Fresno is getting a new Taco Bell — and it’s the first of its kind in town
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- Taco Bell signed a lease for space at Barstow and First in the Headliner Center.
- The new Fresno Taco Bell will be the city’s first location built without a drive‑thru.
- Plans were submitted and the restaurant could open in the first three months of next year.
Fresno is a getting a new Taco Bell.
The company has signed a lease to move into the Headliner Shopping Center at Barstow Avenue and First Street, into a building just behind the Valero gas station.
It will take over a space not far from Hoover High School.
But this won’t be like other Taco Bell locations in town.
It will not have a drive-thru, said Patrick Monreal, who represented the landlord in lease negotiations and is president of The Saito Company.
“It’s a new concept with no drive-thru,” he said. “It will be the first one here in Fresno for that model.”
Taco Bell has done this in other communities, noted Gustavo Romero, regional vice president of operations for Dallas-based Pacific Bells, which owns the local franchises.
“There’s some schools there; it services the community that way on foot,” he said. “A lot of (customers) don’t have vehicles.”
The location will have a dining room. It will focus on supplying DoorDash, Grub Hub and other food delivery services, he said.
Taco Bell has been increasingly opening restaurants without drive-thrus in urban locations. Drive-thrus can be expensive to build and take an extra layer of permits.
It will not be a cantina serving alcohol, but instead have the fast-food restaurant’s traditional menu.
There is a possibility it will be a Live Más Café, although that’s not 100%, Romero said. Those are Taco Bells that also have a full coffee menu with cold brew options.
It will be a while before the Taco Bell opens. Plans have been submitted to the city, but must work their way through the approval process. Monreal estimates it could open in the first three months of next year.
This restaurant is not a move for any other Taco Bell locations. And no other existing businesses in the building, including Wah’s Kitchen Chinese restaurant, will have to move or close, Monreal said.
