(Reuters) -Chipotle Mexican Grill on Monday named interim boss Scott Boatwright as permanent CEO of the burrito chain, months after Brian Niccol exited the role to take the top job at Starbucks.

Boatwright steps in at a time when restaurants across the United States are battling weak consumer demand in the face of higher menu prices.

In October, Chipotle missed market expectations for third-quarter same-store sales growth and maintained its growth target for annual comparable restaurant sales.

Executives said on a post-earnings call that Niccol’s exit was “not expected.”

Boatwright, who will take on the role effective immediately, was Chipotle’s operating chief prior to being appointed its interim CEO in August.

After five years under Niccol’s leadership, sales in the burrito chain doubled, while its stock tripled.

A veteran in the restaurant industry, Boatwright spent 18 years with Arby’s Restaurant Group in various leadership positions before he joined Chipotle in 2017.

(Reporting by Anuja Bharat Mistry and Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; editing by Alan Barona)