While Chipotle continues to experiment with ways to reignite the brand’s former breakneck growth, such as introducing queso, the company also continues to refine its Tasty Made Burger concept with a new partnership with a celebrity chef.
Chipotle Mexican Grill opened its first (and so far, only) Tasty Made burger restaurant in Lancaster, Ohio, last year. Now it’s attempting to perfect its formula there in advance of expansion, refining simple ingredients and a spare menu: burgers, fries, shakes and sodas.
Top Chef alum Richard Blais—restaurateur and James Beard-nominated cookbook author—plans to help Tasty Made perfect its burger and also oversee the sub-brand’s operations for Chipotle CEO Steve Ells.
Thrilled to partner with @RichardBlais on our Tasty Made burger restaurant https://t.co/726A1tzAOh
— Chris Arnold (@ChipotleMedia) September 26, 2017
Blais won Bravo TV’s Top Chef All-Stars, so he’s certainly able to handle a burger. He founded the FLIP Burger Boutique chain and got his start working as a line cook at McDonald’s before graduating from the Culinary Institute of America and then working under some of the world’s best chefs in Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud and Ferran Adria.
His other ventures include the highly acclaimed Juniper & Ivy and popular new chicken concept, Crack Shack.
“Richard is an extraordinary chef and exceptionally capable restaurateur,” Ells said in a press release. “I have long believed that there was an opportunity to make the fast food burger a great burger using better quality ingredients. Richard’s expertise is perfect to help us do that … allowing me to remain focused on continuing to grow and strengthen the Chipotle brand.”
After multiple tainted-food episodes reduced consumer confidence in the chain anbd sapped its growth a couple of years ago, Chipotle has been struggling to restore trust in its flagaship brand and return to anything like its boom years. Marketing campaigns haven’t moved the needle as much as hoped.
Lately, Chipotle has turned to product twists, which don’t occur very often in its limited menu. For instance, its chorizo filling bombed. Now Chipotle is filling its place on the menu with its first-ever queso, which is in a US-wide rollout but faces some tough reviews.
At least Chipotle can count on Blais to help its original brand as well as Tasty Made. He has a long-standing relationship with the brand, and will participate in its annual Cultivate Festival in Miami’s Bayfront Park on November 12. But what Ells is hoping is that he can cultivate growth and culinary excellence in his sub-brand, and have a halo effect on his core business.
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