Rusty Taco

Rusty Taco’s fast-casual atmosphere and street-style taco menu last year drew the attention of casual-dining company Buffalo Wild Wings Inc., which bought a majority interest in the brand and is lending its expertise to the seven-unit chain. Dallas-based Rusty Taco, founded in 2010 in a renovated gas station, is tapping the 1,045-unit Buffalo Wild Wings’ knowledge in real estate and development to prepare the brand for growth. Rusty Taco now has five restaurants in Dallas, one in Denver and three in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, which is also home to Buffalo Wild Wings. Two of the Dallas stores are corporate-owned and the other five are franchised. That original location, which CEO Steve Dunn founded in Dallas with the late Russell “Rusty” Fenton, was 1,900 square feet, and subsequent stores have been in the range of 2,200 square feet to 2,500 square feet, with inside seating of 70 to 100. Co-founder Fenton died in June 2013 after a three-year battle with kidney cancer.