There aren’t many investors willing to bet on small, emerging brands. But a relative newcomer to the space is Uncommon Brands.

Based in Dallas and backed by Crux Capital, Uncommon Brands was founded in late 2023 following the acquisition of Fuego Tortilla Grill, a fast-casual oversized-taco concept open 24 hours that had four locations at the time, all in Texas.

A year later, Uncommon Brands added a second concept: The Rice Box, a “Blade Runner”-inspired futuristic fast casual based in Houston, offering classic Chinese-American dishes.

CEO Garrett Mills said the group is on the lookout for more early-stage brands to add to the portfolio. The group has been building the infrastructure for growth, most recently hiring two former executives from the &pizza brand: Douglas Kwong (former head of marketing at &pizza) is the new vice president of marketing; and Lucious Kimble III (former corporate controller at &pizza) is now corporate controller at Uncommon Brands.

Mills said both brands have jumped right into growth.

Fuego Tortilla, for example, doubled in unit count in about eight months following the acquisition by Uncommon Brands. The now eight locations include outlets in Louisiana and Arkansas.

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Fuego Tortilla Grill has grown to eight units. |Photo courtesy of Uncommon Brands.

The 24-hour, heavily drive-thru concept works particularly well in college towns near campuses, Mills said. Since the acquisition, the menu has been trimmed a bit, while keeping the focus on big portions and offering value. The chain also added beer and margaritas, frozen and on the rocks, at an attractive $5 price point.

Uncommon Brands has updated branding, with a new logo and digital identity, as well as adding modern touches to the interior.

Mills declined to offer sales, but he said, “At Uncommon Brands, we target and only want to invest in brands that we feel have kind of elite top-quartile unit-level economics, and both of our first investments certainly fall in that category.”

In the case of Fuego, the founder was looking to retire and turned the reins over to Uncommon Brands.

For The Rice Box, however, founder John Peterson was looking for a strategic partner. Peterson is still leading the brand.

The Rice Box has five units with No. 6 coming soon to Clear Lake, outside Houston. Units are also coming to Austin and the Dallas-Fort Worth market, likely next year.

Mills calls this concept “the Chinese takeout bar of the future.”

It’s designed to evoke a Tokyo streetscape at night, with a lot of neon and the “retro futuristic” industrial feel of movies like “Alien,” or “Blade Runner,” Mills said.

On the menu are classics like General Tso’s chicken, chow fun noodles, and crab rangoon. Mills noted that the dishes are made to order, “not scoop-and-serve, like some competitors do,” a likely reference to Panda Express.

Rice Box
The Rice Box has grown around Houston, but will soon move to Austin, Texas. | Photo courtesy of Uncommon Brands.

The new Clear Lake location is near Johnson Space Center, and it will have a unique design with “Pickup Reactors,” or slots that drivers can pull into to pick up their orders.

Guests can dine in, but the concept is heavily off-premises, and the dishes travel well, he added.

Mills declined to reveal what might be next. The group generally focuses on concepts with fewer than 15 locations, in the fast-casual space, with strong unit economics.

“Founder-led is great, but not required, if someone is looking to pass the torch,” said Mills.

The group is also geographically agnostic, though Mills and partner Wayne Moore of Crux Capital are bullish on Texas.

Mills, who previously led Chandler Restaurant Group, a restaurant holding company based in Oklahoma with more than 60 restaurants, said the group’s strength is the seasoned team of industry veterans behind it. Among them are Pete Botonis, vice president of operations (formerly of Velvet Taco and Pei Wei).

“It’s people who have been there, done that,” he said. “We are restaurant people investing in restaurants, as opposed to investors investing in restaurants.”

Source https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/emerging-brands/uncommon-brands-unleashes-growth-two-brands-fuego-tortilla-grill-rice-box