Rusty Taco is taking its made-to-order street-style tacos beyond traditional restaurants, expanding into airports, convenience stores, and entertainment venues. This strategic move matters because it showcases how a fast-casual brand can adapt to high-traffic, non-traditional environments while maintaining its core menu and guest experience. The expansion not only increases brand visibility but also creates new revenue streams and franchise opportunities.
This fall, Rusty Taco will open locations at Washington Dulles International Airport and Norfolk International Airport, building on its first airport location at Dulles that opened in 2023. The Norfolk location is set for late November, while the second Dulles spot will open in Concourse E. These openings reinforce airports as a key part of the brand's national development strategy, according to David Gonzalez, VP of Development for Gala Capital Partners, parent company of Rusty Taco. "Our growth in airports and other non-traditional venues is a strong example of how we can adapt to different environments while still delivering the same fresh menu guests know and love," Gonzalez said. "It's also an opportunity to introduce our brand to travelers from across the country who might be trying us for the first time."
Beyond airports, Rusty Taco is expanding through partnerships with convenience stores and entertainment venues. Its partnership with Good 2 Go Eats, a convenience store chain with 75 locations, brought the first Rusty Taco C-store to Ammon, Idaho, in 2023, with agreements for eight additional locations. Three Denver-area C-stores are open today, and four more are set to open in early 2027. These locations feature a reduced menu focused on grab-and-go burritos for customers seeking quick, quality food on the road. Additionally, Rusty Taco has a presence at Salt River Fields, the spring training home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies, and has served fans at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. This fall, it will open its first bowling alley location at Bowlski's in Dallas.
These non-traditional venues demonstrate Rusty Taco's flexible operating model, which supports four dayparts—breakfast, lunch, happy hour, and dinner—allowing the brand to serve guests throughout the day. "Rusty Taco was built around a simple idea: serve fresh, flavorful ingredients in handcrafted street-style tacos, along with great hospitality," Gonzalez said. "That same approach gives us the flexibility to bring Rusty Taco to places that look very different from a traditional restaurant, and we see significant opportunity to continue growing in new and unexpected places."
With 28 locations across multiple states, Rusty Taco continues to build its footprint while offering franchisees and partners new ways to bring the brand to guests nationwide. For more information, visit www.rustytaco.com/franchise. Learn more at RustyTaco.com.
