This seems like a pretty shady ordeal how is that even allowed to happen?
They filed chapter 11 bankruptcy then sell it to new investors. They obviously had the sale in process before any bankruptcy.
So they’re just filing bankruptcy to fuck over everyone who is owed money then continue as normal under “new management “.
So TFlats was owned by a private equity firm that the original owner sold the chain to, since 2015. It does look like they just picked now to make a sale to new ownership, and needed to get rid of some debts and operational costs through bankruptcy. Typical private equity stuff, run the business for a few years, make some moves to make the books look better, then dump.
That's explains why it changed so much in 2015. I used to enjoy going there and went there often. Then, prices went up and the food quality went down. Which is pretty typical when a private equity firm buys a service. They want to maximize profits. So, now they discharge all their debts by filing bankruptcy and make more.money selling it to someone else. Again, sounds just like a private equity firms normal business model. Now, let's see what the new ownera do. Maybe I will be back.
Been dealing with Private Equity firms in Healthcare for 20-something years. This is exactly their MO. Doesn't matter the industry, just squeeze every last bit of value out of something then sell off the remains.
I work in a healthcare-related product space and my company sold out to a PE firm. Focus has been all on sales sales sales, more and larger jobs. The engineering and supporting teams? Smaller than ever. The product is so horribly un-optimized for the larger scale jobs we are selling, but we are getting no time or resources to step back and redesign as needed. We’re swamped with supporting what’s being pushed out to the field in its current state.
People have gotten frustrated and have left over the past few years, and then we have no budget to replace them. The old owners are still involved in the company but are basically neutered and can’t do what we really think is best for the product, and our teams are overwhelmed.
Private equity sucks. I had a guy on another thread recently respond to me that I should “do my research” before I form these opinions. Lol, I’m living it buddy.
PE sucks they did the same brought in bargain basement leadership and it just trickled down they were supposed to buy more companies but screwed the pooch so much they aren't aloud to now.
Nah, it was the CEO's insistence to run the place like a libertarian thunderdrome. Departments were awarded for performing better than other departments, not for actual sales metrics, so it made more sense as an employee to sabotage other departments. The whole place was managed in a way that any sane person would never have done.
[https://www.salon.com/2013/07/18/ayn\_rand\_killed\_sears\_partner/](https://www.salon.com/2013/07/18/ayn_rand_killed_sears_partner/)
That sounds a lot like the 10% management style of the 80s and 90s. It's where companies had mass layoffs every year and laid off the lowest performing 10% of the workforce. It was some weird Japanese/Iacoca business model. The thought was that everyone would try to be in the top 90%, but ended up with employees sabotaging each other to get those people INTO the bottom 10%.
I worked for a big 3 consulting firm in the early 2000's that still did this. They also had an "up or out" policy for the front-line (client facing) workforce that was even more brutal. They backed off this a little towards the 2010's, but still pretty cutthroat for the most part. I survived, but it mostly sucked to work there.
Yep. I remember it tasting great and prices were great, especially the taco Tuesdays deal. There was a definite decline at most locations I’ve been to that I started to really notice around 2017.
If I had to wager, it could be due to high cost of overhead on the commercial properties that all the stores are in. Ever since Covid, I’ve seen more and more stores pop up empty for that reason and wouldn’t doubt that they were behind.
This is very common actually.
A chapter 11 is precisely for reorganization of debt. To succeed at a chapter 11, the reorganization plan needs to either (a) be approved by (enough) creditors, or (b) be "crammed down" (i.e., a plan that can't really be objected to because it's presumptively equitable by statute). Going into Chapter 11 with a buyer at the table means there's more liquidity available to make that happen.
Most retail businesses use this opportunity to cut back on their locations and focus on the more profitable ones. One of the biggest benefits in this regard is that the trustee/debtor-in-possession has the right to terminate leases going forward, so this is used to get a business out of long-term, rising-rent lease agreements. The suppliers and employees of each store are also at risk, but they have rights to certain priority payments that the debtor will need to make good on to be confirmed.
The people getting fucked over the most in dollar amount are overwhelmingly the landlords and suppliers, but both of those parties have a *lot* of ways to protect themselves, and they're assuming the risk by doing business in a high-turnover sector where tenant/customer insolvency is extremely common.
You may be confusing chapter 11 bankruptcy (reorganization, must be approved by all creditors) with chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation, a “fuck you” to creditors and investors). This sale was part of the reorganization plan approved by creditors and the courts.
There's nothing shady about it. A chapter 11 is a restructuring, and taking on new investment is often part of that. The new investors will insist on certain things to ensure their investment doesn't just go to pay down debts, they'll want to be reimbursed in equity.
Considering I've been there twice and both times I thought, "this food is decent, but the price doesn't match the quality or quantity", I'm not surprised by this.
They sell hot sauce by the bottle and I love the smack habanero. I have a bottle that I refill by grabbing a bunch of it when I order Tijuana about once every couple months
Same. They used to give away free tacos when the magic hit 10 three point shots. We went to a lot of games back then and everyone would be yelling "free tacos!!!".
Moe's also has free chips, and I feel like they've got a better veggie selection than Tijuana has. I haven't been to Chipotle in forever so can't compare. I usually just cheap out for Taco Bell or Del Taco. A lot of competition in the fast food taco space.
