Chipotle begins UK expansion with Soho acquisition

03-Jan-2012 - Last updated on 26-Apr-2021 at 16:14 GMT

Chipotle Soho is the Mexcan restaurant chain's third UK site

Mexican restaurant chain Chipotle has acquired the former Otarian restaurant at 185 Wardour Street in London’s Soho.

The Soho restaurant will be Chipotle’s third site in the UK, with existing restaurants in Charing Cross Road and Baker Street. The purchase forms part of the chain’s UK expansion plans.

Great corner location

"Chipotle is a fantastic brand with strong values centered around food with integrity,” said Thomas Rose, associate in the Cushman & Wakefield Leisure & Restaurant team, which advised Otarian on the deal.

“It will be a real asset to the growing restaurant scene in Soho. This site is in a great corner location, ideal for Chipotle's requirements for quality sites in Central London.”

Serving burritos, burrito bowls, tacos and salads, Chipotle operates over 1,100 sites in the US and is known for its commitment to serving fast food made from sustainably sourced ingredients, and prepared via traditional cooking methods. The chain opened its first UK site on London’s Charing Cross Road in May 2010.

Chipotle Soho will join the likes of Wahaca, the Mexican street food restaurant concept owned by Thomasina Miers and Mark Selby, in Wardour Street.

Otarian closure

Last year, BigHospitality reported that Otarian, the US-based fast-casual vegetarian restaurant chain, decided to pull out of the UK just a year after launching its first restaurant on Shaftesbury Avenue.