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Pollo Tropical names Danny Meisenheimer chief brand officerPollo Tropical names Danny Meisenheimer chief brand officer

Ron Ruggless, Senior Editor

April 24, 2012

1 Min Read
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Ron Ruggless

Pollo Tropical, the subsidiary of Fiesta Restaurant Group, has named Danny Meisenheimer to the newly created position of chief brand officer, the company said Monday.

Meisenheimer will oversee marketing, communications, research and development for the 122-unit, Miami-based chain. He was most recently president of San Antonio-based Souper Salad. Prior to that, he led marketing efforts at Pizza Inn Inc. of The Colony, Texas, and worked with Furr’s Restaurant Group, which is based in Plano, Texas.

Meisenheimer will report to Jim Tunnessen, Pollo Tropical’s chief operating officer.

“We have enjoyed 11 consecutive quarters of enviable positive comparable store sales gains," Tunnessen said. "We must now ready our system for future new market and new franchise expansion. Bringing someone of Danny’s caliber, with senior-level operations and marketing experience, will help us meet that challenge.”

Pollo Tropical owns and operates about 90 locations in Florida and Georgia and has 32 franchised units in the Bahamas, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Venezuela.

Pollo Tropical’s parent company, Fiesta Restaurant Group Inc., also owns the Taco Cabana brand and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Carrols Restaurant Group Inc. of Syracuse, N.Y.

Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected].
Follow him on Twitter: @RonRuggless

About the Author

Ron Ruggless

Senior Editor, Nation’s Restaurant News / Restaurant Hospitality

Ron Ruggless serves as a senior editor for Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN.com) and Restaurant Hospitality (Restaurant-Hospitality.com) online and print platforms. He joined NRN in 1992 after working 10 years in various roles at the Dallas Times Herald newspaper, including restaurant critic, assistant business editor, food editor and lifestyle editor. He also edited several printings of the Zagat Dining Guide for Dallas-Fort Worth, and his articles and photographs have appeared in Food & Wine, Food Network and Self magazines. 

Ron Ruggless’ areas of expertise include foodservice mergers, acquisitions, operations, supply chain, research and development and marketing. 

Ron Ruggless is a frequent moderator and panelist at industry events ranging from the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference to RestaurantSpaces, the Council of Hospitality and Restaurant Trainers, the National Restaurant Association’s Marketing Executives Group, local restaurant associations and the Horeca Professional Expo in Madrid, Spain.

Ron Ruggless’ experience:

Regional and Senior Editor, Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality (1992 to present)

Features Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1989-1991)

Restaurant Critic and Food Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1987-1988)

Editing Roles – Dallas Times Herald (1982-1987)

Editing Roles – Charlotte (N.C.) Observer (1980-1982)

Editing Roles – Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald (1978-1980)

Email: [email protected]

Social media:

Twitter@RonRuggless

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ronruggless

Instagram: @RonRuggless

TikTok: @RonRuggless

 

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