‘Everyone Wants to Be Chipotle’ …
A recent report from restaurant consultant group Baum & Whiteman pointed out 17 hot food trends for 2013. One observation was telling: “Everyone wants to be Chipotle (NYSE:CMG).”
Chipotle’s recent stock woes aside, it’s true. As the report explained:
“Consumers are trading down like crazy, bypassing casual dinner-houses and leaping to fast-casual formats, sacrificing service but believing the food is still ‘fresh.’”
While that’s bad news for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) and Ruby Tuesday (NYSE:RT), it means fast-casual chains like Panera (NASDAQ:PNRA) could continue to be popular.
Carrols Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:TAST) also recently spun off its fast-casual chains, and the resulting company, Fiesta Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FRGI), has climbed around 30% since its debut in May. FRG owns Pollo Tropical, a Caribbean chicken quick-stop, along with Chipotle-like company Taco Cabana. The company also has lots of room for growth, with just more than 100 restaurants.
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