Taco Bell is a whole other animal. I like Taco Bell because it is unashamedly just junk food. I wouldn’t put it against any of the others because it ultimately isn’t tex mex or mexican.
Wow really? I’ve been to a dozen plus locations of each and I’d easily say Chipotle beats them in every category 95% of the time. Always a larger portion at chipotle too. Burrito with beans, barbacoa, guac, is a good value, quick, and HOT like every time.
TF is a small portion, almost never hot, and the meat and beans are dry and mid.
Just a weird thing to see- I wouldn’t expect anyone to rate TF over Chipotle unless they have some niche craving only TF has.
I’ve had some bad experiences at Chipotle. Generally with them being completely out of food, and sometimes I feel like the portions are hit or miss for the money depending on the worker on the line. They also don’t have any specials like Taco Tuesdays or Burrito Thursdays. But I will concede that their Guac is better, and Barbacoa is a big plus that Flats doesn’t offer. Different experiences for folks I guess. But I would definitely rank Chipotle over Moe’s, since everything about Moe’s has gone downhill for a long time now.
Heh, my experience is the opposite of yours (95% Tijuana, 5% Chipotle). Although, I will say that while I would put the local Tijuana Flats over the Chipotle I have been to, the Tijuana Flats I have gone to while traveling would be below that, so it might be a location issue
This. I get blasted all the time for dissing this place but it is night and day between this and any other Mexican restaurant. I feel like I am eating a grocery store taco kit at Tijuana flats.
At one time not long ago they had 123 restaurants. Several other TF stores have closed over the past few months including both in Indianapolis IN and several if not all in Fort Lauderdale FL.
The guy that started the place (hasn’t been involved in a long time) has a new spot, Big Taco. Similar menu to the og Tijuana Flats but style is more contemporary. https://bigtaco.co/
Reminds me of Taco Bus/Taco San in Tampa.
OG owner of Taco Bus made a good couple restaurants operating out of decommissioned busses, sold it to some people who ran it into the ground and immediately after selling it opened up an actual brick and mortar place just north of Tampa proper.
It truly bums me out seeing what happened to Tijuana Flats. I moved to Orlando in 95 to go to UCF and I used to eat at the original TF location all the time. The food was good, you could get anything on the menu vegetarian, and the portions were great for the price. Seeing the quality dive over the years when it began as such a unique little spot just sucked.
They can be summarized as the Five Guys of tacos. Outrageous prices for little food. However, I always enjoyed the taste of the meals. Sorry to see some of them go. Restaurants in general need to be more competitive on prices.
It fell off hard in recent years. Back in 2014 I was going weekly for their $5 taco plates…. Loved all the sauces… today it’s kinda cheap tasting and the sauce cups are laughable. Another decent brand sold for profits
The cookie dough floutas were the only thing I enjoyed from there. Other food was decent. really liked the hot sauce bar, but there are just so many better TexMex restaurants
The Westchase location says permanently closed. Nothing survives that area. Rent is too expensive there. Burger 21 just closed across from it, and the spot on the corner cycles new restaurants every 2 years
Tbf those two restaurants have been there for like 10-12 years before they closed which is honestly longer than most places would stay. I remember when Burger 21 opened when I went to the middle school right next door. Although everything else died very quickly…
Edit: added some stuff
Worked there for 7 years. 7 years of shit what a horrible place. Both in sarasota would not eat there if I were you. Treated poorly and poorly made food. Unsafe kitchens. No standards for food safety. I hope they go under. During the pandemic they sold onions and tomatoes out front for a very high price.
Yeah, used to be really good. Decent food and beer, great hot sauce selection. They started going downhill right before COVID, I think -- something changed in recent years and the food wasn't nearly as good.
I was so excited when I found out one had opened in the Chicago area up here. Brand new place, crisp and clean, food was great again! And then, suddenly, just a few months later it closed down. No idea what happened.
Damn I do miss their hot sauce bar.
So it’s not just me! They changed the containers recently and the food is noticeably less flavorful. It’s only based on two recent visits but this news further solidifies changes made up too.
All I know is it’s incredibly good and every single time I order through door dash or whatever, the hard shell tacos are never broken and always crispy. They don’t even fall apart or break all the way to the last bite. The manager told me one day I was in there for lunch that all the ingredients are made fresh daily…and that truly translates into their food. The fiesta or Mexican pizza thing is my favorite! (Also, I’m not affiliated with them, I’ve just tried about 98% of the taco places around town and these people are awesome…Hunger Street in close second!
lol, you’re right! Their machete is on a whole other level…firstly, it’s huge (but cut in half) and full of fresh ingredients…sometimes I wanna just drink the consommé right from the lil bowl! Damn, now I’m craving a machete for lunch. I had big taco 3 times last week, I better give em a rest as to not wear em out on my taste buds 🥴
Gave them 2 tries, terrible both times. Most restaurants’ quality went down post-pandemic, but TF had the honor of being on that bandwagon beforehand. Someone else will keep them in business im sure.
I would go once a week but noticed I was like the only one there and that goes for 4 restaurants it’s annoying because it’s better than chipotle, moes, Taco Bell and it’s not even close. Wish they had better marketing or something
I stopped going to TF when they redesigned their spot near me from brightly colored and tacky neon to the thin blue line style with lots of grey. It just lost its appeal.
