Chi Chi's Restaurants
Chi Chi's Restaurants operates a single revived Tex-Mex full-service restaurant in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, opened in October 2025 by Michael McDermott, serving individual diners, families, catering customers, and private-event guests with traditional on-premise food and beverage sales.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1975
- HeadquartersSaint Louis Park, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Chi Chi's Restaurants does
Chi Chi's Restaurants operates a single revived Tex-Mex restaurant at 1602 West End Blvd in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, opened in October 2025 by Michael McDermott, son of original founder Marno McDermott. The concept is a direct descendant of the Chi-Chi's chain founded in 1975 by Marno McDermott and former Green Bay Packers player Max McGee; the original chain ceased operations in 2004 following a 2003 bankruptcy and a hepatitis A outbreak at a Pittsburgh location. The current unit is a traditional, full-service dine-in restaurant offering Tex-Mex food (appetizers $9-$18, mains $15-$24) and a bar program (cocktails $8-$15, tequila up to $95), with extended daily hours, a weekday happy hour, and dedicated catering and private-event services.
The operating model is conventional hospitality with no proprietary technology: reservations are managed through OpenTable, the website and digital marketing run on SpotHopper, and gift cards are sold via CardFoundry. Revenue is generated entirely from on-premise food and beverage sales, off-premise catering, private-event bookings, and digital gift card sales, with no subscription or recurring contracted revenue streams. Customer segments are individual diners, families, nostalgia-driven former patrons, and event/catering buyers, all served from a single physical location in the Minneapolis metro.
The business was capitalized through an equity crowdfunding campaign on StartEngine that raised approximately $2.3 million from roughly 2,000 individual investors, with a separate funding event of $3,239,550 noted on 2025-09-30. Ownership is broadly distributed across retail investors with no disclosed institutional venture or private equity backing, and the firm operates as an independent restaurant entity without a parent company.
Chi Chi's Restaurants firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Chi Chi's Restaurants
- Website
- https://chichisrestaurants.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1975
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Chi Chi's Restaurants operates a single revived Tex-Mex full-service restaurant in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, opened in October 2025 by Michael McDermott, serving individual diners, families, catering customers, and private-event guests with traditional on-premise food and beverage sales.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Chi Chi's Restaurants industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mexican/Tex-Mex Restaurant
- NAICS
- Full-Service Restaurants (722511)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Casual Dining Restaurants (THAFACAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual (THAFABAC)
Keywords
Where Chi Chi's Restaurants is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Saint Louis Park
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Chi Chi's Restaurants business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Dine-in Food and Beverage Sales: Traditional restaurant revenue from food and beverage sales. Menu includes Tex-Mex dishes such as tacos, burros, enchiladas, fajitas, and cocktails including margaritas and specialty drinks.
- Catering Services: Catering services for private events and corporate gatherings, providing diverse menu options for off-site occasions.
- Private Event Hosting: Private dining room available for birthday, anniversary, and group gatherings, generating revenue from event bookings.
- Gift Card Sales: Digital gift cards sold through the restaurant's website.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Cocktails - $8-$15 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Beer - $4-$8 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Wine - $6-$50 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tequila/Spirits - $7.75-$95 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Happy Hour Food - $5-$13 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Appetizers - $9-$18 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Main Dishes - $15-$24 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Desserts - $7-$10 |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Chi Chi's Restaurants product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Chi-Chi's Restaurants operates a single revived Tex-Mex restaurant at 1602 West End Blvd in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, offering dine-in family dining with traditional Mexican dishes (tacos, burros, enchiladas, fajitas, chimichangas), a full bar (margaritas, specialty cocktails, tequila), weekday happy hour, and ancillary catering, private events, and gift card services. The brand was originally founded in 1975 by Marno McDermott and Max McGee and was revived in 2025 by Michael McDermott.
Product overview
Chi-Chi's is a revived Tex-Mex restaurant chain offering a unified dining experience centered on authentic Mexican cuisine. The current offering consists of the core restaurant dining service at the St. Louis Park location, supplemented by food and drink menus featuring traditional Tex-Mex items like tacos, enchiladas, fajitas, margaritas, and cocktails. Additional services include catering for events, private dining room reservations, and a weekday happy hour program. Online capabilities are enabled through OpenTable for reservations and CardFoundry for gift card sales, all powered by the SpotHopper restaurant management platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Restaurant Dining
- Catering Services
- Private Events
- Happy Hour
- Gift Cards
Companies that use Chi Chi's Restaurants
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Chi Chi's Restaurants technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Chi Chi's Restaurants partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Chi Chi's Restaurants competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Chevys Fresh Mex: Casual-dining Mexican chain offering fajitas, tacos, and margaritas in a festive sit-down atmosphere. Closely comparable as a casual-dining Mexican restaurant with full bar and family-friendly positioning similar to Chi-Chi's revival.
