Pollo Tropical facts for kids

Pollo Tropical Express Restaurant in 2022

Pollo Tropical is a popular restaurant chain from South Florida. Its name means "Tropical Chicken" in Spanish. This chain specializes in tasty food inspired by the sunny flavors of Latin and Caribbean cooking.

Pollo Tropical started in 1988 and has its main office in Doral, Florida. It is famous for its chicken, which is marinated and then grilled over fire. They also serve many delicious side dishes like black beans, rice, and a special mojo roast pork.

The Story of Pollo Tropical

How It All Began

Pollo Tropical was started in 1988 by two brothers from Miami, Larry and Stuart Harris. Larry loved to cook and spent a lot of time studying cookbooks about Latin American food. He experimented on his backyard grill to create the perfect marinade for their chicken.

From the very beginning, the restaurants wanted customers to see their chicken being grilled. They did not use pre-made or pre-cooked items. There were also no microwave ovens in their kitchens.

Growing the Business

By 1993, Pollo Tropical had eight restaurants. The company then allowed people to buy shares in their business. This helped them grow even faster. In just one year, they opened 19 new locations. These new restaurants were in cities like New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Tampa. However, most of these new places closed within a year.

In 1998, Pollo Tropical was sold to a company called Carrols Restaurant Group. This company was, and still is, the biggest owner of Burger King restaurants in the United States. After this, Pollo Tropical expanded quickly. They had 69 company-owned restaurants and many more run by other owners in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The first Pollo Tropical in Puerto Rico opened in 1995. It was located in the city of Mayagüez.

Pollo Tropical Today

Today, Pollo Tropical is part of a larger company called Fiesta Restaurant Group. This group took over Pollo Tropical in 2012. Fiesta owns and operates the Pollo Tropical restaurants. Their main office has been in Doral, Florida, since 2017.

The company currently has over 140 restaurants in Florida. They also have five licensed restaurants on college campuses. Plus, there are 32 franchised locations in the Caribbean, Central America, South America, and Puerto Rico.

Delicious Food at Pollo Tropical

Grilled Chicken and More

Pollo Tropical is best known for its chicken, which is grilled over an open fire. But they offer many other tasty dishes inspired by the region. Some of these include Mojo Roast Pork, rice, beans, and Cheesy Yuca Bites. They also serve sweet Plantains.

In 2018, the restaurant chain started offering fried chicken too. This was in addition to their famous fire-grilled recipe.

Challenges and Focus on Florida

Staying Strong in Florida

Like many businesses, Pollo Tropical has faced some challenges. In 2017, the company decided to close some of its restaurants in Texas. This included locations in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Austin. They also closed some stores in Georgia and Tennessee.

The company realized it had grown "too far, too fast" in some areas. Instead of opening many new stores everywhere, they decided to focus on Florida. Florida is their main market, where their food is most popular. They planned to open only 8 to 10 new stores each year, all in Florida.

Pollo Tropical's grilled chicken and other dishes are seen as healthier choices. They are a good alternative to fried chicken, hamburgers, and french fries. However, outside of Florida, the unique taste and style of their food needed more explanation to attract new customers.

See also

• Chicken restaurant
• List of chicken restaurants