America’s best taco spot is in Los Angeles
In the taco spot rankings, California dominates other states at number 45 out of the top 100, followed by Texas, Arizona, and Hawaii.
Fox – LA
This taco deal is truly an enchilada. Jack in the Box is selling the entire Del Taco chain to one of its franchisees, Yadav Enterprises.
Fremont, Calif.-based Yadav Enterprises will pay $115 million to acquire Del Taco Holdings, a Jack in the Box subsidiary with more than 550 Del Taco restaurants.
Yadav Enterprises operates 310 franchise restaurants including Jack in the Box, Denny’s and TGI Friday’s. The company also owns Taco Cabana, a 150-store fast-casual restaurant chain, and Nick the Greek, a 90-store chain.
The transaction is expected to close by January 2026 and will allow Jack in the Box to repay its debt, the company said in an Oct. 16 news release.
“This sale is an important step in our return to simplicity, and we look forward to focusing on our core Jack in the Box brand,” Jack in the Box CEO Lance Tucker said in a statement. “After a robust process, we are confident that we have concluded a transaction with the right management for the next chapter in Del Taco’s evolution. We wish Del Taco every success as it enters its next chapter.”
The burger chain, which has about 2,160 stores in 22 states, acquired Del Taco in a $575 million deal in 2022, with the aim of diversifying its position and cashing in on the Mexican restaurant chain’s drive-thru business.
But Del Taco, winner of multiple 2025 USA TODAY 10Best Readers awards, including Best Fast Food Restaurant, struggled and temporarily closed nearly all of its Colorado locations in March, before reopening in June.
After becoming CEO of Jack in the Box in March, Tucker included the sale of Del Taco as part of a turnaround plan announced in April.
This is an interesting development. Anil Yadav, CEO of Yadav Enterprises, began his career in the restaurant industry at the age of 17 as a fry cook at Jack in the Box. He became a manager in a year and a half and bought his first restaurant in 1989, Yadav said in a video profile that named him the recipient of the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation’s 2018 Face of Diversity Award.
Contributor: Gabe Hauari
Mike Snyder is a national trends news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, and X, and email him at: mike snyder & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com
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