How Torchy’s Tacos is rebuilding its marketing mojo

Torchy's introduced nachos for the first time earlier this year as part of its marketing overhaul.

That may seem a bit unusual for a taco chain that generates a 12% alcohol sales mix. Few things go together as well as Margaritas and nachos, after all.

Zooming out, however, the timing makes plenty of sense. Torchy’s is in the middle of a marketing renaissance of sorts.

Founder Mike Rypka brought Paul Macaluso on board last year to serve as CEO and charged him with adjusting the chain’s marketing strategy after the chain had entered several markets unsuccessfully, leading to some closures of underperforming stores.

“We entered all these states and didn’t put a lot behind them in terms of brand awareness,” Rypka said during a recent interview. “If we were going to continue to grow, which has always been the plan, we’ve got to have that as a base so we’re putting our best foot forward in new markets.”

It’s no coincidence that Macaluso cut his teeth in marketing roles throughout the industry, including at brands like Moe’s Southwest Grill, Sonic, Burger King, and Taco Bell.

When he came on board at Torchy’s, he agreed that marketing was “90% of the brand’s issue.” So, he hired Jennifer Anderson in July 2025 as chief marketing officer. Anderson’s previous stints were at heavyweights like Raising Cane’s, MOD Pizza, and Darden.

“I was lucky enough to find (Anderson) and she put field marketing back into place and understood digital, social, the architecture of the menu. By the fourth quarter of last year, we turned the corner in sales,” Macaluso said.

In addition to “putting field marketing back into place,” Anderson’s initial priorities were to create a sense of community and to better tell the story of Torchy’s chef-inspired menu.

“People connect over our food, and we want our restaurants to be that community hub where people can connect,” she said.

Torchy’s is culinary-focused, so the “food connection” piece has always been there. Anderson inherited the chain’s signature tacos, including the best-selling Trailer Park and seasonal offerings that rotate in and out of a Taco of the Month promotion. But she’s pushed the chain further into consumers’ consideration sets with campaigns like Hooky Hour (half-priced beer and house Margaritas from 2-5 p.m. Monday through Friday) and the Taco Two Step value offering (two tacos, chips, salsa, and a drink for $9.95).

A snack-sized order of the new nachos are also a part of Hooky Hour, featuring fried tortilla chips and green chile queso layered with pico de gallo, guacamole, and sour cream. They can also be topped with fajita chicken, steak, green chile pork or brisket.

Anderson said there are more ideas in the pipeline to test and roll out next year and she has ambitions to talk more about Torchy’s beverage program, too.

“This brand has so many amazing aspects to it that I really want to be able to tell that story and focus on who we are and stay true to who we are as we continue to grow,” she said. “It had been a while since we had directly engaged with guests outside of food, and that has to be our main connection, but there’s so many more stories to tell.”

Torchy’s used to be heavily involved in its communities, for instance, hosting events, sponsoring teams, etc., including and especially in its hometown of Austin, Texas. But it had stepped away from that for a few years and Anderson has some urgency to bring it back, and not just to raise brand awareness but because it goes back to the brand's roots — Rypka founded Torchy's in 2006, delivering tacos from a food trailer and red Vespa.

“(Rypka) is our first field marketer. His priority was a community-centric approach to bring the brand to life. It’s how we got started,” Anderson said.

Anderson said the company is also investing in and testing several media channels as well as social media, and has partnered with a variety of local influencers.

“I would say we're very social first,” she said. “We have a lot of personality, so it's just a really great way for us to bring our brand to life, and we have a lot of fun with it.”

As these marketing pieces continue to fall into place for Torchy’s, Anderson said the biggest challenge is figuring out which story to tell first and to do so in a way that resonates with customers.

“There so many stories that guests don't know about us,” she said. “One of the things brands tend to do a lot is talk to themselves. For us, it’s about bringing people along on our journey and letting them experience it with us and not just telling them things.”