I remember the first time I brought my Mexican girlfriend to Chipotle (CMG).
She had never heard of the fast food restaurant. Unlike Taco Bell, which seemingly has a mythical status in Mexico (though there are no locations there at the moment), Chipotle isn’t very popular south of the border.
“Taco Bell? Chipotle blows Taco Bell out of the water,” I assured her and her family. But the truth was that I actually hadn’t eaten at Chipotle in years.
If all goes well for Chipotle now, my girlfriend’s family won’t have to come to the U.S. to try the food. Chipotle announced that it will open its inaugural store in the Monterrey area on Thursday with plans to open other locations in the state of Nuevo Leon later in the year.
During the restaurant’s cultural heydey in the early to mid 2010s, Chipotle was the go-to Mexican fast food restaurant for customers whose palates had evolved beyond Taco Bell. For less than $10, you could get a quick, delicious meal made by workers who didn’t mind adding a little extra protein to a burrito that ended up being bigger than your head.
But that was then.
Private equity firm Pershing Square purchased a 9.9% stake in the company in 2016 and completely overhauled the company. The company’s farm-to-table roots had taken a big hit amid a couple of high-profile food poisoning incidents, and the activist investor overhaul that followed changed the taste of the food forever.
The Chipotle we went to in downtown Washington, D.C., not too far from the location I frequented a decade prior, was a different experience for me, and a tremendous letdown for her.
When I bit into the chicken from the stuffed bowl I ordered, I was not ready for the level of disappointment I would face. I was shocked that the chicken was bland, a word I never thought I’d use to describe Chipotle food.
My girlfriend was even less impressed. But as much as I wanted to be right and for her to be wrong, the meal for the two of us turned out to be a $30 mistake.
Chipotle moves to Mexico in bold new expansion plan
Believe it or not, burritos aren’t a food staple in Mexico.
Tacos definitely are. But burritos are kind of a niche food item in parts of the country of 130 million people.
So Chipotle will have its work cut out for it when it opens its first restaurant in San Pedro Garza Garcia, a city just outside of Monterrey, one of the biggest cities in Mexico. According to the company’s CEO, Chipotle has been introspective while contemplating the move.
“We are entering Mexico with deep respect for the country’s culinary heritage and a commitment to delivering the Chipotle experience with excellence,” said Scott Boatwright, Chief Executive Officer of Chipotle. “Our research has reinforced our belief that there is strong interest in high-quality, freshly prepared food served with the customization and convenience that Chipotle offers.
Chipotle’s fresh-made guacamole is still as good as I remember and the company has expanded its menu to include other Mexican staples like barbacoa.
Since there aren’t any Taco Bells in Mexico — the brand opened restaurants in 1992 and again in 2007 but they have since closed — much of the brand’s cultural cache comes from popular culture.
Chipotle does not have that luxury. It was never a cultural touchstone the way Taco Bell has been. But what it does have in its arsenal is higher-quality ingredients, and in a country where most restaurant food options are relatively fresh, that could be a huge selling point for Chipotle as it embarks on its journey into the land where its menu comes from.
But Mexico is only part of Chipotle’s international strategy.
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Chipotle is growing its international footprint
Chipotle is partnering with Alsea SAB to manage its Mexican expansion. Alsea already runs Starbucks operations in Mexico (Starbucks is extremely popular in the country), so the firm has some know-how in the Mexican market.
While Chipotle is new to Mexico, it isn’t new to international expansion.
Recently, the company has signed deals to open its first restaurant in South Korea later this year and its first in Singapore next year. Those would be the first in Asia.
Chipotle operates more than 80 locations in Canada, 20 in the UK, six in France, and two in Germany. Worldwide, Chipotle operates more than 4,100 locations and expects to open between another 350 and 370 new ones by the end of the year.
Chipotle says it is targeting 7,000 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
Related: Chipotle’s menu adds a trendy ingredient
