, and that has led to some speculation that the stuffed tortilla resembles the bedrolls and bundles often carried by burros, used as pack animals, according to Merriam-Webster.

Another legend says food vendor Juan Mendez used a donkey to carry his food in the Mexican Revolution (1910-20), and rolled it in a flour tortilla to keep it warm.

“People looking for Mendez's tasty offerings would say that they were looking for the ‘burrito,’ or rather the donkey with the food,” Merriam-Webster explains. “The legend certainly connects the donkey to the burrito, but the story lacks documented evidence.”

Another national day curation site, nationaltoday.com, says burritos appeared U.S. menus in the 1930s. More recent versions of burritos contain different kinds of meat, vegetables, rice and beans, dressed up with cheeses and dollops of sour cream and guacamole.

Below are some of the National Burrito Day deals. As always, availability may vary by location:

Baja Fresh Mexican Grill: People who sign up for the chain’s reward deal will get 50 bonus points that can be used to discount a Chicken Baja Burrito.

California Tortilla: People who order a burrito or bowl get a golden ticket redeemable for a discount on the next visit.

Chipotle Mexican Grill: On National Burrito Day, the chain plans to launch the Chipotle Burrito Builder on Roblox, billed as “a new stimulation experience that will challenge players to roll burritos in the metaverse to earn Burrito Bucks.”

Chuy’s: This year, the chain is donating $1 for every burrito sold on National Burrito Day to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

El Pollo Loco: has been celebrating with a different deal of the day since Monday. On National Burrito Day itself, the LA-Mex restaurant is offering a buy one, get one free deal on burritos. Delivery fees also will be waived.

Moe’s Southwest Grill: Customers who have signed up for Moe’s Rewards through the app can get burritos and bowls for $5.99.