Chipotle founder Steve Ells is making another rather substantial pivot.
His startup concept Kernel in New York City is being completely reworked as an artisanal “mostly sandwich” concept called Counter Service, which debuted earlier in February.
The two units open, and a third scheduled to open later this year, are being re-imagined, with the same small storefronts served by a central kitchen, where everything is made fresh.
Kernel, which last year had raised $36 million in funding before opening, was first launched as a plant-based sandwich and salad concept, though Ells later pivoted to add chicken.
Those menus, however lacked broad appeal, said Tom Cortese, the company’s chief operating officer. “The brand didn’t resonate.”
Counter Service, on the other hand, goes all in on meat.
As with Kernel, Counter Service’s menu was developed by former Eleven Madison Park chef Andrew Black, who Cortese said is being “unleashed” to disrupt the sandwich category.
There are options like The Baron, with thinly sliced roast beef, aged white cheddar, watercress, horseradish and mayo, for example; or The Cortese with roast pork loin, broccoli rabe, provolone and salsa verde.
Everything from the roasted meats to sauces are made in house—even the pâté in the banh mi, as well as the sweet-and-spicy broken pretzels glazed with maple, olive oil and “secret spices,” and a Burnt NY Cheesecake (burnished on the top in the Basque style).
And, like Kernel, there are cookies. The Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie, for example, is described on the menu as “the most over-analyzed recipe of our careers.”
But Ells hasn’t given up completely on plant-based innovations. Counter Service has a chef’s special called The Yeuben, which is a Reuben sandwich made with pastrami-spiced yuba (tofu skin), though only 10 are offered per day because the item is time consuming to make, the menu notes.
Cortese said the food wasn’t the problem at Kernel.
“Everyone who ate at Kernel gave the food nearly 5 out or 5 stars,” he said. “Given the talent in the kitchen, that shouldn’t be shocking.”
But media coverage of the startup focused more on the automated aspects of Kernel and Ells’ attempt to break the quick-service mold.
Kernel relied heavily on automation with the goal of keeping staffing at the 800-square-foot storefronts to a minimum. Food was dispatched from the central kitchen via electric bike (though other delivery methods were also explored), and customers would pick up their orders from cubbies.
With Counter Service, Cortese said the company is adjusting its approach to technology, “including wishing to talk about it a lot less.”
There is still automation, but it will focus on managing logistics to reduce waste and offer “just-in-time freshness,” Cortese said, as well as directing the flow of orders through the makeline to ensure efficiency, accuracy and quality.
This, however, will be accomplished more with software than robotics, he added.
Currently the Counter Service menu is available at the (former) Kernel outlet on 14th Street, and it will soon be coming to the second outlet and a third scheduled to open this year.
Unlike Kernel’s initially seat-free storefronts, Counter Service will feature an actual counter, with visible stacks of bread, chefs in the window, and food prep front and center.
“After all, between Steve Ells as a classically trained chef, and the powerhouse talent we have in chef Andrew Black, everything about this menu and what we do is food-driven and chef-run,” Cortese said.
But, he added, “Our plans to disrupt the business model of the quick-service restaurant are unchanged. As deep as our culinary chops go, so too do our engineering and operations chops.”
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