New Mystery Restaurant In Worcester: Drive-Thru May Be Big Clue

WORCESTER, MA — A new restaurant is coming to Worcester's north side on the site of a vacant office building — and plans calling for a new type of drive-thru window may be a clue as to what type of restaurant it will be.

A Webster developer is planning to demolish a vacant office building in Worcester and replace it with a restaurant, according to plans submitted recently to the city. An LLC tied to Galaxy Development recently submitted plans seeking to raze the building at 59 Pullman St., which is adjacent to the Market 32 supermarket along Mountain Street. Plans call for the site to be redeveloped into a 2,300 square-foot "fast-casual" restaurant with a drive-thru and outdoor seating area.

According to plans, the drive-thru will operate based on orders placed via an app. Customers won't be able to order and pay for food at the window like traditional drive thru windows, according to plans.

“The pick-up window will function much differently than tradition fast-food drive through service. Customers must pre-order and pay for their meals through an application available on their phone or computer. When ordering, they select a time to retrieve their order,” the plans say. “There are no menu boards … and no payment is accepted at the pick-up window.”

The plans do not mention the name of the restaurant, and a representative from Galaxy Development declined to reveal the name. But the description of the drive-thru sounds similar to Chiptole's new "Chipotlane" concept.

"All we have is digital pick-up windows," a Chipotle executive told the industry publication Retail Brew in 2023.

Galaxy Development also already has ties to the Mexican fast-casual chain. The developer built the Trolley Square plaza along Grove Street, home to the lone Chipotle location in Worcester.

An LLC tied to Galaxy Development purchased the 59 Pullman property in December 2021 for $470,000, according to property records. The parking plan for the development was set to go before the Worcester Planning Board on Wednesday.