Next Stop Is Dubai for Chipotle

First it was Kuwait and now Dubai for Chipotle in the Middle East.

This week, the brand announced the opening of its first restaurant in Dubai. Measuring 6,000-square-feet, the restaurant is set in a marquee location along a beachside boulevard at The Beach at Jumeirah Beach Residence. It marks Chipotle’s first restaurant in the United Arab Emirates, with a second store planned to open in the region at the Dubai Hills Mall in the coming months.

Chipotle has partnered with international franchise retail operator Alshaya Group on the expansion. In April, the group opened its first unit in the Middle East at one of Kuwait’s largest shopping malls. It was the first time Chipotle entered a new country in over 10 years. Last month, it opened a second store in Kuwait at The Walk Mall in Ardiya.

“The early results at the Chipotle restaurants in Kuwait have exceeded our expectations, making it one of the top performing brands in our portfolio, and we are more confident than ever that the fast-casual concept has immense growth potential in the Middle East,” says John Hadden, CEO of Alshaya Group, in the release. The group’s portfolio includes stores, cafes, restaurants and leisure destinations, as well as large scale online and digital business.

Based in Newport Beach, Calif., Chipotle’s existing international portfolio of owned and operated restaurants includes 47 locations in Canada, 20 in the U.K., six in France and two in Germany. In North America, the company owns and operates over 3,500 restaurants.