After being named one of the 40 most exciting startup brands, Rusty Taco continues to receive industry recognition with Franchise Times nominating the brand as one of the top Mexican restaurant franchises in its 2021 Zor awards.
Although this year presented major challenges to all restaurant operators, Rusty Taco’s leadership team looks back on 2020 as a year of growth and evolution for the brand.
“From continued development success to reimagining our menu through culinary innovation, and of course, the collaboration with our amazing franchisees, we’ve been proud of the success we’ve achieved as a team this year,” said Brendan Mauri, President of Rusty Taco. “For those efforts to be recognized by our peers in a very competitive category is humbling and the perfect way to cap off an unforgettable year.”
Rusty Taco is known for an authentic, street-taco-inspired menu that brings the flavor, experience and simplicity of a traditional taco stand to communities around the country. In 2020, the brand built on this foundation of high-quality, fresh tacos and ice-cold margaritas with a bevy of new limited-time offers and craveable customization options for its core menu: the double-decker Uptown Stacked taco, a line-up of Loaded Quesos, and premium new beverages like the Top Shelf Topo-Rita and the Blueberry Pomegranate Margarita. It also turned the Green Street Taco, a recipe first created by its Dayton-area franchisees and exclusive in that market, into a systemwide best-seller.
On top of culinary innovation, Rusty Taco continued to open new restaurants and worked with franchisees to quickly adjust operations while communities across the country were impacted by COVID-19 with increased safety procedures and the rollout of new To-Go Taco Packs and Taco Bars. The brand also made headlines with its grassroots To-Go Margs Forever petition that generated nearly 5,000 signatures and pushed to make to-go alcohol sales permanent.
Click here to vote for Rusty Taco in the 2021 Zor Awards before voting closes on December 16.