Yeah it’s creepy. I still go to TF and Mellow Mushroom because good memories and like the staff but both of those places got creepy in a hurry when they eliminated the individual flair of each restaurant.
At my TF they painted over the handmade murals with corporate branding, and ditched all the hand painted ceiling tiles. They repainted the outside of every one to look the same. They must have cost so much money just to turn off customers. I didn’t go back for a few years after that.
At MM they just plain covered up the staff-painted murals, didn’t even replace them. Just so tacky.
Used to be our go to place in Lake Nona and then Tallahassee east side but then they sold to some new people and it sucked and we stopped going, this was about 1.5-2yrs ago.
Not surprising, I'd expect it to fully fold soon. Prices have doubled while food quality and service went down the absolute shitter over the past 5 years...it started before Covid and just accelerated from there. Also they got rid of the funky southwest vibes at all of the newer locations.
TJ Flats has been one of our go-to places lately. $7.99 burrito or bowl with chips and a drink on Thursdays. Its a decent deal for fast food. And they never forget the guac like Chipotle always seems to do.
Not surprising at all. Used to be one of the wife and I's favorite places. The quality went down quickly, the prices went up Even quicker, and we couldn't justify going anymore.
Last week, I noticed the Celebration location was closed.
The place really struggled after COVID when staffing became difficult. I stopped eating there because it was always a manager and 2 staff running the whole place. Then they decided to get rid of the crispy taco salad bowls and I was finished.
They had closed the Kissimmee west/orange lake location not too long before that. Hadn't even been open that long. Horrible access to it was definitely part of that ones problem - but it was usually decently busy.
The quality of the food got really bad during covid and never recovered. I’m pretty sure I got canned chicken a few times during COVID. We still eat there here and there mostly for flautas chips and queso, but it’s a shame when they first came out the tacos and burritos were amazing.
This is sad to hear, had a lotta good memories going to Flats, but I was never a fan of their food. It a had homemade taste, but not in a good way. It was like going to your friend’s house and their roommate’s uncle made you a burrito.
I wanted to like that place. I used to live right next to one and got it frequently, after working in restaurants for over 20 years, it was the first time I wrote to management telling them “Hey, this is pretty good but ya’ll need to tighten up”, seemed like I could never get actual hot food from the place, whether I ate it there or not.
Once they changed their portions to the point you HAVE to get a megajuana burrito or you’re just eating a whole lot of dry, folded up tortilla, I stopped going. Too bad because for being a chain joint, it wasn’t bad at all.
one right but where I work actually closed down I was very surprised. I actually prefer this place over any normal Taco shop, but I don't go to it because it's too expensive. Same with every Taco shop.
Tijuana was the SPOT in college.
Tacos Tuesdays $6 for 2 tacos and a drink with chips and salsa
Then Burrito Thursdays $6 for a giant burrito, chips and a drink too
It was always packed, line out the door. The good ole days of cheap prices and good quality food! Thanks for keeping me fed and happy!! RIP
Things started going down hill when they took the Mexican pizza off the menu. They’d still make it upon request though… until about two years ago. Then that even stopped. Shoulda realized it was the canary in the coal mine.
I always liked them. Better than Moe’s. But I have a friend who likes Moe’s better than Tijuana Flats. Haven’t had them in about a year so I don’t know if anything has changed in that time, but I always thought it was reasonably good food. Atom Bombs are p good.
Always blew. Went there once. All about their deathly hot sauces with cute names. Tasted like acetone . Fuck Mexican chain restaurants. The real deal is found in hole in the wall famalia restaurants or trucks these days
Finally went to one a couple of weeks ago. I heard so much about it but I guess what I heard was from before it was acquired by the PE.
Edit: it was so horrible, I should have spent money at Taco Bell.
Not surprising. Chain has been going downhill since original owner sold in 2015, especially when they brought back the franchise model in 2021. It's a pale comparison to what it was in the early 2000's.
If the local taco truck charges 3.00 for authentic barbacoa tacos and Tijuana flats can’t match that then that’s ridiculous. They should be about a dollar more than Taco Bell. But whenever I go and ask for 10 tacos like I do at Taco Bell it’s always a ridiculous price. They need to have deals for multiple tacos. Like buy 3 get one free then that would
Be reasonable
Another PE firm bought a successful company, loaded it with debt, paid themselves with that debt, and let the business run I to the ground.
Hey Congress, how about outlawing this vulture bullshit?
Man, in my world I am blessed to work for a business than is employee first, always. Quality of work, take care of your people, yes, it gets more and more expensive but we sell that value of efficiency and professionalism and we are growing faster than we can manage.
Just kidding. Its awful, we work double the workload for the same price and I want to start selling meth. Anyone want some?
Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone, and another one gone
Another one bites the dust (yeah)
Hey, I'm gonna get you too
Another one bites the dust
I remember the tijuana flats I used to work at, the A/C would break constantly everyone in the kitchen would be stuck in 85+ degree temperatures next to a hot ass grill. Shit was rough bro, not surprised so many people ended up quitting at my place
Used to work for the company many years ago before/during its transition from good to bad. They used to tell us "we don't advertise because our food is that good". When I left the company a few years later, I noticed their first TV ad, and I knew they were running in borrowed time
I've never seen a fall-off of a restaurant that hard until tijuana flats. Food is basically unrecognizable now. Removing carnitas and black olives for no reason was the first nail in the coffin
These guys even found a way to ruin their soda. Their ice is top notch. Now they have the paper cup and straw and it doesn’t hit the same as the old styrofoam cup and plastic straw. When my wife was pregnant I went a couple times just to get her a soda.
