NEW YORK — El Pollo Loco is finally preparing to bring its fire-grilled chicken to New York, signing its first lease in Queens and laying out plans for 15 restaurants across the area over the next five years as the California-born chain tries to transform itself into a truly national brand.
But there is one important detail:
the first New York restaurant is not open yet.
The company says its first Queens location is targeted to open in mid-2027.
El Pollo Loco has also agreed to terms for three development agreements covering 15 New York-area restaurants over five years, with expansion led by one longtime franchise partner and two new franchisees.
The move marks one of the company’s biggest geographic bets in years.
For decades, El Pollo Loco has been heavily concentrated in the western United States.
Now it is preparing to test whether its signature citrus-marinated, fire-grilled chicken can compete in one of America’s toughest restaurant markets.
QUEENS WILL GET THE FIRST RESTAURANT
El Pollo Loco confirmed that its first New York lease has been signed in Queens.
The company has not yet publicly released the exact street address.
Opening is targeted for:
mid-2027.
That timing gives the chain and its franchise partners months to complete:
Construction
Permits
Hiring
Training
and
Local marketing.
Additional New York locations will follow under the broader five-year development plan.
15 RESTAURANTS ARE PLANNED OVER FIVE YEARS
The company has agreed to three development deals covering:
15 restaurants
across the New York area over the next:
five years.
That means New York is not being treated as a one-store experiment.
El Pollo Loco is entering the market with a multi-unit strategy from the beginning.
One of the franchise partners is already an experienced El Pollo Loco operator.
Two others are new to the brand.
That mix gives the company both:
Existing system experience
and
New local expansion capital.
EL POLLO LOCO WANTS TO BECOME A NATIONAL BRAND
For most of its history, El Pollo Loco has been strongly associated with California and the Southwest.
The company opened its first U.S. restaurant in Los Angeles in 1980.
By the end of 2025, it operated:
503 domestic restaurants
across nine states.
By July 2026, that had grown to:
511 restaurants in 10 states
after entering Idaho.
The New York move would extend the brand much farther east and represent a major step toward national expansion.
IDAHO WAS THE 10TH STATE
Earlier this year, El Pollo Loco entered its 10th U.S. state with a restaurant in Meridian, Idaho.
That opening was another milestone in the company’s effort to rebuild unit growth.
For years, the chain’s geographic footprint expanded relatively slowly.
Now management is accelerating development through franchising.
Its growth strategy explicitly includes:
“Drive Unit Growth Again with National Expansion.”
New York is the clearest evidence yet that the company intends to take that goal seriously.
THE CHAIN HAS MORE THAN 500 U.S. LOCATIONS
El Pollo Loco now operates more than 500 company-owned and franchised restaurants in the United States.
Its current states include:
California
Nevada
Arizona
Texas
Utah
Louisiana
New Mexico
Washington
Colorado
and
Idaho.
California remains by far its largest market.
That concentration creates both strength and risk.
The brand is highly recognizable in the West.
But it has far less awareness in large eastern markets.
New York will test whether the concept travels well.
EL POLLO LOCO ALSO HAS A PHILIPPINE PRESENCE
The company’s footprint is not limited to the United States.
As of the end of 2025, El Pollo Loco also had:
eight licensed restaurants in the Philippines.
Those locations are not included in the company’s domestic store count.
The Philippine presence is notable because it shows the brand has already operated outside its traditional U.S. base.
But New York presents a very different challenge.
It is one of the most competitive and expensive restaurant markets in the world.
WHY NEW YORK MATTERS SO MUCH
New York gives restaurant brands enormous visibility.
Success there can help a regional chain prove it can operate in dense urban markets.
But the city also presents difficult economics.
Operators face:
High rents
High wages
Construction costs
Intense competition
and
Demanding consumers.
El Pollo Loco will compete not only with national quick-service brands but also with:
Local chicken restaurants
Latin and Mexican concepts
Fast-casual chains
and
Thousands of independent restaurants.
That makes New York a difficult place to enter—but potentially a powerful place to succeed.
THE COMPANY IS ENTERING NEW YORK FROM A STRONGER POSITION
The expansion is happening while El Pollo Loco’s financial performance is improving.
In the second quarter of 2026, the company reported:
3.9% systemwide comparable restaurant sales growth.
Total quarterly revenue increased to:
$129.6 million
from:
$125.8 million
a year earlier.
Net income rose to:
$12.8 million
from:
$7.1 million.
