New Chipotle Replacing Beloved Ample Hills In Brooklyn

PARK SLOPE, NY — The scent of carnitas and sizzling onions is poised to permeate Prospect Park West as Chipotle Mexican Grill prepares to debut a new shop in the former location of a beloved ice cream parlor, Ample Hills.

The nationwide chain plans to open its latest outpost at 192 Prospect Park West in Bartel-Pritchard Square, according to a company spokesperson.

The storefront was once home to Ample Hills, a popular ice cream business that closed in December 2022 after company management indicated that they needed further investment funds to continue operations.

Ample Hills' original Prospect Heights location on Vanderbilt Avenue reopened last summer — three years after the beloved home of the "ooey gooey butter cake" scoop first filed for bankruptcy.

The ice cream chain's stores in Industry City, Astoria and the Upper West Side also remain operational, but they are no longer under the leadership of owners Jackie Cuscana and Brian Smith, according to the pair.

"We're just kind of devastated about the whole experience," Cuscuna told Inc. "It wasn't just a job for us. The communities that we created through the shops, the brands, the ice cream, the creativity — it was our life's work."

Cuscuna and Smith have since opened a new dessert shop in Prospect Heights called The Social.

A company spokesperson told Patch that the new Chipotle restaurant will open "at some point this summer."

"In addition to a dining room and front line, this location will feature a walk-up window for guests to pick up digital orders without having to enter the restaurant," spokesperson Annie Gradinger said.

Chipotle Mexican Grill has become a nationally recognized restaurant since it launched in Denver in 1993, with more than 2,450 outposts in the U.S., Canada, France, Germany and the U.K. as of 2018.

The fast-casual Mexican spot has dozens of locations throughout Brooklyn, including another in Park Slope. The closest Chipotle to the new location is at 185 7th Ave., about a 20-minute walk away.