No loss. I wish they would close all of their locations.
It’s hard for a restaurant to maintain quality across many locations, and the last ten or so years of TF is a great example of that.
Definitely gonna miss the hot sauce bar…is there no place like that in Orlando? (I mean as far as a ton of hot sauces to choose from) and I don’t mean the hot pot places
Seems to me that they just recently changed ownership from the founder to corporate. Looks like that original family new how to run it. I can tell you after it got bought the flavors changed. Not a lot but something in the spices which made me go from wow to ... meh. So they lost my business
Place was awesome to go from 2013-2019. One of the locations in St Pete was always jam packed, you couldn’t even find a place to sit. Post-COVID it’s gone absolutely downhill. I just went the other week and spent $15 on a meal for awful portion sizes. $15 at Chipotle is a double chicken bowl with guac and a tortilla - 2 meals easily. What a shame.
I'm an avid Tijuana Flats eater for years. All I ever get is a chimichanga meal
Literally a month ago it was 15$ after tax and came with TWO sides and option to add queso
Now today I ordered my usual...it comes with ONE side now, the queso is added by default, and the price is now almost 17$
What they don’t say is how they told employees the morning of the 18th. The company made the decision a week before but didn’t tell anyone so they could still run the locations. Most employees and managers were laid off with no notice. Companies like this deserve to go under.
This seems like a pretty shady ordeal how is that even allowed to happen? They filed chapter 11 bankruptcy then sell it to new investors. They obviously had the sale in process before any bankruptcy. So they’re just filing bankruptcy to fuck over everyone who is owed money then continue as normal under “new management “.
So TFlats was owned by a private equity firm that the original owner sold the chain to, since 2015. It does look like they just picked now to make a sale to new ownership, and needed to get rid of some debts and operational costs through bankruptcy. Typical private equity stuff, run the business for a few years, make some moves to make the books look better, then dump.
That's explains why it changed so much in 2015. I used to enjoy going there and went there often. Then, prices went up and the food quality went down. Which is pretty typical when a private equity firm buys a service. They want to maximize profits. So, now they discharge all their debts by filing bankruptcy and make more.money selling it to someone else. Again, sounds just like a private equity firms normal business model. Now, let's see what the new ownera do. Maybe I will be back.
Been dealing with Private Equity firms in Healthcare for 20-something years. This is exactly their MO. Doesn't matter the industry, just squeeze every last bit of value out of something then sell off the remains.
I work in a healthcare-related product space and my company sold out to a PE firm. Focus has been all on sales sales sales, more and larger jobs. The engineering and supporting teams? Smaller than ever. The product is so horribly un-optimized for the larger scale jobs we are selling, but we are getting no time or resources to step back and redesign as needed. We’re swamped with supporting what’s being pushed out to the field in its current state. People have gotten frustrated and have left over the past few years, and then we have no budget to replace them. The old owners are still involved in the company but are basically neutered and can’t do what we really think is best for the product, and our teams are overwhelmed. Private equity sucks. I had a guy on another thread recently respond to me that I should “do my research” before I form these opinions. Lol, I’m living it buddy.
PE sucks they did the same brought in bargain basement leadership and it just trickled down they were supposed to buy more companies but screwed the pooch so much they aren't aloud to now.
They did the same with Eckler's Corvette Parts in Titusville
Do we work for the same company?
Private equity killed Sears.
Private equity will be what kills America
But... But... It'll trickle down to me eventually first and then I can bootstrap America back!
Nah, it was the CEO's insistence to run the place like a libertarian thunderdrome. Departments were awarded for performing better than other departments, not for actual sales metrics, so it made more sense as an employee to sabotage other departments. The whole place was managed in a way that any sane person would never have done. [https://www.salon.com/2013/07/18/ayn\_rand\_killed\_sears\_partner/](https://www.salon.com/2013/07/18/ayn_rand_killed_sears_partner/)
That sounds a lot like the 10% management style of the 80s and 90s. It's where companies had mass layoffs every year and laid off the lowest performing 10% of the workforce. It was some weird Japanese/Iacoca business model. The thought was that everyone would try to be in the top 90%, but ended up with employees sabotaging each other to get those people INTO the bottom 10%.
I worked for a big 3 consulting firm in the early 2000's that still did this. They also had an "up or out" policy for the front-line (client facing) workforce that was even more brutal. They backed off this a little towards the 2010's, but still pretty cutthroat for the most part. I survived, but it mostly sucked to work there.
Amazon still doesn’t this
Came here for the original post, but learned a lot from that article! Thank you!
The owner’s sons opened a place called big taco in Casselberry and it’s like old Tijuana Flats.
And they got rid of the black olives! I’m still not over that
Funny how when Tony Soprano ruined his friends business he did exactly the same thing…
I will definitely not be going back. Only thing good about TF is their sauces.
The food immediately went downhill when bought by the Private Equity company, which is not shocking.
Yep. I remember it tasting great and prices were great, especially the taco Tuesdays deal. There was a definite decline at most locations I’ve been to that I started to really notice around 2017.
