It’s not every day chain businesses decide to establish new locations in smaller towns like Mansfield, Conn. A newly constructed plaza now features locations for Chipotle Mexican Grill, Five Guys Burgers and Fries and Aspen Dental at 96 Storrs Road on the Mansfield-Willimantic town line, not far from the main University of Connecticut Storrs campus.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, a fast-casual restaurant serving burritos and bowls, officially opened this past Monday, Sept. 30. The new Mansfield location was one of five announced arrivals of the chain to Connecticut for 2024, in addition to over 30 locations operating across the state. The restaurant faces competition from Moe’s Southwest Grill, a similar establishment with a location in Downtown Storrs — and subject of a popular fan rivalry. The new Chipotle location also boasts a drive-through window, nicknamed “Chipot-lane,” which allows patrons to place their order ahead online.
“I went on opening day, and the line was long, it was out the door,” said Nil Patel, a seventh-semester management information systems major. “I’ll definitely go back. I just hope the demand isn’t overwhelming; Chipotle is really popular amongst students.”
The Mansfield location is open every day from 10:45 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. There are over 3,500 Chipotle restaurants worldwide, and the company promotes values of environmental sustainability and using real ingredient .
Aspen Dental also began their practice at their new storefront on Thursday, Oct. 3. The office provides numerous dental services including routine treatments, emergency care and surgery and auxiliary dental needs. The chain is geared toward individuals that have limited access to traditional channels for care or those who face affordability barriers, according to a PBS article featuring Aspen Dental President and CEO Bob Fontana.
“The entire team is dedicated to ensuring that every patient is treated with the respect and compassion they deserve,” read a press statement on the new location.
Jasmin Henville, a dentist based in Worcester, Mass., operates the new location. She also owns the Aspen Dental locations in Lisbon, Conn. and Auburn, Mass. the latter holding the title of top performing Aspen Dental office on the business’ webpage. Â
Aspen Dental operates 16 other offices in Connecticut and over 1,000 locations in 46 states.
UConn Health also operates a dental care center in its medical services complex in Downtown Storrs, and as a component of the UConn School of Dental Medicine at John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington, Conn. In the past, free health clinics have been offered to students and community members.
Five Guys Burgers and Fries, a fast food chain specializing in hamburgers, hot dogs and milkshakes, announced their intent to open a new location in Mansfield, Conn., in July to occupy the center suite of the plaza. According to their careers webpage, the new location will open in November and employment applications are open. Signage has been installed and interior construction is in the final stages for the brazier, which shares an outdoor patio seating area with Chipotle.
The strip is located next to the Champagne Motorcars dealership on Storrs Road, also known as Connecticut Route 195. The roadway connects with US Route 6 in Willimantic and runs north, directly feeding into the main UConn campus through to Tolland. Anchored by the East Brook Mall and Big Y Supermarket plaza across the street, this commercial zone is about a 15-minute drive from UConn and is accessible on WRTD bus route 674.
Correction: This article was updated on Oct. 8 to clarify individual ownership of Aspen Dental offices and remove wording that labeled Aspen Dental as a corporate dentistry practice.
Interesting that you guys left a note saying you removed wording that labeled Aspen Dental as a corporate dentistry practice. That’s what it is, in fact, almost every Google hit for “corporate dentistry” includes Aspen Dental as a reference.
It’s actually peculiar that you’ve even included it, since Aspen Dental has no relevance to the UConn population whatsoever. It’s a franchise of dentist’s offices for dentists who either can’t or for some reason choose not to operate a private practice, opened for the express purpose of scamming poor people with debt-racking payment plans.
You folks even said in the article – there’s a UConn Health dental office downtown. Aspen Dental is like marshmallows – still technically food, but it’s not like anything beneficial.