---
title: "Nation's Restaurant News: Portillo’s turns up the heat on expansion"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/c918d8c7-f4cd-4203-b0b9-0a536acb633a
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-portillos-turns-up-the-heat-on-expansion-2703294
category: "Restaurants"
industry: "Restaurants"
topics: ["Development & multi-unit"]
published: 2017-07-12T14:09:48.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T04:10:01.965Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/19c29438c960ab1565822f4ae1b15b551793.jpg
---

# Nation's Restaurant News: Portillo’s turns up the heat on expansion

**TL;DR:** Portillo's is expanding into neighboring states, with the highest unit volumes of its category, surpassing Shake Shack Inc. by over $4 million. The company has opened its first location in Minnesota and plans to open four to five more in the area.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2017-07-12. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-portillos-turns-up-the-heat-on-expansion-2703294).*

## Story

States bordering Illinois may soon get a taste of Chicago. According to Nation's Restaurant News, Portillo's is eyeing expansion into neighboring states.

The Windy City restaurant just opened its first location in Minnesota this past Thursday. And the Woodbury location marks the first of four to five planned restaurants for the area, meaning that the company shows no sign of slowing down.

According to the article, Portillo's has the highest unit volumes of its category, surpassing competitor Shake Shack Inc. by over $4 million. Company profits continue to grow significantly each year, with each restaurant bringing in roughly $9 million a year.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- unit expansion (topic)
- Illinois (location)
- Minnesota (location)
- Shake Shack (company)
- restaurant sales (topic)
- Portillo's (company)
- competitor comparison (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-portillos-turns-up-the-heat-on-expansion-2703294). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/c918d8c7-f4cd-4203-b0b9-0a536acb633a).