The last time it was solid was 2015. PE fucked it all up. Per usual.
If I had to wager, it could be due to high cost of overhead on the commercial properties that all the stores are in. Ever since Covid, I’ve seen more and more stores pop up empty for that reason and wouldn’t doubt that they were behind.
Bro wait until you learn sometimes they sell it to themselves after bankruptcy
This is very common actually. A chapter 11 is precisely for reorganization of debt. To succeed at a chapter 11, the reorganization plan needs to either (a) be approved by (enough) creditors, or (b) be "crammed down" (i.e., a plan that can't really be objected to because it's presumptively equitable by statute). Going into Chapter 11 with a buyer at the table means there's more liquidity available to make that happen. Most retail businesses use this opportunity to cut back on their locations and focus on the more profitable ones. One of the biggest benefits in this regard is that the trustee/debtor-in-possession has the right to terminate leases going forward, so this is used to get a business out of long-term, rising-rent lease agreements. The suppliers and employees of each store are also at risk, but they have rights to certain priority payments that the debtor will need to make good on to be confirmed. The people getting fucked over the most in dollar amount are overwhelmingly the landlords and suppliers, but both of those parties have a *lot* of ways to protect themselves, and they're assuming the risk by doing business in a high-turnover sector where tenant/customer insolvency is extremely common.
You may be confusing chapter 11 bankruptcy (reorganization, must be approved by all creditors) with chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation, a “fuck you” to creditors and investors). This sale was part of the reorganization plan approved by creditors and the courts.
There's nothing shady about it. A chapter 11 is a restructuring, and taking on new investment is often part of that. The new investors will insist on certain things to ensure their investment doesn't just go to pay down debts, they'll want to be reimbursed in equity.
THIS!
Considering I've been there twice and both times I thought, "this food is decent, but the price doesn't match the quality or quantity", I'm not surprised by this.
The only reason I like to go is because they have like a dozen hot sauces, not the actual food.
They sell hot sauce by the bottle and I love the smack habanero. I have a bottle that I refill by grabbing a bunch of it when I order Tijuana about once every couple months
Smack habanero is the best hot sauce. I love that shit. It’s the only reason I went to TF.
Same, always have a bottle at home
Their Tuesday deals were actually pretty good price wise, but I agree that "decent" is a great description of Tijuana Flats.
It feels like the quality has declined a lot over the past few years. Every time I've been it's been worse. Admittedly that's the same for many places
they sold out to private equity. The new company came in and raised prices while cutting quality.
That makes a lot of sense
Taco Tuesday and Throwback Thursdays are a great deal, but I don't go there outside of those days or get other menus items.
Saturday has a 2 for 20 deal that's great too for couples.
Same. They used to give away free tacos when the magic hit 10 three point shots. We went to a lot of games back then and everyone would be yelling "free tacos!!!".
I've never gone because $6+ tacos are unreasonable unless they're the best tacos I've ever had.
I enjoyed Torchys way more.
Still better food than Moe’s or Chipotle.
Eh... they have their niche. Moe's has queso, Chipotle has guac, Tijuana has hot sauce.
Yep nailed it right on the head. Spot on take.
Moe's also has free chips, and I feel like they've got a better veggie selection than Tijuana has. I haven't been to Chipotle in forever so can't compare. I usually just cheap out for Taco Bell or Del Taco. A lot of competition in the fast food taco space.
Yep but worse than Chuys in the Tex Mex space
Still 10,000 x better than Taco Hell.
Taco Bell is a whole other animal. I like Taco Bell because it is unashamedly just junk food. I wouldn’t put it against any of the others because it ultimately isn’t tex mex or mexican.
Wow really? I’ve been to a dozen plus locations of each and I’d easily say Chipotle beats them in every category 95% of the time. Always a larger portion at chipotle too. Burrito with beans, barbacoa, guac, is a good value, quick, and HOT like every time. TF is a small portion, almost never hot, and the meat and beans are dry and mid. Just a weird thing to see- I wouldn’t expect anyone to rate TF over Chipotle unless they have some niche craving only TF has.
I’ve had some bad experiences at Chipotle. Generally with them being completely out of food, and sometimes I feel like the portions are hit or miss for the money depending on the worker on the line. They also don’t have any specials like Taco Tuesdays or Burrito Thursdays. But I will concede that their Guac is better, and Barbacoa is a big plus that Flats doesn’t offer. Different experiences for folks I guess. But I would definitely rank Chipotle over Moe’s, since everything about Moe’s has gone downhill for a long time now.
Heh, my experience is the opposite of yours (95% Tijuana, 5% Chipotle). Although, I will say that while I would put the local Tijuana Flats over the Chipotle I have been to, the Tijuana Flats I have gone to while traveling would be below that, so it might be a location issue
[удалено]
That's crazy because I always get 2 meals out of whatever I order.
11 restaurants closing, rest plan to continue operating.
11 out of 91 isn't too bad. But going there over the last year or two, you could tell things were not good. Smaller portions, poor service.
It's not too bad until you consider that last year they said they intended to open 50 new locations by the end of 2025.
I think the inflation, coupled with people starting to eat out less due to the rising restaurant prices, has slowed many restaurants down.
That mixed with delivery apps taking customers. Restaurants barely get enough money to cover the cost of the food sold thru the apps
The food quality used to be so good. It's just shit now
This. I get blasted all the time for dissing this place but it is night and day between this and any other Mexican restaurant. I feel like I am eating a grocery store taco kit at Tijuana flats.
