Zantigo is an American fast food restaurant chain serving Mexican food. It began operation in 1969 in Minneapolis, Minnesota as Zapata. With over 80 locations at its peak, Zantigo, alongside its sister/parent company Kentucky Fried Chicken, was sold to PepsiCo, with the former being merged into Taco Bell in 1986. Zantigo was re-established a decade later under new ownership in the Twin Cities market.
Original Zantigo chain (1969–1988)
Zantigo was founded in 1969 as Zapata by Marno McDermott, who would later be the co-founder of another Mexican chain, Chi-Chi's. In 1974, McDermott sold Zapata to Heublein, owners at the time of KFC.[1][2]