Ye Olde Burrito Shoppe: Chipotle Opens in Europe

June 16, 2010 at 8:35 AM | by JetSetCD | Comments (0)

Fancy a burrito? Just over one month ago, Chipotle debuted their first overseas location in London, opening the flood gates for what will soon be a "Mexican Grill" invasion of European capitals.

This first shop, at 114-116 Charing Cross Road in London's Soho district nearby Covent Garden, peddles all the giant, foil-wrapped calorie hogs that American have come to love. No brown sauce here, folks. Chipotle London is as faux Mexican as the ones in the good ol' USA.

And that's not all! Chipotle is using this first London location to test the murky Euro waters, as their expansion plans are pretty bold for a brand based on a crumply silver cylinder:

'We think the prospects are very good for Chipotle in London and around Europe,' said Steve Ells, founder, chairman and co-chief executive officer of Chipotle. 'The food culture in Europe is based on local, sustainable and artisanal foods, which are all core values of Chipotle and we have been instrumental in bringing this kind of thinking to fast food in the U.S. We call it 'Food with Integrity' and it is one of the ways we are changing the way people think about and eat fast food.'

If they think that they'll be able to successfully loop themselves in with other "local, sustainable and artisanal" eateries, than Chipotle has another thing coming. Europe wasn't fooled by Starbucks; even though it's popular, it's not considered good coffee. So will burritos go; heaven help us if Chipotle becomes the "authentic Mexican food" of Europe.

Related Stories:
· Chipotle to Colonize England, Europe in Fast Food Invasion [Eater National]
· Dunkin Donutski? Moscow to Run on Dunkin [Jaunted]
· Fast Food Travel [Jaunted]

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