TL;DR
Mike's Red Tacos has signed an 18-unit franchise agreement with JM Foods to expand across Los Angeles and Orange County. The deal will bring the San Diego-based birria concept to Southern California, with JM Foods led by Victor Fiss and John Thomas.
Mike's Red Tacos of San Diego has signed an 18-unit franchise agreement with JM Foods to expand across Los Angeles and Orange County.
Long Beach, California-based JM Foods is led by restaurant operators Victor Fiss and John Thomas, who own and operate 25 Jersey Mike's locations throughout Southern California, with eight additional units in development.
"Their track record of running high-performing locations and growing thoughtfully over time gives us tremendous confidence that they'll introduce Mike's the right way, with a focus on quality, hospitality and creating a destination guests are excited to visit again and again," Mike's Red Tacos president Vince Montanelli said in a press release.
Mike's Red Tacos launched as a food truck in 2021, specializing in beef birria tacos. The company opened brick-and-mortar restaurants in Claremont Mesa, Point Loma and Mira Mesa, California, between 2022 and early 2026.
The fast-casual brand said it has more than 200 locations planned or under development across markets, including Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New England and Texas. Earlier this year, Mike's Red Tacos announced that restaurant industry veterans Andrew Feghali and Dave's Hot Chicken's former CEO Bill Phelps backed the concept as early-stage investors and advisors.
In this story
This story was originally published in FastCasual on June 2, 2026. Burnaze summarizes and links to the original reporting.
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