Rusty Taco
Rusty Taco is an American fast-food restaurant chain specializing in tacos and related Mexican-inspired fare.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
Rusty Taco is an American fast-food restaurant chain that originated in Dallas, Texas, in 2010. The brand was established by Rusty Fenton, his wife Denise Fenton, and Steve Dunn, with its first restaurant operating from a former gas station. Its concept is centered on a casual, counter-service format built around tacos and a compact Mexican-inspired menu. The business developed as a small regional chain rather than as a broadly international restaurant system. Rusty Fenton died of kidney cancer in 2013, a significant event in the brand's early history. In 2014, Buffalo Wild Wings acquired a majority interest in the company. The chain subsequently underwent a naming change: in 2015, its name was shortened to R Taco. That identity was reversed in 2018, when the company announced that it would return to the Rusty Taco name. The brand became part of the restaurant portfolio assembled by Inspire Brands. Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco were acquired by Arby's Restaurant Group in 2018, and the transaction contributed to the formation of Inspire Brands. Rusty Taco therefore operated for a period within a large multi-brand restaurant group, alongside better-known fast-casual and quick-service concepts. On December 19, 2022, Inspire Brands announced that it had sold Rusty Taco to Gala Capital Partners. Gala Capital also owns restaurant brands including Cicis Pizza, Dunn Brothers Coffee, and Mooyah. This transaction returned Rusty Taco to a smaller privately held restaurant portfolio. The available reference material records 37 restaurants across nine U.S. states as of 2022. No reliable information in the supplied sources establishes a current store count, international presence, public listing, or standalone financial results. Rusty Taco's positioning is based on an accessible taco-focused quick-service experience and a distinctive founder-linked name. Its corporate history reflects several stages common to emerging restaurant chains: local founding, majority investment by a strategic restaurant operator, integration into a larger multi-brand platform, and eventual sale to another private restaurant owner. The brand remains an active U.S. restaurant concept, although detailed current information about its leadership, menu architecture, expansion plans, and operating performance is not established by the supplied references.
History
Rusty Taco was founded in Dallas, Texas, in 2010 by Rusty Fenton, Denise Fenton, and Steve Dunn. The founders opened the first restaurant in a former gas station, giving the early concept a distinctive neighborhood-oriented setting. The business was built as a taco-focused fast-food chain, with its identity tied closely to its founding team and its Dallas origin. Rusty Fenton died of kidney cancer in 2013. The company nevertheless continued to develop as a restaurant brand. In 2014, Buffalo Wild Wings acquired a majority share of Rusty Taco, providing the chain with the backing of a larger restaurant company. The investment marked a transition from an independently founded local concept to a brand connected to a broader corporate restaurant portfolio. The business changed its public identity in 2015, shortening its name to R Taco. The revised name was later abandoned. On September 5, 2018, R Taco announced that it would change its name back to Rusty Taco, restoring the original brand identity and the connection to its founder. The same period brought a major change in ownership structure. Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco were acquired by Arby's Restaurant Group in 2018, and the transaction helped create Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company. Rusty Taco operated within Inspire Brands until December 2022. On December 19 of that year, Inspire Brands announced that it had sold the chain to Gala Capital Partners. Gala's portfolio also included Cicis Pizza, Dunn Brothers Coffee, and Mooyah, placing Rusty Taco within another privately held restaurant group with multiple food-service concepts. The supplied reference material reports that Rusty Taco had 37 restaurants in nine U.S. states as of 2022. This indicates a regional or limited national footprint rather than a large international network. The available material does not provide a verified current store count, detailed financial data, current executive roster, or confirmed international operations. Rusty Taco's documented evolution is therefore primarily an ownership and brand-identity story: a Dallas-founded taco concept, a majority investment by Buffalo Wild Wings, integration into Inspire Brands, restoration of its original name, and eventual sale to Gala Capital Partners.
