Tijuana Flats

Tijuana Flats Tex-Mex is a privately held American restaurant chain serving Tex-Mex cuisine. It has over 91 locations (65 company owned and 26 franchised) throughout Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina and Kentucky.[2]

The restaurant was founded in Winter Park, Florida, in 1995 by University of Central Florida graduate Brian Wheeler with US$20,000 in loans. The company had 18 locations before expanding out-of-state in 2004.

History

Tijuana Flats was started in Winter Park, Florida.[3] It was modeled after Burrito Brothers, a Mexican restaurant in Gainesville, Florida,[4] and funded with $20,000 in borrowed money from Wheeler's family.[4]

Restaurant design

Tijuana Flats is widely known for the unique appearance of their restaurants. The main feature of each location is its hand-painted wall mural. The first mural was painted in 1995 by artist Christopher Galipeau at the original location in Winter Park, Florida. Christopher painted eight murals for the company before he died of cancer in 2008. His artwork features a series of characters, most notably a gigantic Green "God." This character was featured in many of his murals. After his death, multiple artists tried to replicate his style of work at newer Tijuana Flats locations.

The company is also known for having a "wall of fame" in each location. Up until 2016, every restaurant featured a wall covered with photos and autographs of celebrities who have visited the establishment. All restaurants built after 2016 no longer feature the iconic wall.

Design changes

The chain has gone through quite a few different design changes over the years. The original legacy design lasted from 1995 until 2005. These locations looked as if they were all small, local, taco shops. Design elements included celebrity photos scattered across the walls, shelves filled with hot sauces, colorful string lights, and 3D "Hot Bar" signs. In 2008 the company decided it wanted to go for a more "mature" look. Newer restaurants featured wall graffiti, purple and red paint, and darker lights. The celebrity wall of fame was no longer scattered, but rather the photos were neatly lined across the walls in rows. The most notable change came during the "Amped Up" look in 2016. The celebrity "wall of fame" was removed, and the murals were painted on either wood or concrete walls. The restaurants took on a more industrial look. The location in Cary, North Carolina, was updated in 2016 to reflect the "amped up" look.

In 2020 the company announced the "High-Tech Prototype" design. The first location to open with it was in Noblesville, Indiana. The new design features bright lighting, custom vinyl-printed tables, digital menu boards, decal/graphic covered walls, and a local inspired mural. This design took a drastic turn away from the previous industrial look, as all of the restaurants are covered with bright blue and yellow paint. Gone are the sci-fi wall murals, the new murals depict comical lizards in a local setting. Examples include lizards paddling down the Wekiva River at the Hunt Club location, a lizard fishing at the Ocoee location, and lizards hanging out in a park at the Winter Park location. The murals were moved from the dining room side of the restaurant to the queue side of the restaurant.

Remodeling

In 2021, the company began remodeling its locations to match the new "High-Tech Prototype" store design. The first location to be remodeled was Tijuana Flats #4, located on Aloma Ave in Winter Park, Florida. The location previously featured the legacy look and later the "mature" store design. The remodel included a new mural, featuring lizards playing in a park. The mural sparked outcry by Tijuana Flats fans on Facebook, as it looked too tame and childish. The company modified the mural to better fit the Tijuana Flats theme. This marked the first location to feature three different murals over the years. In 2022, Tijuana Flats #2 in Hunt Club, Florida, was remodeled. The remodel involved removing the 2nd ever Tijuana Flats wall mural, which was painted by artist Christopher Galipeau in the mid 90's. The mural was not only the second painting created for the company, but it was also the first full-wall mural.

type	Private
founder	Brian Wheeler
hq location	Maitland, Florida, U.S.
num locations	91
area served	Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky
key people	James J. Greco CEO
industry	Restaurants
num employees	3,000 (2016)
foundation	1995 in Winter Park, Florida
website	tijuanaflats.com
footnotes	‡R1R‡ ‡R2R‡

History

Restaurant design

Design changes

Remodeling

Remodeling

Menu

See also

External links

References