text: Moe’s Southwest Grill has toppled Chipotle to become America’s favorite Mexican-inspired fast casual restaurant chain, according to a new poll. 
   
   The 1,900-unit Chipotle Mexican Grill chain, which had topped the last three annual Harris polls, didn’t even finish in the top four. The Denver-based chain has been beset by a number of food-borne illnesses in the last year, including a norovirus outbreak that sickened 386 customers, a salmonella incident that sickened 64 people and e. coli episodes in 11 states that sickened 60 people. 
   
   As a result, sales have decline 30 percent and the company’s shares have dipped 33 percent, to $411.14, in early Friday trading. 
   
   For Moe’s, a 600-unit chain, the first place finish in the Harris poll was its first. 
   
   Moe’s showed the largest increase in brand equity (13 percent) among all restaurants measured, and demonstrates one of the largest equity increases across all brands assessed, which is significant given the tendency for equity to resist rapid movement. 
   
   If getting knocked out of the top position wasn’t bad enough for Chipotle executives, then the names of the chains that Americans love more than Chipotle should give them pause: Taco Bell finshed No. 2 in the poll, with Qdoba Mexican Grill coming in third and Baja Fresh Mexican Grill coming in fourth. 
   
   Harris polled 97,120 US consumers aged 15 and over. ||||| Chipotle Mexican Grill has had a tumultuous year between the bouts of food-borne illnesses and plummeting sales, but it has managed to emerge from the mess of E. coli-related issues. But the pile-on continues as other chains take advantage of the shifting fast-casual market food and begin to climb past the Denver-based chain in customer ratings. 
   
   Moe's Southwest Grill, which got its start in Atlanta in 2000 and now has more than 600 locations worldwide, is reaping significant benefits from Chipotle's downturn. The chain has been named "brand of the year" in the Harris Poll's category of fast-casual Mexican restaurants, unseating Chipotle, which took the top prize for the last three years but failed to even make the top four in 2016. This year, Chipotle was bested by Taco Bell, Qdoba Mexican Grill, and Baja Fresh Mexican Grill. 
   
   The Harris Poll ranked this year's brands based on more than 97,000 responses from United States customers, and Moe's was praised for its willingness to listen and respond to diner feedback and needs. "We really view the competition as share of stomach," Moe's president Bruce Schroder said previously. Moe's is part of Focus Brands Inc., which operates chains such as Carvel, Cinnabon, and Auntie Anne's Pretzels, among others. 
   
   On February 8, when Chipotle closed all of its restaurants for a food safety self-check, Moe's took out a full-page ad in USA Today to emphasize its openness. Overall, Moe's has seen a 5 percent increase in foot traffic thanks in part to Chipotle's struggles, according to a Placed survey. Chipotle still has some loyalists, however, such as the Washington man who's working toward his goal of eating a meal from the chain 366 days in a row. ||||| CLOSE Harris Poll named Moe’s the Brand of the Year for fast casual Mexican restaurants, ending Chipotle’s three year run as their #1 chain. 
   
   Moe's Southwest Grill has unseated Chipotle as fast casual Mexican restaurant "Brand of the Year," according to an annual Harris Poll. (Photo: Moe's Southwest Grill) 
   
   People with a hankering for a burrito are no longer beelining for Chipotle first. Or second, or third, or fourth. 
   
   Moe's Southwest Grill, a Tex-Mex chain with less than half the number of locations as Chipotle, has unseated the former fast casual king as the most popular brand selling Mexican-inspired food, according to an annual survey out Thursday from Harris Poll that measures how people feel about restaurant brands. Moe's has more than 650 restaurants to Chipotle's more than 1,900. 
   
   Moe's, which is owned by the same company that operates shopping mall mainstays Auntie Anne's and Cinnabon, claimed the "Brand of the Year" title for fast casual Mexican restaurants for the first time, while Chipotle fell hard. The No. 1 pick for the past three years, it's now ranked below not only Moe's but Taco Bell, Qdoba and Baja Fresh. 
   
   The survey is yet another sign of the harsh impact Chipotle's food-safety issues have had on the brand in the past year. Chipotle has been grasping at a former semblance of its reputation as a purveyor of fresh food in the months since dealing with multiple incidences of E. Coli and norovirus at restaurants across the country. Sales tanked, a rude awakening for a brand that had been wildly popularity for years. 
   
