Del Taco Restaurants, Inc., the second largest Mexican-American quick service restaurant chain by units in the United States, today announced the refranchising of all ten company-operated restaurants in the San Diego, CA market to incoming franchisee SoCal Food Group which is led by Omar Boukai, and supported by the Boukai family who has extensive food service and real estate experience. Related to this refranchising agreement, SoCal Food Group has also committed to develop up to 21 additional Del Taco restaurants over the next seven years, primarily in the San Diego market.
John D. Cappasola, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of Del Taco, commented, “The SoCal Food Group has extensive experience in the quick-service restaurant industry and currently operates 50 restaurants across two other QSR concepts. We welcome them to the Del Taco system and are confident that they will be great partners in operating these ten San Diego restaurants and developing up to 21 additional restaurants over the next seven years.”
As a reminder, Del Taco has been executing a portfolio optimization strategy to help stimulate new franchise restaurant growth and to drive operational and financial benefits. The Company has now completed the refranchising of its San Diego, CA and Reno, NV markets during its fiscal fourth quarter, which followed the refranchising of 13 restaurants in the Los Angeles market during its fiscal first quarter earlier this year. The Cypress Group is acting as exclusive sell-side advisor to Del Taco in connection with the San Diego, CA and other active market refranchising efforts.
Del Taco (NASDAQ: TACO) offers a unique variety of both Mexican and American favorites such as burritos and fries, prepared fresh in every restaurant’s working kitchen with the value and convenience of a drive-thru. Del Taco’s menu items taste better because they are made with quality ingredients like fresh grilled chicken and carne asada steak, hand-sliced avocado, hand-grated cheddar cheese, slow-cooked beans made from scratch, and creamy Queso Blanco. The brand’s campaign, Celebrating the Hardest Working Hands in Fast Food, further communicates Del Taco’s commitment to restaurant-level team members that provide guests with the best quality and value for their money through cooking, chopping, shredding and grilling menu items from scratch. Founded in 1964, today Del Taco serves more than three million guests each week at its more than 580 restaurants across 15 states. For more information, visit www.deltaco.com.
