Chipotle to launch its first digital kitchen in Ohio

Chipotle is growing and it is also making major changes in its restaurants and business. For instance, as putting up digital kitchens is becoming a growing trend among fast-food brands, the Mexican Grill chain is also opening its own.

Chipotle recently announced that it is set to open its first digital-only kitchen in Ohio and it will be within the Cuyahoga Falls vicinity. This is unique because, unlike the usual Chipotle store outlets, this one will not have any dining space.

Rather, the digital kitchen in Ohio will only accommodate orders for delivery and pick up. This is the format so the site is also smaller than the regular Chipotle restaurant. However, it will have all the features of the Chipotle kitchen and will be able to make all the food on the menu.

As per Fox Business, although this store accepts delivery and for pick up, customers will not be able to place orders in person. Orders can only be done via Chipotle's website, app, and other marketplace partners. Once orders are placed, customers can get then pick up their food or have them delivered at home.

Moreover, although there is no indoor dining, seating for guests is included in the restaurant design and this will be set up at the patio. The new store has been named the Chipotlane Digital Kitchen.

"Chipotlanes are a key growth strategy for the brand," Chipotle's chief development officer, Tabassum Zalotrawala, said in a press release. "Our portfolio of approximately 300 Chipotlanes perform with the highest margins across the board, so we continue to evolve our restaurant design with formats such as the Chipotlane Digital Kitchen to best suit our growing digital business."

Chipotle is actually using the Chipotlane format since 2018. The restaurant has been fulfilling online orders for three years now but the digital kitchen in Ohio will be the first location to exclusively take orders via Chipotlane.

Meanwhile, Chipotle has around 3,000 store outlets and its goal is to have at least 6,000 locations in North America. Thus, it is continuing to learn and improve its approach to reach its goal and expand as fast as possible.