   The company has said customers are coming back around though, and has tried to lure customers back with offers for free burritos and buy one, get one deals. In the first quarter, sales at stores open at least a year fell nearly 30%, though the company said transaction volume improved as the quarter went on. A free burrito offer in February had a 67% redemption rate. 
   
   But beyond Chipotle's issues, the fast casual restaurant landscape has also become more competitive as chains have gone head to head to offer customers healthier food and new menu options. Qdoba rolled out a new taco menu last year with fillings like tequila lime chicken, steak and bacon; Taco Bell has gained prominence for its breakfast menu and started selling alcohol in some restaurants last year. Moe's is known for a wide selection of ingredients for build-your-own tacos, quesadillas and burrito bowls — the brand also frequently offers limited time menu additions, such as an ancho chili lime rice bowl and seasonal salsas like ghost pepper and mango tomatillo. 
   
   Chipotle, meanwhile, has rarely introduced new menu items, and some say the company hasn't done enough to show customers its food is safe to eat, even though it has adopted new food safety protocols. 
   
   "Their sales have been under tremendous pressure," says Andrew Charles, an equity research analyst with Cowen and Co. who follows both Chipotle and Qdoba. "Brand perception is down. In retrospect, I just don't think they did enough to convince customers that Chipotle food was safe to eat," pointing out that there are no signs in stores alerting customers to the changes and announcements on social media have been scarce. 
   
   Moe's rose to the top for ranking the highest in familiarity, quality and purchase consideration. Harris Poll surveyed more than 97,000 U.S. consumers for their thoughts on more than 3,800 brands, including more than 60 restaurants. Each respondent was given a list of 40 randomly selected brands to rate. 
   
   Moe's has benefited from a rapid expansion in recent years, which has given the brand a stronger position as a Chipotle alternative, says Lisa Recoussine, vice president of client services at Nielsen, which owns Harris Poll. Moe's opened 70 new restaurants last year, when sales hit nearly $640 million. 
   
   To be sure, Chipotle still has much larger market share and sales, which were $4.5 billion in 2015. According to Placed Insights, an analytics firm that measures traffic trends, just 2.3% of the U.S. population visited a Moe's last month, while nearly 9.4% visited a Chipotle. 
   
   Though the poll results show Moe's may be poised to steal more customers, says David Shim, CEO of Placed Insights. 
   
   "Moe’s has an opportunity to continue to convert that brand equity into restaurant visits," Shim says, "closing the visitation gap with Chipotle." 
   
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target: – A faltering Chipotle has stumbled yet again, this time losing its place as the No. 1 casual, fast Mexican restaurant to a chain that has about a third the number of eateries as Chipotle, USA Today reports. With more than 650 restaurants to Chipotle's 1,900-plus, Moe's Southwest Grill is now the new king of that particular category, according to a Harris Poll survey that queried nearly 100,000 consumers on more than 3,800 brands (including about 60 restaurants). And Chipotle, in the top spot for three years running before it fell victim to a slew of recent food-safety issues, didn't merely drop to second place—it plummeted to fifth, behind Taco Bell, Qdoba, and Baja Fresh. Competition in the category has been fierce, with Mexican eateries all trying to one-up each other in serving up healthier menu items with more selection. USA Today notes that Moe's is especially known for the ample variety of ingredients used to create build-your-own tacos, burritos, and other fare. But it's almost as if Chipotle gave up, debuting few new menu items and taking a halfhearted approach to alerting consumers to steps it's taken to address the hundreds of illnesses—the New York Post helpfully documents the norovirus, E. coli, and salmonella count—that have resulted from chowing down its food. "I just don't think they did enough to convince customers that Chipotle food was safe to eat," an equity research analyst tells USA Today. Plus, Moe's made sure to capitalize on Chipotle's woes, taking out a full-page ad in USA Today on Feb. 8, for instance, reminding everyone its restaurants were open—Chipotle shut down that day to review food-safety protocol with staff, Eater notes. "Moe’s [now] has an opportunity to continue to convert that brand equity into restaurant visits, closing the visitation gap with Chipotle," the CEO of analytics company Placed Insights tells USA Today. (Next up for Chipotle: burgers?)