New Taco Bell outlets in Chicago and San Francisco will begin serving wine, beer, sangria and frozen mixed drinks before the end of September 2015. It will be the first time that the franchise will be serving alcohol in the United States.
Taco Bell announced that it will open a new location in Chicago serving the alcoholic beverages. The plans were first announced earlier in the summer of 2015. There will be other unique items available, such as tapas-style appetizers, an open kitchen and a mural by a local artist. The rest of the menu will be the same as regular outlets, Fox News revealed.
The restaurant will open in the Wicker Park area of Chicago. Beers will cost $4, wines will cost $4 and sangrias are priced at $4.50. “Twisted Freezes” will be available, which are frozen drinks that contain tequila, rum or vodka. The flavors include Mountain Dew Baja Blast, Cantina Margarita and Cantina Punch and these will cost anywhere between $6.19 and $7.19.
“You will literally be able to see the food before it’s prepared. (Customers will be) able to see all the beautiful ingredients,” Meredith Sandland, chief development officer of Taco Bell, said.
The Chicago restaurant will open its doors on September 22, 2015.
There will also be a similar new location that will open in San Francisco later in September, Fox News reported. There will be beer and wine, but not sangria and mixed drinks. The restaurant will be located near AT&T Park and feature a window and patio for pickup orders.
There are actually other famous franchises that also serve alcohol drinks. Starbucks is selling wine, beer and small dishes at a number of locations in the United States. Chipotle also offers margaritas.
According to Taco Bell, the new concept features the millennial trend of seeking more urban environments. Taco Bell has close to 6,000 locations throughout the United States, but less than 1 percent are located in urban neighborhoods. Majority are found in suburban regions. In the next decade, the franchise is also planning to add 2,000 outlets in the United States. Sandland said that several hundred of these will focus on urban dwellers, with some also serving alcohol.
Neil Borkan, the Taco Bell franchisee who will operate the Chicago test site told USA Today that offering alcoholic beverages can compensate for the like of a drive-thru in urban restaurants. He said that adding a drive-thru will require land, which is very expensive in urban areas. It would make more sense to apply the new concept instead of buying land.