Everything Steve Ells said on any show that made the record, most notable first. Each card names its show and opens the statement there.
Chipotle Allowed Steve Ells to Launch Plant-Based Chain Despite Non-Compete
“No, I was speaking with Chipotle. Of course I have a non-compete in, in place, but I asked them, I said, well, what do you think if I started a plant-based restaurant, have nothing to do with Chipotle or the fast casual format that Certainly something complete…”
Ells: Kernel uses off-the-shelf KUKA robot arms with custom programming
“We bought an off-the-shelf KUKA robot. It's a robot that's typically used on assembly lines. They work 24 seven for years. They're very reliable. Of course, we custom program that. We use an impingement oven that we took and modified.”
Ells: Chipotle combined Stars' culinary approach with Mission taqueria service format
“Well, the idea for Chipotle is a sort of a combination of food borrowed from stars and sort of a technique and a service format borrowed from the taquerias.”
Ells: Chipotle was originally intended to fund a fine-dining restaurant
“These burrito shops, these taquerias were small the investment would be low the rent certainly was low, and there were lines out the door, and I thought that, that I could make enough money to fund my full-scale restaurant.”
Ells: Chipotle's open kitchen mimics how people gather at dinner parties
“Every time you have a dinner party, people are in the kitchen. People want to be in the kitchen. And so, so Chipotle was designed to invite people in, to bring them close to where the action is.”
Ells: I developed Chipotle's original menu the day before we opened
“The menu was developed the day before I opened.”
Ells: In 1993, no other fast food chain had cooks taste food
“Probably when we opened, I can't imagine there was another fast food restaurant Where the crew actually taste the food. I just don't think they did that, right?”
Ells: The first Chipotle location was profitable within months
“Oh, I was profitable in the first few months.”
Ells: Chipotle funded its second location mostly from cash flow
“So I think maybe he put in a little bit more money, but it was mostly cash flow that opened the second restaurant, and that opened about a year and a half later, and it opened up much busier than the first one.”
Ells: Chipotle's peak market valuation reached $21 billion
“Yeah, 21, twenty-one billion, I think, was the highest.”
Ells: My father invested $85,000 because I couldn't raise the money
“I was lucky to have a father who could invest 85,000 dollars in my first restaurant because I couldn't have raised that money myself.”
Ells: The first Chipotle was 850 square feet and $800 a month
“This was the first site we saw near the university of Denver campus. It was 850 square feet. It was in terrible condition. It needed a lot of work. I think the rent was 800 dollars a month or something like this.”
How I Built This 6