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We have rough news. You might want to sit down for this.

Chipotle CEO Steve Ellis announced last night that the company will divest from ShopHouse, its SouthEast Asian restaurant. The company will instead put money into its pizza chain Pizzeria Locale and new burger establishment Tasty Made.

ShopHouse has eight locations in D.C. and Maryland, including one in Dupont Circle, which opened in 2011 as the first-ever ShopHouse storefront. With the concept restaurant, Ellis and the Chipotle team hoped to bring flavors from Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore to the  U.S. food market in an affordable, customizable way. Between 2011 and 2016, the company expanded to 15 locations in D.C., Maryland, California, and Illinois.

According to Chipotle’s third quarter financial results, ShopHouse is not providing substantial returns during a year of tumult for the E. coli-problem-ridden company.

Don’t freak out quite yet. ShopHouse is still open, for now. Chipotle’s Communications Director and Official Spokesman Chris Arnold told FamousDC that the company has not yet decided on the restaurant’s fate. 

“We have not made any decisions regarding ShopHouse, but rather are exploring strategic options. When we have more details to share, we will provide an update on our plans,” Arnold wrote in an email to FamousDC.

ShopHouse may be on its last legs, and D.C. mourns together. Join us as we lament the loss of the spice in our lunch breaks, free giveaways, fiery green beans, delicious peanut sauce, and walls upon walls of Sriracha. ShopHouse was a fixture in the D.C. lunch scene. May it rest in peace.

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