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Fiesta Restaurant Group is selling Taco Cabana to Jack in the Box franchisee affiliate for $85 millionFiesta Restaurant Group is selling Taco Cabana to Jack in the Box franchisee affiliate for $85 million

Taco Cabana was sold to YTC Enterprises, an affiliate of Yadav Enterprises, Inc., a Jack in the Box, El Pollo Loco and Denny’s franchisee

Joanna Fantozzi, Senior Editor

July 1, 2021

1 Min Read
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Joanna Fantozzi

Fiesta Restaurant Group is selling fast-casual Mexican restaurant Taco Cabana to YTC Enterprises, an affiliate of 400-unit, Jack in the Box, El Pollo Loco and Denny’s franchisee, Yadav Enterprises, Inc. for $85 million, according to an 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange on Thursday.

The sale will help pay for Taco Cabana’s debt totaling $74.6 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the third quarter in 2021.

“We made the strategic decision to sell the Taco Cabana business to allow our leadership team to focus completely on accelerating Pollo growth, and we are very excited about the tremendous growth opportunities we have for the Pollo Tropical business,” Fiesta Restaurant Group president and CEO Richard Stockinger said in a statement. “Anil Yadav, the CEO of Yadav Enterprises, has an impressive entrepreneurial background and is a highly-respected restaurant operator with a proven record of success across a variety of limited and full-service concepts. We are confident he will be an effective steward of the Taco Cabana brand for the long-term.”

As a result of the forthcoming sale, Fiesta Restaurant Group is investing its time and attention with Pollo Tropical, focusing on creating “an upgraded customer experience across all service channels, continuing to invest in expanding our growing digital platform and finalizing our new unit expansion plans targeted for 2022,” Stockinger continued.

As of July 1, 2021, there are 142 corporate Taco Cabana restaurants in Texas and six franchised Taco Cabana restaurants in New Mexico. Pollo Tropical has 143 U.S. units, according to the latest Firefly 500 data.

Contact Joanna at [email protected]

Find her on Twitter: @JoannaFantozzi

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Jack in the Box

About the Author

Joanna Fantozzi

Senior Editor

Joanna Fantozzi is a Senior Editor for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality. She has more than seven years of experience writing about the restaurant and hospitality industry. Her editorial coverage ranges from profiles of independent restaurants around the country to breaking news and insights into some of the biggest brands in food and beverage, including Starbucks, Domino’s, and Papa John’s.  

Joanna holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature and creative writing from The College of New Jersey and a master’s degree in arts and culture journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. Prior to joining Informa’s Restaurants and Food Group in 2018, she was a freelance food, culture, and lifestyle writer, and has previously held editorial positions at Insider (formerly known as Business Insider) and The Daily Meal. Joanna’s work can also be found in The New York Times, Forbes, Vice, The New York Daily News, and Parents Magazine. 

Her areas of expertise include restaurant industry news, restaurant operator solutions and innovations, and political/cultural issues.

Joanna Fantozzi has been a moderator and event facilitator at both Informa’s MUFSO and Restaurants Rise industry events. 

Joanna Fantozzi’s experience:

Senior Editor, Informa Restaurant & Food Group (August 2021-present)

Associate Editor, Informa Restaurant & Food Group (July 2019-August 2021)

Assistant Editor, Informa Restaurant & Food Group (Oct. 2018-July 2019)

Freelance Food & Lifestyle Reporter (Feb. 2018-Oct. 2018)

Food & Lifestyle Reporter, Insider (June 2017-Feb. 2018)

News Editor, The Daily Meal (Jan. 2014- June 2017)

Staff Reporter, Straus News (Jan. 2013-Dec. 2013)

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