- 2022
Gala Capital Partners acquires Rusty Taco
[1]Inspire Brands announces the sale of Rusty Taco to Gala Capital Partners. The chain is reported to have 37 restaurants in nine U.S. states during this year.
- 2018
The original Rusty Taco name is restored
[1]The company announces that it will change its name from R Taco back to Rusty Taco.
- 2018
Rusty Taco enters the Inspire Brands portfolio
[1]Arby's Restaurant Group acquires Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco, contributing to the formation of Inspire Brands.
- 2015
The brand adopts the R Taco name
[1]Rusty Taco shortens its public name to R Taco.
- 2014
Buffalo Wild Wings acquires a majority interest
[1]Buffalo Wild Wings becomes the majority owner of Rusty Taco.
- 2013
Founder Rusty Fenton dies
[1]Rusty Fenton dies of kidney cancer while the chain is still in its early development.
- 2010
Rusty Taco is founded in Dallas
[1]Rusty Fenton, Denise Fenton, and Steve Dunn establish Rusty Taco in Dallas, Texas, and open the first location in a former gas station.
Products and positioning
A casual American quick-service restaurant brand centered on tacos and Mexican-inspired food, with a local-origin identity and a compact regional footprint.
Quick-service Mexican-inspired food · 2010
Taco-focused restaurant menu
Rusty Taco's core offering is a quick-service restaurant menu organized around tacos. The supplied reference material identifies the chain as a taco-focused fast-food business but does not provide a reliable item-level menu or product chronology. Specific taco varieties, sides, beverages, and seasonal offerings are therefore not enumerated here.
Brand decisions
2022
Sale to Gala Capital PartnersM&ABackground
Inspire Brands announced the divestiture of Rusty Taco after the chain had been part of the Inspire portfolio.
Action taken
Gala Capital Partners acquired Rusty Taco.
Aftermath
Rusty Taco joined Gala's portfolio of restaurant brands, which also included Cicis Pizza, Dunn Brothers Coffee, and Mooyah.
2018
Restoring the Rusty Taco nameStrategyBackground
After operating as R Taco since 2015, the company announced a return to its original founder-linked identity.
Action taken
R Taco announced that it would change its name back to Rusty Taco.
Aftermath
The original Rusty Taco name was reinstated while the brand was associated with the emerging Inspire Brands restaurant platform.
2018
Acquisition by Arby's Restaurant GroupM&ABackground
Buffalo Wild Wings owned a majority interest in the chain before Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco were acquired by Arby's Restaurant Group.
Action taken
Arby's Restaurant Group acquired Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco as part of the transaction that formed Inspire Brands.
Aftermath
Rusty Taco operated as a brand within Inspire Brands until its sale in 2022.
2015
Shortening the brand name to R TacoStrategyBackground
The company changed its established Rusty Taco name during a period when the chain was developing under Buffalo Wild Wings' majority ownership.
Action taken
The public-facing brand name was shortened to R Taco.
Aftermath
The shortened identity was later reversed when the company returned to the Rusty Taco name in 2018.
Recent events
- 2022
Inspire Brands sells Rusty Taco to Gala Capital Partners[1]
M&A
Inspire Brands announced the sale of Rusty Taco to Gala Capital Partners, a private restaurant group that also owns Cicis Pizza, Dunn Brothers Coffee, and Mooyah.
- 2018
R Taco changes its name back to Rusty Taco[1]
Other
After operating under the shortened R Taco name since 2015, the brand announced that it would restore the Rusty Taco name.
- 2018
Rusty Taco becomes part of Inspire Brands[1]
M&A
Arby's Restaurant Group acquired Buffalo Wild Wings and R Taco, with the transaction forming part of the creation of Inspire Brands.
- 2014
Rusty Taco is acquired by Buffalo Wild Wings[1]
M&A
Buffalo Wild Wings acquired a majority interest in Rusty Taco, bringing the emerging taco chain into the portfolio of a larger restaurant operator.
Sources2 sources
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