The company also raised its full-year outlook.
Those numbers give management more confidence to accelerate growth.
RESTAURANT MARGINS ALSO IMPROVED
Restaurant contribution margin reached:
19.5%
of company-operated restaurant revenue in Q2.
That compared with:
19.1%
a year earlier.
The improvement came from:
Higher comparable sales
Better operating efficiency
and
Higher menu pricing.
Margins matter enormously when expanding a restaurant chain.
A concept can only grow sustainably if new restaurants generate enough cash to justify construction and franchise investment.
SALES GROWTH IS STILL PARTLY PRICE-DRIVEN
There is an important nuance in the Q2 sales numbers.
Company-operated comparable sales increased:
3.0%.
But the increase came from:
4.2% higher average check
partially offset by:
1.1% lower transactions.
Franchise comparable sales increased:
4.5%.
That reflected:
5.3% higher average check
while transactions declined:
0.8%.
So customers were spending more per visit.
But traffic was still slightly lower.
That means El Pollo Loco’s turnaround has not fully solved the restaurant industry’s biggest challenge:
getting more people through the door.
MANAGEMENT SAYS TRAFFIC GROWTH IS A PRIORITY
CEO Liz Williams has repeatedly emphasized sustainable traffic growth.
The company’s strategy is not simply to raise prices.
It wants to:
Increase customer frequency
Attract new customers
and
Increase spending per visit.
New markets are one way to create growth without depending entirely on higher prices at existing restaurants.
New York therefore serves two purposes.
It expands the brand geographically.
And it creates an entirely new pool of potential customers.
THE CHAIN IS BETTING ON “PROTEIN-FORWARD” DEMAND
El Pollo Loco is also entering New York at a moment when restaurant companies are emphasizing protein more aggressively.
Its core product—citrus-marinated, fire-grilled chicken—fits directly into that trend.
Consumers increasingly seek meals marketed around:
Higher protein
Fresh ingredients
and
Less heavily fried food.
El Pollo Loco positions itself between traditional fast food and fast casual.
The company calls that category:
“QSR+.”
The idea is to offer the speed and convenience of quick service while emphasizing preparation methods associated with higher-quality fast casual restaurants.
THE FOOD IS PREPARED IN OPEN KITCHENS
El Pollo Loco’s operating model differs from many major burger chains.
The company says chicken is:
Citrus-marinated
and
Fire-grilled in restaurants.
Employees also prepare items such as:
Salsa
Guacamole
and
Cilantro dressing
in-store.
Its menu includes:
Chicken meals
Bowls
Burritos
Salads
Tostadas
and
Quesadillas.
Open grills are visible to customers in many locations.
The company considers that cooking process one of its main competitive advantages.
NEW YORK CUSTOMERS ALREADY KNOW CHICKEN — BUT NOT NECESSARILY EL POLLO LOCO
Chicken is one of the strongest categories in U.S. fast food.
Chains such as:
Chick-fil-A
Popeyes
KFC
Wingstop
and
Raising Cane’s
have all benefited from strong consumer demand.
But El Pollo Loco occupies a different niche.
Its product is grilled rather than primarily fried.
Its menu also incorporates Mexican-inspired flavors.
The challenge is translating that differentiation into brand recognition.
New Yorkers may already have dozens of chicken options nearby.
El Pollo Loco must give them a reason to choose one more.
THE COMPANY IS ALSO REFRESHING ITS LEADERSHIP TEAM
New York expansion is coming with management changes.
El Pollo Loco appointed Damon Thomas as chief operating officer.
Thomas previously held senior operational roles at:
Shake Shack
and
Raising Cane’s.
Both companies have significant experience expanding restaurant concepts into new markets.
His role will include strengthening:
Operations
Guest experience
and
Systems needed for growth.
A FORMER COFFEE BEAN EXECUTIVE IS LEADING DEVELOPMENT
El Pollo Loco also appointed Tara Hinkle as chief development officer.
Hinkle joined in July 2026 and brings nearly two decades of experience in:
Franchising
Restaurant development
and
Operational planning.
She previously served as president and head of the Americas for:
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.
She also worked in franchise strategy roles at:
Taco Bell
and
Starbucks.
Her experience will be particularly important because El Pollo Loco’s expansion depends heavily on finding strong franchise partners and good real estate.
FRANCHISEES WILL DRIVE MUCH OF THE GROWTH
Franchising is central to the New York strategy.
