Taco Bell Plans Urban Cantinas

Taco Bell (Irvine, Calif.) announced that it has plans to open between 300 and 350 new cantina locations by 2022. These new stores will be primarily located in urban areas (including Detroit, Pittsburgh, Nashville and New York) and will not feature drive-thru windows, which accounts for 55 to 70 percent of its revenue in already-existing stores.

Instead, the new “urban in-line” stores will be designed to fit the urban lifestyle and, consequently, will also feature an alcohol menu, serving beer, wine, sangria and slushie-style alcoholic drinks. “People everywhere, but in cities especially, like to go out for a drink,” reports Food & Wine.

Mike Grams, Taco Bell’s chief operating officer explained that the chain “isn’t afraid to try new things.”