Del Taco, the fast food chain founded in the California desert, has been sold to a suburban Bay Area company in a $115 million cash deal.
The Del Taco sale, finalized on Thursday, Oct. 16, saw Jack in the Box Inc. relinquish control to Fremont’s Yadav Enterprises Inc., a restaurant franchisee company that operates more than 300 various restaurant locations, including Jack in the Box, Denny’s and El Pollo Loco, and owns Bay Area-based Nick the Greek. A total of 550 Del Taco stores were part of the transaction, which is expected to close in January 2026, according to a news release.
“This divestiture is an important step in returning to simplicity, and we look forward to focusing on our core Jack in the Box brand,” Jack in the Box CEO Lance Tucker said in the news release. “After a robust process, we are confident we have entered into a transaction with the right steward for Del Taco in its next chapter of evolution. We wish Del Taco success as they enter this next chapter.”
The sale comes amid a restructuring plan for Jack in the Box. In April, the company announced the closure of 150 to 200 underperforming Jack in the Box stores as part of the chain’s “Jack on Track” plan to improve “long-term financial performance across its restaurant system.” Though Jack in the Box is selling Del Taco for significantly less than it paid in 2022 (a whopping $585 million), proceeds from the Thursday sale are expected to help the chain pay off its debt and transition into a “simpler, asset-light business model,” the company said.
Yadav Enterprises was founded in Fremont in 1989 under CEO Anil Yadav, who previously worked at Jack in the Box making tacos in 1984, Nation’s Restaurant News reports. Over the years, the company slowly gained franchise deals with fast food chains that also include Corner Bakery and TGI Fridays. In 2021, Yadav Enterprises operated more than 200 Jack in the Box locations.
