Fast Mexican chain Chipotle is giving its annual Boorito Halloween event a digital makeover. Tapping into the metaverse trend, the restaurant is opening the first virtual Roblox storefront and erecting a spooky digital maze full of exclusive brand offers for gamers.

Now in its 21st year of celebrating Halloween with its burrito giveaway event, Chipotle today announced it will open a virtual location and debut a Halloween-themed corn maze on popular gaming platform Roblox. The brand is the first restaurant to open up shop in the virtual world. 

Through the experience, which includes access to exclusive Digital Halloween costumes and Roblox items, Chipotle has committed to giving away $1m in free burritos to the first 30,000 participants who try out the maze and visit the in-game restaurant. The promotion will run Oct. 28-31.

“As a digital innovator, we are always experimenting on new platforms to meet our guests where they are,” Chris Brandt, the company’s chief marketing officer said in a statement today. “Roblox’s popularity has boomed over the past year, and we know our fans will be excited to celebrate the next evolution of Boorito in the metaverse.”

To score a free burrito, Roblox users need only go to www.roblox.com/chipotle and visit the cashier at the virtual restaurant for a special offer code. Before entering the virtual store, users will be invited to try out new Chipotle-themed costumes, including Burrito Mummy, Chip Bag Ghost, Guacenstein and more.

After collecting their offer, gamers enter the Chipotle Boorito Maze, where they can uncover and collect ingredients that give them special powers to ward off monsters and help them reach the maze’s center. Those who make it to the center of the maze will be rewarded with exclusive Chipotle-inspired Roblox items. Chipotle’s proceeds from the sale of in-game items will be donated to support young farmers.

Plus, to continue the tradition of its classic Boorito event, the restaurant is also offering all US consumers a $5 burrito, bowl, salad or taco entree, exclusively through the brand’s app or online store, on the evening of Halloween. It is, however, forgoing giving discounted meals to costumed in-store costumers which had been the pre-Covid tradition.

The focus on digital offers and in-app and online ordering aims to bolster the company’s already-flourishing digital sales. The organization’s second quarter earnings indicate that digital sales alone grew 10.5% year-over-year and represented nearly 49% of all sales. Nothing spooky about that.

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