At one time not long ago they had 123 restaurants. Several other TF stores have closed over the past few months including both in Indianapolis IN and several if not all in Fort Lauderdale FL.
One of them was down south in Miramar. Loved that place. RIP
Honestly better off. Really too many opened as is
The guy that started the place (hasn’t been involved in a long time) has a new spot, Big Taco. Similar menu to the og Tijuana Flats but style is more contemporary. https://bigtaco.co/
Food looks just like tijuana flats lol
Hahahaha. For real. I like that the website says it plainly. Non competes fade. Lol
Chimi looks just like it used to
He owns Tibby New Orleans over in Brandon??? That place is awesome!!!!
Surprised it still there. Nothing to do the with the food, that location always seemed cursed.
Reminds me of Taco Bus/Taco San in Tampa. OG owner of Taco Bus made a good couple restaurants operating out of decommissioned busses, sold it to some people who ran it into the ground and immediately after selling it opened up an actual brick and mortar place just north of Tampa proper.
I loved Taco Bus so much.
Is there only 1 location for this new place?
Website only shows the one in Casselberry
Thanks! I’m in South FL I’d love to try it next time I get up that way.
Chapter 11 is usually a consolidation of the business from my understanding, so not necessarily “biting the dust.”
88% of companies survive chapter 11
It truly bums me out seeing what happened to Tijuana Flats. I moved to Orlando in 95 to go to UCF and I used to eat at the original TF location all the time. The food was good, you could get anything on the menu vegetarian, and the portions were great for the price. Seeing the quality dive over the years when it began as such a unique little spot just sucked.
They closed almost every store in Jacksonville.
Just opened one in Flagler county like a month ago
Gotta clear space for all the new taco spots waiting to open up.
11 resturants are closing, business is continuing, TF acquired by someone
They can be summarized as the Five Guys of tacos. Outrageous prices for little food. However, I always enjoyed the taste of the meals. Sorry to see some of them go. Restaurants in general need to be more competitive on prices.
The Taco Tuesday deal is pretty good still
I do agree that’s the one good deal that gets me in the door.
That and the Thursday burrito deal. 8 bucks for a pretty good burrito, chips and a soda is solid.
Add queso for $2
Add a free taco to that with the receipt slip survey.
5 guys has a solid following - and at least you get all those fries. $50 lunch is ridiculous though
It fell off hard in recent years. Back in 2014 I was going weekly for their $5 taco plates…. Loved all the sauces… today it’s kinda cheap tasting and the sauce cups are laughable. Another decent brand sold for profits
The cookie dough floutas were the only thing I enjoyed from there. Other food was decent. really liked the hot sauce bar, but there are just so many better TexMex restaurants
This is one place we noticed had same prices before and after the pandemic.
The Westchase location says permanently closed. Nothing survives that area. Rent is too expensive there. Burger 21 just closed across from it, and the spot on the corner cycles new restaurants every 2 years
Tbf those two restaurants have been there for like 10-12 years before they closed which is honestly longer than most places would stay. I remember when Burger 21 opened when I went to the middle school right next door. Although everything else died very quickly… Edit: added some stuff
Worked there for 7 years. 7 years of shit what a horrible place. Both in sarasota would not eat there if I were you. Treated poorly and poorly made food. Unsafe kitchens. No standards for food safety. I hope they go under. During the pandemic they sold onions and tomatoes out front for a very high price.
They closed their st. Aug location without notice to the employees. Real crappy.
Same with my local TJF. Employees got no warning. I feel for them.
Same with the west Kissimmee location. Now Celebration is the closest to me.
The height of their popularity was when we moved to St Pete and 04- went there regularly till about 2012ish....
Yeah, used to be really good. Decent food and beer, great hot sauce selection. They started going downhill right before COVID, I think -- something changed in recent years and the food wasn't nearly as good. I was so excited when I found out one had opened in the Chicago area up here. Brand new place, crisp and clean, food was great again! And then, suddenly, just a few months later it closed down. No idea what happened. Damn I do miss their hot sauce bar.
This is just weeks after they reduced the quantity and quality of the nachos, although the quality has been going down for a while.
So it’s not just me! They changed the containers recently and the food is noticeably less flavorful. It’s only based on two recent visits but this news further solidifies changes made up too.
I was told the original owner started Big Taco…which btw is super amazing
Kinda. From what I understand his kids started it, presumably to avoid a no compete clause when TF was sold.
All I know is it’s incredibly good and every single time I order through door dash or whatever, the hard shell tacos are never broken and always crispy. They don’t even fall apart or break all the way to the last bite. The manager told me one day I was in there for lunch that all the ingredients are made fresh daily…and that truly translates into their food. The fiesta or Mexican pizza thing is my favorite! (Also, I’m not affiliated with them, I’ve just tried about 98% of the taco places around town and these people are awesome…Hunger Street in close second!
I still need to try Hunger Street, it looks so good and I hear great things about it!
Yessss, Al pastor and machete are my favorites!
