Omnivore - Taqueria de Five Guys?

Taqueria del Sol teams up with Five Guys operator in Florida

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  • Southern Foodways Alliance
  • Eddie Hernadez, TDS co-owner & chef

Today’s Florida Times-Union provides some details about the franchise deal that Taqueria del Sol has made in Orlando, Jacksonville and Gainesville:

The Florida markets named will be developed by Calloway Consolidated Group, which, under Chris Calloway, already operates 14 Five Guys Burgers and Fries in the state, including 11 in the Jacksonville area. Calloway opened three Five Guys in the last half of 2010, in Mandarin (August), Bartram Park (November) and Fleming Island (December).

With the Taqueria deal, Calloway Consolidated plans to open 7 to 10 restaurants over the next five years, Calloway, 30, said this week. He plans to have his first Taqueria open by this time next year, he said. And though he’s looking for sites in Jacksonville, Gainesville and Orlando, he hasn’t found the right location for the first restaurant, he said.

Writer Gary T. Mills reminds readers that “Taqueria founder and CEO Mike Klank and chef Eddie Hernandez were named semifinalists in this year’s 2011 James Beard Foundation Awards in the Outstanding Restaurateur category. In 2007, Bon Appetit named Taqueria a finalist in the taco category in the magazine’s Best American Restaurants honors.”

Philadelphia will also soon see Taqueria del Sol.