El Pollo Loco stands for “The Crazy Chicken” in Spanish, and this restaurant was founded in Guasave, Mexico in 1975.  The long term success of the restaurant comes from the unique preparation of the chicken they use.  It is fresh; they use special herbs, spices, and citrus juices that are passed down from the founding family to the current owners.  By 1979 they had many more restaurants and people were lining up around the block for the first American El Pollo Loco in 1980.  This was opened on Alvarado Street in Los Angeles.  Today the headquarters is in Costa Mesa, California and it is a privately held company owned by Trimaran Capital Partners.

The menu is all about chicken at El Pollo Loco and they start with a fresh marinade before they flame-grill the chicken as well.  This is a unique blend of herbs and spices and they only use the freshest and most natural chicken possible.  They hand cut the chicken and serve it fresh off the grill and this is a recipe that cannot be found anywhere else.  They also have made to order burritos, the original pollo bowl, salads, taquitos, chicken tortilla soup, tacos, and much more.  They are known as a fast casual Mexican restaurant that serves food that is made fresh daily.

El Pollo Loco has many restaurant franchise opportunities in many different areas and they estimate that you will need an initial investment of $427,850 up to $802,350 per unit that is opened.  This does not include the real estate costs and the franchise fee is $40,000 per unit.  They require that any franchisee has to have at least $1 million in total net worth and $300,000 in liquid assets for each unit.  They do require at least five years of restaurant experience and they also require that you live in the area that is being developed.