- Pappasito's Cantina: Casual-dining Tex-Mex chain specializing in fajitas, enchiladas, and margaritas. Directly comparable on full-service Tex-Mex dining with extensive tequila/margarita menus — overlapping with Chi-Chi's signature offering.
- Moe's Southwest Grill: Fast-casual Tex-Mex chain with a broad menu of burritos, tacos, quesadillas, and nachos. Directly comparable on Tex-Mex cuisine positioning and American family-dining appeal, competing for similar casual-meal occasions.
- Qdoba Mexican Eats: Fast-casual Mexican chain serving tacos, burritos, and bowls with a similar flavor profile. Comparable as a direct competitor in the Mexican/Tex-Mex restaurant category, though positioned at fast-casual price points below Chi-Chi's casual-dining offering.
- On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina: Casual-dining Tex-Mex chain known for fajitas, combo platters, and margaritas — a near-perfect format match for Chi-Chi's sit-down Tex-Mex concept with full bar. Directly comparable on cuisine, price point, and bar-driven dining experience.
Broad incumbents
- Taco Bell: Mass-market QSR Mexican chain owned by Yum! Brands with thousands of U.S. locations. Comparable as a Mexican-cuisine competitor at a lower price point; not format-comparable but competes for casual Tex-Mex occasions in the Minneapolis market.
- Chili's Grill & Bar: Large casual-dining chain offering American and Tex-Mex items (fajitas, quesadillas) with a full bar. Comparable on casual-dining format, full-bar revenue model, and family-meal positioning, though not Tex-Mex-only.
- Chipotle Mexican Grill: Large publicly-traded fast-casual Mexican chain serving burritos, bowls, and tacos nationwide. Comparable as the dominant scaled operator in the Mexican/Tex-Mex restaurant category against which Chi-Chi's must differentiate on brand nostalgia and sit-down dining experience.
Regional players
- Chip's Clubhouse / Local Tex-Mex Independents (Twin Cities): Local Minneapolis/St. Paul area Mexican and Tex-Mex independent restaurants (e.g., Machetes Mexican Eatery, Boca Chica). Comparable as same-geography casual Mexican dining competitors that Chi-Chi's must win share against in its home market.
Emerging players
- Torchy's Tacos: Fast-growing fast-casual Tex-Mex chain known for premium tacos and a craft-casual atmosphere. Comparable as an emerging Tex-Mex brand challenging legacy players, with a modernized experience philosophy similar to Chi-Chi's 2025 revival.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Chi Chi's Restaurants social profiles
Digital presenceChi Chi's Restaurants compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Chi Chi's Restaurants financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Chi Chi's Restaurants leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Chi Chi's Restaurants funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Chi Chi's Restaurants M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Chi Chi's Restaurants
What does Chi Chi's Restaurants do?
Chi-Chi's Restaurants operates a single revived Tex-Mex restaurant at 1602 West End Blvd in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, offering dine-in family dining with traditional Mexican dishes (tacos, burros, enchiladas, fajitas, chimichangas), a full bar (margaritas, specialty cocktails, tequila), weekday happy hour, and ancillary catering, private events, and gift card services. The brand was originally founded in 1975 by Marno McDermott and Max McGee and was revived in 2025 by Michael McDermott.
Is Chi Chi's Restaurants a public or private company?
Chi Chi's Restaurants is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Chi Chi's Restaurants founded?
Chi Chi's Restaurants was founded in 1975. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Chi Chi's Restaurants based?
Chi Chi's Restaurants is headquartered in Saint Louis Park, United States, in the North America region.
How does Chi Chi's Restaurants make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Dine-in Food and Beverage Sales are the primary driver. The others are catering Services, private Event Hosting and gift Card Sales.
Who are Chi Chi's Restaurants's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Chevys Fresh Mex, Pappasito's Cantina, Moe's Southwest Grill, Qdoba Mexican Eats and On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina. Broad incumbents are Taco Bell, Chili's Grill & Bar and Chipotle Mexican Grill. Chip's Clubhouse / Local Tex-Mex Independents (Twin Cities) is listed as a regional player. Torchy's Tacos is listed as an emerging player.
Does Chi Chi's Restaurants have an API?
No public API is recorded for Chi Chi's Restaurants.
What industry is Chi Chi's Restaurants in?
Chi Chi's Restaurants's product category is Mexican/Tex-Mex Restaurant. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAB, Casual Dining Restaurants, with a secondary code of THAFABAC, Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual. Its NAICS code is 722511 and its SIC code is 5810.