| Type | Wholly owned subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Casual dining restaurant |
| Founded | 1986 Alameda, California |
| Founder(s) | Warren Simmons, Sr. Warren "Scooter" Simmons, Jr. |
| Headquarters | Cypress, California, U.S. |
| Number of locations | About 100 |
| Area served | United States |
| Key people | Charles Rinker, President Nick Mayer, SVP Operations Steven Tanner, CFO |
| Products | Mexican-style cuisine |
| Revenue | $65.1 million (2007) |
| Owner(s) | Real Mex Restaurants |
| Employees | 3,000 (2007)[1] |
| Parent | Real Mex Restaurants[2] |
| Website | www.chevys.com |
Chevys Fresh Mex is a chain of Mexican-style casual dining restaurants located in the United States. The chain was founded in 1981 by Warren Simmon, Sr. and Warren "Scooter" Simmon, Jr. in Alameda, California. The chain's headquarters are currently located in Cypress, California.[3] The chain is owned by Real Mex Restaurants, Inc.
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The chain was founded in 1981 by Warren Simmon his son Scooter Simmon,[4] when they opened their first restaurant in Alameda, California.[5] It grew to 37 restaurants across California by August 1993, when it was acquired by PepsiCo subsidiary Taco Bell. When PepsiCo decided to exit the restaurant business in 1997, Chevys was sold to the investment group J.W. Childs Associates.[4] In 1999, Chevys purchased Rio Bravo Cantina, a poorly performing chain of Mexican restaurants with 66 locations in the United States, from Applebee's International for $59 million.[6]
However, business was poor at the Rio Bravo locations, and in 2003 Chevys' executives filed for Chapter Eleven bankruptcy protection.[4] For the next year and a half, Chevys operated as debtor in possession under Chapter Eleven. In January 2005, Chevys and Fuzio Universal Pasta were acquired by Real Mex Restaurants, Inc., the Long Beach, California-based parent company of El Torito Restaurants and Acapulco Mexican Restaurants.[2] Because of that, Real Mex Restaurants became the largest operator of full-service Mexican restaurants in the United States.
On October 3, 2011, Real Mex Restaurants filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced that it was putting itself up for sale, citing the poor economy as a reason. As part of the bankruptcy filing, no plans were announced to shutter restaurants or lay off staff.[7] Despite this, in December of 2011, a number of Chevys were closed, including the following locations: Anaheim Hills, CA; Livermore, CA; Pleasanton, CA; Tracy, CA; Redwood City, CA; San Francisco-Van Ness Avenue, CA; San Jose-Coleman Avenue, CA; San Jose-S. Winchester Blvd, CA; Champaign, IL; and Lawrenceville, NJ.[8],[9]
As of late December, 2011, there are about 75 Chevys restaurants located throughout the United States. Many of these locations are owned by the company; however, some are franchisee-owned.[5],[10]
The chain sells a variety of Mexican-style foods, including tortilla chips, salsa, guacamole, fruit-flavored margaritas, alcoholic beverages, fajitas, tortillas, enchiladas, and burritos.[5][11] Approximately 70 percent of Chevys revenue comes from dinner sales, while lunch accounts for roughly 30 percent of sales.[12]