Corpus Christi’s newest Tex-Mex restaurant should look a lot like this Chuy’s on U.S. 183 in Austin, the restaurant chain’s hometown. Courtesy photo
As the eighth largest city in the state of Texas, Corpus Christi is next on the list of places where Chuy’s Mexican Food restaurants wants to build. Chuy’s Holdings Inc, a Tex-Mex restaurant chain based in Austin, confirmed it is planning to open a new restaurant in Corpus Christi by late spring 2016.
No paperwork has been filed with the city planners yet, and no location revealed, but Michael Hatcher, vice president of real estate and development for the company says Chuy’s is looking to add to its 67 full-service restaurants by locating in the sparkling city by the sea. Chuy’s has restaurants in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. About half of the total restaurants are in Texas.
The restaurant is known for its eclectic decor and fresh ingredients that make up a unique take on Tex-Mex. Recipes come from a mix of flavors from Mexican border towns, the Rio Grande Valley, New Mexico, deep South Texas and Austin. It began in Austin in 1982 on Barton Springs Road in what was once a barbecue joint. It began to expand to other states in 2009 when it opened in Franklin, Tennessee, just outside of Nashville.
Founders Mike Young and John Zapp decorated on the “cheap,” as the legend goes, using wooden fish, hubcaps, and other found objects — seemingly anything that shined or sparkled — to attach to walls, tables, ceilings and even floors and doors.
Economic strength
The company’s third quarter earnings report bested previous Wall Street forecasts, with reported revenue of $739 million. That’s a 15.3 percent increase from the $64.1 million posted in the third quarter of 2014. Net income increased 31 percent to $4.1 million or 25 cents per share. This time last year, shareholders earned an additional 19 cents per share.
“Our third quarter results included double-digit revenue growth driven by ongoing restaurant expansion as well as our 21st consecutive quarter of comparable restaurant sales growth,” said Steve Hislop, Chuy’s president and CEO said in the earnings report. “Our brand continues to resonate well with our guests through our made-from-scratch, Tex Mex-inspired menu, commitment to value and upbeat, irreverent atmosphere.”
Eleven new Chuy’s opened in the last 12 months. In 2015, eight new restaurants opened, which included only one in Texas, in El Paso.
“While changes to our development strategy resulted in opening more stores during the last quarter of the year, we have already filled the majority of our 2016 pipeline and expect a return to a more balanced development schedule next year,” Hislop reported.
