Tijuana Flats, the fast-casual Mexican restaurant chain, has named James Greco as CEO to lead the brand through its restructuring and turnaround, the company said.
The Maitland, Fla.-based concept, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and closed units in April, said Monday that Greco previously led Bruegger’s and Sbarro as CEO. He succeeds Joe Christina in the CEO role.
Tijuana Flats was acquired by Flatheads LLC in April, with a focus on revitalizing its restaurants and reinvigorating the customer experience.
“Tijuana Flats is a great brand that is meaningfully differentiated and provides a platform to build upon to create a memorable guest experience,” said Greco in a statement. “We will revitalize the business by implementing initiatives focusing on the four brand basics of people, place, product and positioning.”
In 2009, Greco was voted operator of the Year by Nation’s Restaurant News. He has written several articles and a book chapter on management, company culture and leadership, and he has been a frequent speaker at industry events. He has served as an adjunct professor at Florida Atlantic University and Quinnipiac University.
In addition to Greco, Tijuana Flats also recently hired industry veteran Ingrid Hebel as vice president of operations. Hebel currently serves on the board of the Florida Restaurant Association – Central Florida Chapter.
Tijuana Flats, founded in 1995 in Winter Park, Fla, has 91 company-owned and franchised restaurants located in Alabama, Florida, North Carolina and Tennessee.
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