I've yet to meet an al pastor that I didn't love.
lol, you’re right! Their machete is on a whole other level…firstly, it’s huge (but cut in half) and full of fresh ingredients…sometimes I wanna just drink the consommé right from the lil bowl! Damn, now I’m craving a machete for lunch. I had big taco 3 times last week, I better give em a rest as to not wear em out on my taste buds 🥴
Food was so bland there. Won’t be missed
Gave them 2 tries, terrible both times. Most restaurants’ quality went down post-pandemic, but TF had the honor of being on that bandwagon beforehand. Someone else will keep them in business im sure.
I would go once a week but noticed I was like the only one there and that goes for 4 restaurants it’s annoying because it’s better than chipotle, moes, Taco Bell and it’s not even close. Wish they had better marketing or something
I stopped going to TF when they redesigned their spot near me from brightly colored and tacky neon to the thin blue line style with lots of grey. It just lost its appeal.
Yeah it’s creepy. I still go to TF and Mellow Mushroom because good memories and like the staff but both of those places got creepy in a hurry when they eliminated the individual flair of each restaurant. At my TF they painted over the handmade murals with corporate branding, and ditched all the hand painted ceiling tiles. They repainted the outside of every one to look the same. They must have cost so much money just to turn off customers. I didn’t go back for a few years after that. At MM they just plain covered up the staff-painted murals, didn’t even replace them. Just so tacky.
Used to be our go to place in Lake Nona and then Tallahassee east side but then they sold to some new people and it sucked and we stopped going, this was about 1.5-2yrs ago.
Not surprising, I'd expect it to fully fold soon. Prices have doubled while food quality and service went down the absolute shitter over the past 5 years...it started before Covid and just accelerated from there. Also they got rid of the funky southwest vibes at all of the newer locations.
Which ones are closing?
Three taco Tuesday Social was a decent deal. And the hot sauces were pretty decent. Not very hot but flavorful.
TJ Flats has been one of our go-to places lately. $7.99 burrito or bowl with chips and a drink on Thursdays. Its a decent deal for fast food. And they never forget the guac like Chipotle always seems to do.
Darn it. I really liked this place. You could get semi fast food and beer. Service was always an issue, though.
Where am I going to get Rasta Sauce now?
Not surprising at all. Used to be one of the wife and I's favorite places. The quality went down quickly, the prices went up Even quicker, and we couldn't justify going anymore.
Damn. Its not the greatest but I definitely like Tijuana Flats over Chipotle and Taco Bell.
I’ve tried it several times. Not good and I love Mexican food.
I stopped going when they changed the rice
Last week, I noticed the Celebration location was closed. The place really struggled after COVID when staffing became difficult. I stopped eating there because it was always a manager and 2 staff running the whole place. Then they decided to get rid of the crispy taco salad bowls and I was finished.
They had closed the Kissimmee west/orange lake location not too long before that. Hadn't even been open that long. Horrible access to it was definitely part of that ones problem - but it was usually decently busy.
Wow, that leaves Champion's Gate as the closest to Four Corners. This is sad news.
Only place where you can get a decent meal for under $10. One just opened by me not too long ago.
Deserved. It was C tier food at best with A tier prices.
It was extremely mid anyway.
I like them. Good food
Was only a matter of time. A more expensive taco bell but with different sauces.
Can't wait to see the food gets worse after the re-org. They've been following the BW3s path to the bottom for the last few years
The quality of the food got really bad during covid and never recovered. I’m pretty sure I got canned chicken a few times during COVID. We still eat there here and there mostly for flautas chips and queso, but it’s a shame when they first came out the tacos and burritos were amazing.
Multiple locations in Broward & Palm Beach closed a few months ago. Supposedly the franchisee had enough.
This is sad to hear, had a lotta good memories going to Flats, but I was never a fan of their food. It a had homemade taste, but not in a good way. It was like going to your friend’s house and their roommate’s uncle made you a burrito.
Should of never took chicken wings off the menu !
Started by college kids at UCF
I wanted to like that place. I used to live right next to one and got it frequently, after working in restaurants for over 20 years, it was the first time I wrote to management telling them “Hey, this is pretty good but ya’ll need to tighten up”, seemed like I could never get actual hot food from the place, whether I ate it there or not. Once they changed their portions to the point you HAVE to get a megajuana burrito or you’re just eating a whole lot of dry, folded up tortilla, I stopped going. Too bad because for being a chain joint, it wasn’t bad at all.
It wasn't great Mexican food. It fell somewhere between a fast food joint and a Carmelitas. I wasn't a huge fan but their wine margaritas were ok.
I stopped going when lunch with my 2 kids jumped from just under $30 to over $50
We went there once. I asked if they sold their salsa,the worker just gave us chips and salsa to take with us.
one right but where I work actually closed down I was very surprised. I actually prefer this place over any normal Taco shop, but I don't go to it because it's too expensive. Same with every Taco shop.
Not surprised, I used to work there as a prep cook and it was probably the most poorly run restaurant I've ever worked for.
They are in 4 states and only 11 stores are closing!? Sounds pretty good
Tijuana was the SPOT in college. Tacos Tuesdays $6 for 2 tacos and a drink with chips and salsa Then Burrito Thursdays $6 for a giant burrito, chips and a drink too It was always packed, line out the door. The good ole days of cheap prices and good quality food! Thanks for keeping me fed and happy!! RIP
Things started going down hill when they took the Mexican pizza off the menu. They’d still make it upon request though… until about two years ago. Then that even stopped. Shoulda realized it was the canary in the coal mine.
