[4] Its competitors included Panda Express, P. F. Chang's, Pick Up Stix,[5] and to a small extent Noodles & Company.

[6] On October 25, 2016, founder, Steve Ells, said during an earnings call that the company "decided not to invest further in growing the ShopHouse brand.

Culinary manager Nate Appleman was responsible for developing some recipes and the procedures to produce the final product.

[31] In 2014, The Motley Fool noted that Chipotle was expanding the ShopHouse concept rather slowly when compared with the expansion of Noodles & Company during the same time period.

[6] A writer for MarketWatch commented in 2015 that some of the procedures that Chipotle had developed for providing affordable quality burritos quickly "may not work with other cuisines".

[33] ShopHouse defended their decision of having a relatively slow roll out by responding to their critics that they are still trying to shape the brand by getting everything done right before they duplicate the procedures and replicate it in a new location.

In this way, they would like to provide great products in an efficient and cost effective manner that would entice customers to return frequently.

[43][44] On October 25, 2016, founder, Steve Ells, said during an earnings call that the company "decided not to invest further in growing the ShopHouse brand.

[43] Tom Sietsema of The Washington Post called ShopHouse "one of the best fast food ideas in years.

A food writer for Forbes Magazine who was born in Malaysia and specializes in writing about Asian cuisine, gave the chain a mixed review.