Chipotle Mexican Grill has unveiled additional details for its new restaurant concept slated to open this summer. The concept, ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen, is inspired by the traditional shophouses found throughout Thailand, Malaysia, and Vietnam. Shophouses are classical two or three-story buildings where families live upstairs and run restaurants or fresh markets on the ground level.
The ShopHouse menu will pair the bold and complex flavors of southeast Asia with fresh, sustainably raised ingredients; grilled and braised meats, a variety of fresh vegetables, aromatic herbs, spicy sauces, and an array of garnishes. Customers will move along a service line and customize their meal according to flavor preference and diet, in a format similar to the one that has become the hallmark of Chipotle’s success.
Well Chipotle is delicious and Southeast Asian food is also delicious, so it’s hard to see how this one goes wrong.
I know some people will be upset because Chipotle is a chain and we’re all very punk rock and programmed to hate everything corporate. But I wonder, too, if a national Southeast Asian food chain could serve to expose more people to the cuisine than would normally try it and ultimately increase traffic to the mom-and-pop stores that currently serve us delicious banh mi.
Also, I find it difficult to fault chains when the chains serve me delicious food. See Taco Bell for details. Chipotle consistently serves me delicious food and does so quickly, cleanly and conveniently. So I’m calling this one a net positive.
Tedquarters 