Franchisees provide much of the capital needed to:
Build stores
Hire workers
Operate restaurants
and
Expand locally.
The parent company collects fees and royalties while avoiding the full capital burden of opening every restaurant itself.
That allows restaurant companies to grow faster.
But it also creates risk.
The quality of the brand depends heavily on the quality of the franchise operators.
Poorly run stores can damage customer perception across an entire market.
EL POLLO LOCO IS TRYING TO IMPROVE UNIT ECONOMICS FIRST
One reason management has not expanded faster historically is the importance of restaurant economics.
A franchisee is unlikely to build aggressively unless the expected return is attractive.
El Pollo Loco has therefore focused on:
Improving restaurant-level margins
Strengthening operations
Refreshing the menu
and
Building digital engagement.
Management argues that stronger unit economics now make national expansion more viable.
The New York agreements are an early test of that thesis.
THE COMPANY EXPECTS MORE OPENINGS IN 2026
For fiscal 2026, El Pollo Loco previously guided toward:
three to four new company-operated restaurants
in California and Texas,
plus
15 to 16 new franchised restaurants.
During the first half of 2026, franchisees opened six restaurants, while the company opened two.
That means the system is already growing faster than in several previous years.
In 2025, franchisees opened only eight new domestic locations and the company opened one.
The pace is clearly accelerating.
BUT THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY IS DIFFICULT RIGHT NOW
El Pollo Loco is expanding while many restaurant chains are doing the opposite.
Across the United States, brands including:
Wendy’s
Starbucks
Pizza Hut
Jack in the Box
and
Papa John’s
have been closing underperforming restaurants.
Consumers remain highly sensitive to:
Menu prices
Inflation
and
Value.
Restaurant operators also face:
Higher wages
Food costs
Insurance expenses
and
Construction costs.
That environment makes aggressive expansion risky.
NEW YORK MAKES THOSE COST PRESSURES EVEN BIGGER
New York magnifies many of those challenges.
Rent and labor costs can be substantially higher than in suburban Western markets.
Locations may also require smaller footprints and different layouts.
Drive-thrus—which are common at many El Pollo Loco restaurants—are harder to develop in dense urban neighborhoods.
That means the company may need to adapt its traditional restaurant model.
A successful Queens restaurant may look operationally different from an El Pollo Loco in California or Texas.
DIGITAL BUSINESS WILL MATTER
El Pollo Loco has made “Digital First” one of the five pillars of its growth strategy.
That includes:
Mobile ordering
Loyalty
Delivery
and
Digital marketing.
Those tools become particularly important in New York.
Customers increasingly discover and order restaurant meals through smartphones rather than simply noticing a roadside sign.
A strong digital business can also allow smaller urban locations to generate significant sales from:
Takeout
and
Delivery.
That reduces dependence on large dining rooms.
THE FIRST NEW YORK LOCATION WILL BE A BRAND TEST
A single Queens restaurant cannot determine the future of the company.
But the first opening will generate valuable information.
Management will be able to measure:
Customer traffic
Average check
Delivery mix
Menu preferences
Operating costs
and
Brand awareness.
Those results could influence where the next 14 planned restaurants go.
If demand is strong, expansion may accelerate.
If economics disappoint, development could become more cautious.
NEW YORK COULD OPEN THE DOOR TO THE REST OF THE EAST COAST
The larger opportunity goes beyond 15 New York restaurants.
A successful New York launch could create momentum for markets such as:
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Massachusetts
Maryland
and
Washington, D.C.
That is why management describes New York as an important milestone in becoming a national brand.
For El Pollo Loco, the real value may not be the first 15 restaurants.
It may be proving the concept works thousands of miles from California.
THE BIGGER STORY: EL POLLO LOCO IS TESTING WHETHER A WEST COAST BRAND CAN GO NATIONAL
El Pollo Loco has been selling fire-grilled chicken in the United States since 1980.
But more than four decades later, it is still heavily concentrated in the West.
That is about to change.
The company has signed its first New York lease.
Three franchise agreements call for 15 area restaurants.
Comparable sales are positive.
Restaurant margins are improving.
And management is building a leadership team specifically designed to accelerate expansion.
But New York is unforgiving.
Consumers have endless choices.
Restaurant costs are high.
And brand loyalty has to be earned from scratch.
That means the Queens opening in mid-2027 will represent much more than another restaurant.
It will test whether El Pollo Loco can stop being primarily a Western chain — and finally become the national brand it has spent years trying to build.
