Wednesday, September 4, 2019

[CLOSURE ALERT] Del Taco Departs Roswell After Nine Months

Del Taco, which earlier this January opened on Mansell Road in Roswell, has closed.  The restaurant, located at 850 Mansell Road, just off Alpharetta Highway, opened in place of The Counter, a quick-serve burger eatery which had operated out of the converted bank for about ten years.  Lake Forest, California-based Del Taco, which is currently celebrating 55 years in business, didn't even last one year in Roswell.  The restaurant reportedly closed effective Monday, September 2.  

The closure, which an employee at another local Del Taco referred to as a "business decision," was reportedly executed as a result of disappointing sales at the restaurant.  While it's perhaps unfair to point to any particular reason as a cause for the closure, comments on Yelp.com from former customers of the restaurant shed some light on at least three reasons that traffic may have fallen short of expectations. 

Despite having a decent overall rating of three stars, seven of the restaurant's eighteen reviews were one star ratings, many of which cited similar instances of incorrect orders, poor service, and long waits, among other issues. 

ToNeTo Atlanta ate at the Roswell location in August and while we did have an acceptable experience, service was a bit slow and the dining room was not very full at a prime weekday dinner hour.  Also, while marketed well to existing email subscribers, the fact that the restaurant offers Beyond Meat in both its burritos and tacos is likely not something many realize, and while it surely would not have had the impact of KFC's recent Beyond Meat promotion, it might have helped drive traffic.  

The Roswell outpost is the second Atlanta area Del Taco to close over the past year or so.  A Del Taco restaurant on Roswell Road in East Cobb closed last July after about three years in business.  [ToNeTo Atlanta reported August 7 that Five Guys Burger & Fries is looking to open in the former East Cobb location.]  One difference between the two Del Tacos is that the the East Cobb restaurant was reportedly owned by a franchisee while the Roswell restaurant was reportedly corporately owned.  

Despite the struggles, Del Taco continues to operate seventeen restaurants in Georgia including recently opened locations in Fayetteville and Riverdale.  Additionally, as ToNeTo Atlanta first reported July 26, a new Del Taco is coming soon to a former Pollo Tropical on LaVista Road in Tucker.  The Tucker restaurant is the third former Pollo Tropical that Del Taco will have converted following earlier openings in Gainesville and Hiram.  Real estate sources tell ToNeTo Atlanta that the company is also "interested" in opening in former Pollo Tropical restaurants in Buford near the Mall of Georgia and in Lawrenceville near AMC Colonial 18.  

Are you surprised that Del Taco closed its Roswell restaurant?  What would you like to see open in place of Del Taco in Roswell?  Where would you like to see Del Taco open next?

Please share your thoughts below  

31 comments:

Jml813 said...

Not surprised that it closed. That restaurant is hard to get into and out of and Mansel backs up pretty far. You had to wait for the light and fight the rest of the traffic in the center to get in and out. I'm surprised they chose that location as it didn't seem well suited to drive thru fast food.

I still miss Counter Burger!

Lando said...

I have eaten at this location a few times. The food was great, and loved the fresh ingredients. However, the service was a bit to be desired. The service was slow, not very friendly, and the wait was pretty long.

Unknown said...

I wish they would open one in Canton

Unknown said...

I would like to see a Long John Silver or I would prefer a mrs. Winners chicken

Unknown said...

Always understaffed

Unknown said...

What's the surprise? Difficult to imagine a fast food or fast casual chain in ATL that underperforms and appears to care less about their operation than Del Taco. Like Lando said food is well above average but completely sabotaged by chronic under-staffing and inept store level execution. At a recent lunch visit to Chastain Rd location, employee announced at least a 15 minute wait for food. Pardon me! I followed up that unbelievable experience with a letter to Sr. Director of Corporate Operations, David Pear including my contact information. If you think I heard from Mr. Pear or the local franchisee, you lost the bet.

Hamilton

Unknown said...

I ate here a couple times but always hesitated going because the service was always so slow. Drive through is for fast service - I couldn't dedicate the time each time. The location in Kennesaw is fantastic though!

Unknown said...

I moved to GA from Las Vegas. We had Del Taco in Vegas. I didn't like them in Vegas so I had no desire to try them here.

Anonymous said...

I’m a reader who went to check out Del taco just because of the conversation here. there is definitely a space for Taco Bell on one end and chipotle on the other end of the spectrum however Del taco has tried to be in the middle, a hybrid of both, and does not succeed at doing so. I am a consumer of both Taco Bell and chipotle and they’re two completely different restaurant and food experiences For what it is Taco Bell is awesome and so is chipotle but Del taco is trying to hard to be both. They need to Choose one end of the segment or the other Or be something completely unique and diverse.

