Chronic Tacos franchise
2026 filing · April 13, 2026Fewer locationsShares sales figures
Chronic Tacos at a glance
A taco restaurant serving Mexican food made to order for dine-in, takeout and delivery. At the end of 2025 there were 25 Chronic Tacos locations in the US, 23 franchised and 2 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 2006
- 20 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Aliso Viejo, California
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $284K–$909K
- A single Chronic Tacos restaurant
- Franchise fee
- $30,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 6% + minimum
- The greater of 6% of gross sales or $600 a week, paid weekly
- Brand fund
- Yes
- 2% of gross sales or $100 a week, whichever is more, paid weekly; it can rise to 3% or $300
- Renewal fee
- $5,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 25
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 23
- Company-owned
- 2
- Change in 3 years
- −13
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 5
- Most in California, Canada and Florida
Support and records
- Lawsuits disclosed
- None
- Franchisor revenue, 2025
- $1.54M
- The company, not one location
- Franchisor net income
- $93K
- Latest filing
- Apr 13, 2026
- 2026 filing
From Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc’s 2026 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 230; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Franchisor revenue is the company that sells the franchises (royalties, fees and anything else it earns), not what a location makes.
Where it ranks
Chronic Tacos among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Chronic Tacos | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $596,500 | Costs more than 70% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $30,000 | Lower than 72% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 6% | Higher than 35% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 25 | More than 53% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $958,900 | Higher than 60% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 1.6× | Higher than 51% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Chronic Tacos franchise costs
Opening a single Chronic Tacos restaurant costs an estimated $284,000 to $909,000. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are leasehold construction ($110,000 to $500,000) and equipment and furniture ($70,000 to $200,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permits and Licenses | $3,000 | $8,000 | |
| Leasehold Construction | $110,000 | $500,000 | |
| Signage | $7,500 | $10,000 | |
| POS System/Audio/Video/Digital Menus | $8,000 | $20,000 | |
| Equipment and Furniture | $70,000 | $200,000 | |
| Opening Inventory | $10,000 | $20,000 | |
| Uniforms | $500 | ||
| Grand Opening Advertising | $3,000 | $7,000 | |
| Restaurant Premises (Lease Deposit and First 3 Months’ Rent) | $15,000 | $48,000 | |
| Insurance - Liability & Workers’ compensation (initial deposit) | $5,000 | $10,000 | |
| Legal Fees/Organizational Expenses | $2,000 | $5,500 | |
| Initial Franchise Fee | $30,000 | ||
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $20,000 | $50,000 | |
| Total | $284,000 | $909,000 | |
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, page 16
Chronic Tacos franchise fee
The franchise fee is $30,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, page 9
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | The greater of 6% of gross sales or $600 a week, paid weekly. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2% of gross sales or $100 a week, whichever is more, paid weekly; it can rise to 3% or $300. |
| Technology Fee | $50 - $200 per week |
| Renewal Fee (Franchise Agreement) | $5,000 |
| Local Advertising | Currently, 1% of Gross Sales of the Taco Restaurant |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, page 10
Other fees as filed, from pages 11–14. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Chronic Tacos publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average sales
- $958,900
- Median sales
- $908,464
Yearly figures for 2025, covering reporting franchisee-owned restaurants, 2025 (19 locations). The average is about 1.6 times the midpoint of the cost to open.
Sales are what a location takes in before rent, payroll, royalties and other costs, not what its owner keeps.
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, pages 51–53
SBA loans to Chronic Tacos franchisees
Lenders approved 11 SBA 7(a) loans for Chronic Tacos franchisees from 2015 to 2023, $4.15M in all. Of the 6 that have ended, 4 were paid in full and 2 were charged off. The other 5 haven’t ended yet.
A charged-off loan is one written off as uncollectible. See SBA franchise loans for how 7(a) and 504 loans work.
Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan data, as of September 30, 2026
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2025 / 2023–2025. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Chronic Tacos | Typical Mexican food brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −12% / −36% | −2% / +2.3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 12% / 42% | 3.3% / 11% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 2.8% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical Mexican food brand is the median of the 16 brands in mexican food franchises with three years of counts.
How Chronic Tacos compares
Of the 55 Mexican food franchises on this site, Chronic Tacos is the 9th cheapest to open and the 21st largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Chronic Tacos | Typical Mexican food brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $284K | $457K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $909K | $946K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $30K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 6% | 5% | 6% |
| Sales per location | $959K | $1.18M | $794K |
| US locations | 25 | 15 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 38 of 55 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 55 brands in mexican food franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 29 (−7) | 2 | +1 | −8 |
| 2024 | 26 (−3) | 2 | +2 | −5 |
| 2025 | 23 (−3) | 2 | 0 | −3 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: fast food franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, page 60
Where Chronic Tacos locations are
At the end of 2025, Chronic Tacos had locations in 5 states. The most are in California, Canada and Florida.
- California18
- Canada3
- Florida1
- Georgia1
- Washington1
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 16 | 2 | 18 |
| Canada | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Florida | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Georgia | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Washington | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, page 61
Who owns Chronic Tacos?
Chronic Tacos franchises are sold by Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc. It is a subsidiary of Calivan, Inc.
From Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc’s 2026 filing, page 6.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | No bankruptcy of the franchisor. Its founder and director of sales filed for personal Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2016 and received a discharge in 2017. |
Franchisors must disclose lawsuits and bankruptcies involving the company, its parents and affiliates, and its executives. Many cases are routine disputes with franchisees over fees or contracts; read the descriptions in the filing and ask current owners about anything that worries you.
Source: Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc, 2026 filing, litigation on page 9, bankruptcy on page 9
Chronic Tacos filings
The figures on this page come from Chronic Tacos Enterprises, Inc’s 2026 filing, issued April 13, 2026, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 13, 2026 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other Mexican food franchises
All Mexican food franchises
Chronic Tacos is also on these lists: fast food franchises, restaurant franchises, food franchises.