Portillo's files to go public as it continues adding locations

Portillo's is getting closer to becoming a publicly traded company, and it has big plans for expansion, according to an SEC filing viewed by Crain's Chicago Business.

The 67-location, Oak Brook-based chain believes it could grow to more than 600 restaurants in the U.S. in the next 25 years and is "well-positioned for global growth," too, the filing said.

Portillo's is planning new locations in Illinois, Michigan, Arizona and Florida as part of its short-term plan to add seven new restaurants by the end of 2021.

Industry experts have predicted that Portillo's will do well as a public company-or, at least better than other publicly traded restaurants based in Chicago, such as Cosi and Potbelly, Crain's reports. Portillo sold the chain to private-equity firm Berkshire Partners for $1 billion in 2014.