Chipotle Launches New Asian Restaurant Chain

Culinary school students looking for something fast to eat in Los Angeles while working on their studies now have a new option. Chipotle has begun the expansion of its Asian restaurant chain, ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen. The first ShopHouse is located in Washington, D.C., and was opened in 2011. The success of the first ShopHouse restaurant has been promising and has prompted the launch of a chain, starting with a new restaurant on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, Calif.

The concept
Shophouses are traditionally small, family-owned businesses in Bangkok that typically only serve a few dishes. ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen is very similar to Chipotle in many respects. Customers choose a grain (rice noodles, brown rice or white rice) along with a protein (chicken satay, steak laab, pork and chicken meatballs or organic tofu) and walk down an assembly line while their meal is assembled. As they continue to build their Thai-inspired dishes, customers can choose from an assortment of fresh veggies, sauces, curries and other toppings.

The ingredients are carefully sourced to be organic, fresh, flavorful and completely gluten-free. Tofu options are also made with non-GMO food products. With high-quality ingredients like these, ShopHouse should have no problem drawing crowds of busy on-the-go people looking to fill their stomachs.

Future plans
If ShopHouse proves to be as successful in Los Angeles as it has been in Washington, D.C., Chipotle will move forward with its plans to expand the chain with another location in the U.S. capital and two more L.A.-based hotspots. While it may not be the same as an authentic Southeast Asian rice or noodle dishes, the food at ShopHouse is expected to appeal to a wide range of people because it is fresh, flavorful, inexpensive and fast.