Burrito chain expanding quickly in Las Vegas area

Jennifer Shubinski

Thursday, Sept. 4, 2003 | 11:04 a.m.

Chipotle, a chain with McDonald's Corp. as its majority owner, is unleashing its burritos in Las Vegas with ingredients such as meat from pigs raised on free-range farms.

After barely four months in the Las Vegas market, Chipotle, a fast-casual restaurant, has opened four stores in the Las Vegas area and plans a fifth.

"The response has been way beyond our expectations," Dan Fogarty, a spokesman for the Denver-based company, said. "We thought it would take a lot longer for us to open up at a high level."

The chain opened restaurants throughout the summer at Eastern Avenue near St. Rose Parkway; next to Harrah's on Las Vegas Boulevard; and at Maryland Parkway and Harmon Avenue near the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. The most recent one to open is at Sunset Road and Stephanie Street to the northwest of Sunset Station hotel-casino.

The fifth restaurant will be at the southeast corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Warm Springs Road in front of the Las Vegas Outlet Center (formerly Belz Factory Outlet World). It is scheduled to open by late this year or early next year, Fogarty said.

Each restaurant employs between 15 and 25 people, Fogarty said.

Long lines at lunch contain everybody from college students, construction workers and professionals waiting to mix and match ingredients for a taco, burrito bowl, or one of the restaurant's signature 20-ounce foil-wrapped burritos.

Fogarty said part of the stores' success can be attributed to Las Vegas' in-migration.

"Because Las Vegas has so many people from other places, they were great fans before they moved to Las Vegas," he said. "So there was a great underserved and untapped reservoir of fans already."