Address:
968 James St
Syracuse, NY 13203
Telephone:
315 424-0513
Internet Homepage:
http://www.frgi.com
Total Current Locations:
281
Trading Areas:
FL, GA, NM, OK, PR, TX
(International: Bahamas, Ecuador, Honduras, Trinidad & Tobago, Venezuela)
Total Revenue:
$474,968,000
Senior Executives:
CEO, President: Tim Taft
CFO (Interim): Paul Flanders
Chief Development Officer: John Todd
Exec VP Pollo Tropical: James Tunnessen
Exec VP Taco Cabana: Michael Biviano
Fiesta Restaurant Group was formed by Carrols Restaurant Group to spin off Carrols’ Latin American-inspired Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana brands. The transaction was completed in early May when Fiesta began trading as FRGI on the NASDAQ market. The company office is currently still co-located with the Carrols operations but is likely to relocate, possibly to Miami, home of the Pollo Tropical operations.
Both brands are classed as fast casual, and as such, offer their customers freshly prepared food for dine-in, drive-through, and carry-out. The Pollo Tropical restaurants offer tropical and Caribbean-inspired menu items, featuring grilled chicken marinated in a proprietary blend of tropical fruit juices and spices. For fiscal year 2011, the average transaction was $9.56, average unit volume was $2.287 million, and the Pollo Tropical brand generated total revenues of $209.5 million. Taco Cabana restaurants serve fresh Tex-Mex and traditional Mexican food with a selection of made-from-scratch salsas and sauces. In 2011, the average check was $8.14, average unit volume was $1.690 million, and the Taco Cabana brand generated total revenues of $265.4 million.
The company plans to develop additional Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana restaurants within its existing markets in Florida and Texas, as well as explore expansion opportunities into other regions of the United States that match its targeted demographic and site selection criteria (five Pollo Tropical locations in New Jersey were recently closed). Fiesta has also announced plans to begin remodeling all of its San Antonio and Houston locations with completion slated for this time next year. Fiesta will also be seeking to franchise its Pollo Tropical brand outside the U.S. and to license both brands in the U.S. to concessionaires operating in non-traditional venues.