Unknown said...

I ate here once. Food was decent but I sat at the box to order for at least 5 minutes after the girl told me to “hold on”. Then when I did get around to the window, I sat there for at least twenty minutes, long enough to put my car in park and turn off the ignition. The vehicle that was at the box behind me drove off. I wasn’t planning to return as a customer due to lack of customer service and long wait time when there was hardly anyone else there.

A well-wisher said...

Bring back Del Taco! That was my favorite restaurant!

Unknown said...

Yelp is horrible at understanding food. By being anonymous anyone can throw an opinion out. If you believe in something then put your name on it. Actual restaurants that do a horrible job should be called out. Folks that put broccoli in a plastic bag to heat up food is insulting and dangerous. The same cane be said with microwaveable popcorn can be cancerous! Please stop commenting on things you disagree with because everyone will be upset with an org that even with one bad experience said person will feel the need to comment. If I don't like a place go somewhere else. Shockingly to some, their friends don't agree with their perception of food. Similar to politics we disagree on a lot. Again if you don't like a place you don't need to comment on it; chose not to go there again or cook a meal yourself, some2 foreign to a wide spread of people. Too many would rather type than actually do things themselves! Trump didn't even know what a Cat 5 storm was even though his main property is in Florida. I call B.S. and you can call b.s. if you don't out your name behind what you have to comment on but your credibility goes to show!t when u pose. How bout be real and talk to folks one-on-one instead of forwarding and say what you really think behind their back! To clarify my name is in the email account; I dont mix words! Enjoy the food!

Anonymous said...

Not surprised. On one visit in July, they were out of hard shells.

LinRRTlearn said...

Sad. I'm upset. First Pollo tropical and now del taco?

Unknown said...

In n Out Burger!!!

Unknown said...

I wish they would open one in Hampton Roads Virginia, I am from California and miss Del Taco.

Anonymous said...

They should put in a Culver’s!!!

Skrybe said...

Well, they're going to run into the same issue with their location opening in Tucker. It's just off 285, which sounds great, but it's JUST off 285. Like almost as soon as you get off the ramp. And there's an added light on the corner. Traffic gets backed up right there all the time.

They may get lucky with people visiting Target in the same general parking lot, but if they're hoping for lots of drive in traffic from the highway, that's gonna be a tough sell.

Unknown said...

Whataburger Whataburger Whataburger

TroyH said...

"If you believe in something then put your name on it."

I think it's ironic that you posted this as "unknown."

TroyH said...

"If you believe in something then put your name on it."

I think it's ironic that you posted this as "unknown."

Unknown said...

I believe the location is a bad spot
Put something there that Roswell does not have. There are plenty of food spots around this giving them competition. Only restaurant types that would benefit is a cuisine that is not frequent I'm the area for instance hot dogs, seafood.

Unknown said...

I loved Del Taco, sorry to hear that.
We could use a Panda Express or Long John Silvers.
Was sorry that Steak and Shake closed also.

Tiburon Hiker said...

Really good food, but poor service and definitely understaffed.

Unknown said...

I live in Las Vegas, Del Taco is one of my favorite places. Probably eat there at least twice a week. Sorry to see it's having difficulty catching on in Georgia. It's a direct competitor to Taco Bell, which, in my opinion, is not a great choice for me. I feel Del Taco has better food and fresher too. Service is an issue right now because unemployment is so low it is difficult to find quality employees, which has always been a factor in fast food anyway. Best of luck to the remaining Del Tacos there, I hope everyone gives them a shot. Macho Combo Burrito!

Anonymous said...

Never tried this one, but have tried the one in Alpharetta/Milton a couple of times and didn’t care for it. Probably too close to Chipotle. It took longer to remodel than it was open!

Anonymous said...

Literally useless comment

Unknown said...

DelTaco is my favorite fast food restaurant for qualty food, cheap.
Great selections,& one is coming to Conyers soon too.
McDonough store does great!
You have totry. Healthier eating than many fast foid places, depending what you chose to order..

Unknown said...

So happy they closed, management was lousy and staff were sloppy and rude. We need a King Taco, Poppys Burgers, In and Out Burgers!!!

Unknown said...

So happy they closed, management was lousy and staff were sloppy and rude. We need a King Taco, Poppys Burgers, In and Out Burgers!!!

Anonymous said...

Nobody mentions Taco John's. They by far have all taco places beaten. I still prefer Del Taco over TB though. Atlanta gets overlooked a lot by regional fast food chains. No Jack in the Box, Whataburger, or In -n- Out burger here....

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