---
title: "Cilantro Taco Grill Partners with Armando Christian Perez, aka Pitbull, and Fransmart"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/874619e6-12aa-463b-af94-43732b361bb9
source: "Franchising.com"
original_url: https://www.franchising.com/news/20230816_cilantro_taco_grill_partners_with_armando_christian_perez_aka_pitbull_and_f.html
category: "Mexican"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Mexican"
published: 2023-08-16T12:00:00.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T22:32:49.721Z
image: https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504674900247-0877df9cc836?w=1600&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop
---

# Cilantro Taco Grill Partners with Armando Christian Perez, aka Pitbull, and Fransmart

**TL;DR:** Cilantro Taco Grill has partnered with Armando Christian Perez, aka Pitbull, and Fransmart to fuel its franchise growth. The partnership aims to grow the brand, which was founded by Temoc Morfin in 2013.

*originally published in Franchising.com on 2023-08-16. [Read the original](https://www.franchising.com/news/20230816_cilantro_taco_grill_partners_with_armando_christian_perez_aka_pitbull_and_f.html).*

## Story

Chicago, IL - Cilantro Taco Grill, the Mexican immigrant-founded fast casual restaurant, has partnered with new investment partners to fuel the brand’s franchise growth. Armando Christian Perez (Pitbull) and Fransmart will grow what they believe is the next generation of Mexican fast casual concepts.

“I invested in Cilantro because I was inspired by Temoc and Gerardo Morfin’s stories of struggle and stride for a slice of the American pie,” said Perez. “I relate to those with an underdog mentality because I am also a person who fights and works hard for the American Dream.”

“Armando and I had been searching to find a Latin-owned restaurant with a business model that we could help grow when we were introduced to Cilantro Taco Grill,” said Fransmart CEO Dan Rowe.

Cilantro Taco Grill was founded in 2013 by Temoc Morfin, who was inspired to bring the family’s treasured flavors and recipes to the masses by his father, ‘Don Javi’ Morfin. The family’s patriarch, his wife and 11 children immigrated to the USA despite all the dangers of travel, weather elements, and language barriers. The brand has been thriving since the first location opened in 2013.

“We started the restaurant as a tribute to the dedication and love my father had for us and for food,” said Temoc Morfin, founder of Cilantro Taco Grill. “We started with recipes and flavors we’ve loved since we were kids and have built a brand that our customers trust as a source of authentic Mexican flavors.”

## Entities

- Franchising.com (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- franchise growth (topic)
- partnership (topic)
- Fransmart (company)
- investment (topic)
- Dan Rowe (person)
- Cilantro Taco Grill (company)
- Temoc Morfin (person)
- mexican fast casual (topic)
- Fransmart investment in Cilantro Taco Grill (deal)

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Originally reported by Franchising.com (https://www.franchising.com/news/20230816_cilantro_taco_grill_partners_with_armando_christian_perez_aka_pitbull_and_f.html). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/874619e6-12aa-463b-af94-43732b361bb9).