Chipotle Founder Completely Disses Former Parent Company McDonald's

But Chipotle founder Steve Ells has less-than-kind things to say about his former parent company, which spun off the burrito maker in 2006 to focus on its core burgers and fries.

In an interview with The Huffington Post's Joe Satran, Ells explained why Chipotle couldn't reach its full potential with McDonald's in the picture:

"Think about the systems at McDonald's," Ells said. "It's a very mechanized world, where you take out a highly processed patty. This frozen puck. You put it on a grill. You put it on a machine. You push a button. It beeps when it's done, right? How are you going to attract top performers to fill that function?"

Chipotle has ballooned to 1,500 locations and continues to expand rapidly.

Chipotle, whose shares are up 44% this year, got the last laugh, writes Roben Farzad at Bloomberg Businessweek

"McDonald's is again starved for ideas and growth, while just about every brand in the restaurant biz is trying to sneak the word 'chipotle' onto their menu," he writes.