The chain was flooded with social media comments about Skillet Queso. | Photo: Shutterstock
Chili’s has heard its customers’ fury over the disappearance of Skillet Queso.
The casual-dining chain said Monday that it will bring back the discontinued Skillet Beef Queso, which was replaced by a new Southwestern Queso earlier this month. Both dips will soon be available on the menu side by side.
Chili’s initially ditched the Skillet Beef Queso, a blend of melted cheese and chili, because it accounted for just 1% of sales. Another variety, White Skillet Queso, also got the boot and won’t return.
The new Southwestern version was designed to be more widely appealing and higher quality. And it fits with the chain’s practice of simplifying its menu and operations in recent years.
But in the weeks since the change, Chili’s has been flooded with social media comments from an apparent vocal minority of Skillet Queso lovers who were sad to see the item go. And now it is reversing course.
“OKAY WE HEAR YOU and we hate when y’all are mad at us,” Chili’s wrote in an X post. “We’re working on bringing Skillet Queso back to Chili’s very soon. Stay tuned for a date.”
It was a rare mea culpa for a brand that has pushed all the right buttons during a remarkable run of sales and traffic growth over the past two years. Its $10.99 3 for Me value meals and aggressive marketing strategy have shaken up the industry, while its Triple Dipper appetizer platter became a viral sensation on TikTok, sparking a comeback not only for Chili’s but casual dining as a whole.
It’s unclear whether the skillet queso flip-flop will have any impact on the chain’s performance. But it’s the latest example of how social media is impacting decision-making at restaurants. It comes two months after Cracker Barrel ditched a new logo and remodel plan due to furious backlash online—some of which appears to have been a calculated effort to damage the brand.
For now, skillet queso fans appear to be satisfied. “Me and my husband get skillet queso whenever we’re fighting so thank you we now will stay married,” one wrote on X in response to the news.
Not returning to Chili’s at this time are the chain’s Original Chicken Crispers, another longtime menu item with a small but loyal fan base. The tenders, which were made with tempura batter, were removed in 2022 as part of a menu streamlining effort, angering some customers.
Chili’s parent Brinker International is set to report its results for the past quarter on Wednesday. The Dallas-based chain is in the midst of five straight quarters of double-digit same-store sales growth.
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