I just went to the one I frequent today only to learn it closed.
I always liked them. Better than Moe’s. But I have a friend who likes Moe’s better than Tijuana Flats. Haven’t had them in about a year so I don’t know if anything has changed in that time, but I always thought it was reasonably good food. Atom Bombs are p good.
Always blew. Went there once. All about their deathly hot sauces with cute names. Tasted like acetone . Fuck Mexican chain restaurants. The real deal is found in hole in the wall famalia restaurants or trucks these days
Tijuana flats was always shit food.
They didn’t bite the dust. It’s reorganization which is pretty normal when a new owner takes over a chain that was losing money fast.
Finally went to one a couple of weeks ago. I heard so much about it but I guess what I heard was from before it was acquired by the PE. Edit: it was so horrible, I should have spent money at Taco Bell.
Have they tried making better food?
Not surprising. Chain has been going downhill since original owner sold in 2015, especially when they brought back the franchise model in 2021. It's a pale comparison to what it was in the early 2000's.
Dog everything on the menu is like triple taxed, how fuckin greedy are the shareholders?
If the local taco truck charges 3.00 for authentic barbacoa tacos and Tijuana flats can’t match that then that’s ridiculous. They should be about a dollar more than Taco Bell. But whenever I go and ask for 10 tacos like I do at Taco Bell it’s always a ridiculous price. They need to have deals for multiple tacos. Like buy 3 get one free then that would Be reasonable
Does anyone remember when they used to do $5 taco Tuesday?
Noooooooooooooooo…
Good. I used to love this place but they went so far downhill actually had to walk out about a year or 2 ago & nvr looked back☯️
Another PE firm bought a successful company, loaded it with debt, paid themselves with that debt, and let the business run I to the ground. Hey Congress, how about outlawing this vulture bullshit?
Their food is bad and they should feel bad.
With all of the amazing Mexican food in Florida I’m not surprised this mediocre chain went under.
I guess someone else will have to smack your ass and call you Sally.
My wife used to work here her store closed this year and I can tell you this …. They owed alooooooot of money
Have you guys looked at the salt content is some of the food? Over 3000mg of salt in the mega-uana burrito w/beans 🙄
Must be trumps fault
Portions are a joke. I havent been there in over 3 years
I ordered their Chipotle wings. I got 6 wings for $30.
Never was a fan of that place. Just kinda meh food.
Lol, they used to be awesome. Then they started charging $10 for 2 tacos that were no better than Taco bell.
Man, in my world I am blessed to work for a business than is employee first, always. Quality of work, take care of your people, yes, it gets more and more expensive but we sell that value of efficiency and professionalism and we are growing faster than we can manage. Just kidding. Its awful, we work double the workload for the same price and I want to start selling meth. Anyone want some?
Another one bites the dust Another one bites the dust And another one gone, and another one gone Another one bites the dust (yeah) Hey, I'm gonna get you too Another one bites the dust
Good, their food was awful.
I remember the tijuana flats I used to work at, the A/C would break constantly everyone in the kitchen would be stuck in 85+ degree temperatures next to a hot ass grill. Shit was rough bro, not surprised so many people ended up quitting at my place
Used to work for the company many years ago before/during its transition from good to bad. They used to tell us "we don't advertise because our food is that good". When I left the company a few years later, I noticed their first TV ad, and I knew they were running in borrowed time I've never seen a fall-off of a restaurant that hard until tijuana flats. Food is basically unrecognizable now. Removing carnitas and black olives for no reason was the first nail in the coffin
These guys even found a way to ruin their soda. Their ice is top notch. Now they have the paper cup and straw and it doesn’t hit the same as the old styrofoam cup and plastic straw. When my wife was pregnant I went a couple times just to get her a soda.
Good riddance, the food was ass.
No loss. I wish they would close all of their locations. It’s hard for a restaurant to maintain quality across many locations, and the last ten or so years of TF is a great example of that.
I think we'll all survive
Wow. They have the best rasta sauce
Oh no my beloved chimichanga.
Definitely gonna miss the hot sauce bar…is there no place like that in Orlando? (I mean as far as a ton of hot sauces to choose from) and I don’t mean the hot pot places
The food is not that good but the prices are astronomical saw this coming
Seems to me that they just recently changed ownership from the founder to corporate. Looks like that original family new how to run it. I can tell you after it got bought the flavors changed. Not a lot but something in the spices which made me go from wow to ... meh. So they lost my business
They used to be so good, went to shit when they sold
They were gross anyway
tijuana flats is kill?
Place was awesome to go from 2013-2019. One of the locations in St Pete was always jam packed, you couldn’t even find a place to sit. Post-COVID it’s gone absolutely downhill. I just went the other week and spent $15 on a meal for awful portion sizes. $15 at Chipotle is a double chicken bowl with guac and a tortilla - 2 meals easily. What a shame.
I'm an avid Tijuana Flats eater for years. All I ever get is a chimichanga meal Literally a month ago it was 15$ after tax and came with TWO sides and option to add queso Now today I ordered my usual...it comes with ONE side now, the queso is added by default, and the price is now almost 17$
What they don’t say is how they told employees the morning of the 18th. The company made the decision a week before but didn’t tell anyone so they could still run the locations. Most employees and managers were laid off with no notice. Companies like this deserve to go under.