Fuzzy's Taco Shop Launching Small Taqueria Concept, Catering to the Takeout Crowd

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With the pandemic, expect more restaurateurs to rethink their concepts and real estate needs.

Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, the Irving-based chain, has pulled the trigger on a new taqueria that will operate in significantly less square footage than a typical Fuzzy’s, and cater to the takeout crowd. The company is teaming with a restaurateur to open an 1,100-square-foot franchised Fuzzy’s Taco Shop Taqueria – the first of the concept - in Minneapolis. A typical Fuzzy’s Taco Shop is 3,000-4,000 square feet; the Taquerias will typically operate in 1,200-1,800-square-foot spaces, Fuzzy’s said.

“As real estate opportunities became available over the last year, we realized we didn’t want to limit our franchisees to the traditional Fuzzy’s model with larger square footage requirements,” Jessica Wescott, Fuzzy’s Taco Shop chief operating officer and chief financial officer, said in a release.

“At the same time, we understood from a consumer perspective this new footprint needed to be branded differently,” Wescott said. “It was important to keep the overall Fuzzy’s vibe our guests have come to love and trust with our great food, cold drinks and Baja feel, but also make the Taqueria a little different to showcase the reduced menu and a more take-out driven focus.”

The Taqueria will open in April on the ground floor of the historic Loose-Wiles building in Minneapolis’ North Loop. Built in 1911, the building was home to the Loose-Wiles Biscuit Co. Later, its current owner bought the building and renovated it as a mixed-use adaptive reuse project.

“Just as we were starting to get serious about looking for a (Fuzzy’s) location in the Twin Cities, the pandemic hit, but we knew we wanted to bring Fuzzy’s to Minneapolis,” Peter Fitzgerald, the broker who helped negotiate the deal, said in the release. “We collaborated with the Fuzzy’s team to work on a concept that would fit really well in a post-pandemic environment, and that, of course, was the Taqueria.”

The Taqueria menu will feature popular Fuzzy’s items, including its queso, fresh quacamole, fire-roasted salsa, Baja tacos, breakfast tacos, burritos, nachos, quesadillas, salads, traditional sides, and drinks.

“The most important factor with this new opportunity was maintaining the Fuzzy’s experience while keeping true to ourselves and what has earned us our cult-like following over the years,” Mel Knight, president of Fuzzy’s, said in the release. The company, in response to questions from the magazine, said it didn't expect to open any of the Taquerias to Fort Worth.

“This new footprint will offer more flexibility and we are looking forward to expanding the Fuzzy’s Taqueria brand," Knight said. "We are already talking to interested partners and existing franchisees who are equally excited about this option.”

Samantha Calimbahin contributed to this report.