Mercado Juarez

What Mercado Juarez does

Mercado Juarez is a privately held, family-owned Tex-Mex restaurant chain founded in 1984 and headquartered in Arlington, Texas. The company operates two full-service dine-in locations — one in Arlington at 125 E Interstate 20 and one in Fort Worth near the Stockyards at 1651 E Northside Dr — plus a 25+ year-old catering division serving corporate events, weddings, school functions, and private gatherings across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. The menu is anchored by mesquite-fire-grilled proteins (fajitas, carne asada, shrimp), handmade flour tortillas prepared daily on-site, and a cocktail program built around a proprietary margarita base called the Mercado Mix, which supports signature drinks such as the Superita, Sauzarita, and Mercarita.

The core offering is in-restaurant dining, complemented by a set of monetizable extensions: catering (quote-based per-event pricing), online ordering for pickup and delivery via the third-party SpotOn platform, a Monday-Friday happy hour (3-6 PM) with discounted margaritas, beers, and wines, recurring weekly promotions (half-price taco plates on Tuesdays, kids-eat-free on Wednesdays, free queso on Thursdays), and a formal party-booking service for groups of 20 or more. Pricing is a la carte and publicly disclosed on the menu page, with signature items such as Beef Fajitas at $19.99/$39.99, Fajita Combinada at $18.99/$37.99, and margarita pitchers up to $39.00.

Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer and local: foot traffic and dine-in sales are driven through local SEO, Google Business presence, an active Instagram account (@mercadojuarez_tx), and a content-rich Squarespace-hosted blog that publishes 15-20+ articles per month targeting DFW search queries. The company has earned regional press recognition including Best Carne Guisada from The Dallas Morning News and Best Carne Asada. The technology stack is non-proprietary — SpotOn for POS and online ordering, Squarespace for web — with no disclosed AI, data, or software capabilities. Headcount is 13 employees across all functions and locations, and the company has no disclosed funding, M&A, or institutional investment.

Name

Mercado Juarez

Legal name

Mercado Juarez

Website

https://mercadojuarez.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mercado Juarez is a privately held, family-owned Tex-Mex restaurant chain founded in 1984 operating two dine-in locations in Arlington and Fort Worth, Texas, plus a DFW-wide catering division serving corporate events, weddings, and private parties. Its offering centers on mesquite-fire-grilled proteins, handmade tortillas, and proprietary margaritas.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tex-Mex Casual Dining Restaurants

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual (THAFABAC)

Keywords

• Tex-Mex restaurant
• Mexican cuisine dining
• Restaurant catering services
• Mesquite grilled meats
• Handmade tortillas

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dine-In Restaurant Sales: The primary revenue stream is in-restaurant dining at two cafe locations in Arlington and Fort Worth, TX. Guests order from a full Tex-Mex menu including appetizers, entrees, desserts, and a full bar. Revenue is generated per-transaction at the point of sale.
2. Online Ordering / To-Go / Delivery: Customers place orders online via the SpotOn platform for pickup or delivery. To-go orders include large family-style orders for events. This channel supports both individual consumers and group orders.
3. Catering Services: Mercado Juarez operates a dedicated catering division serving corporate events, school functions, weddings, birthday parties, and private gatherings across the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. A catering representative assists with menu planning and order fulfillment. Revenue is per-event, quote-based for large orders.
4. Alcoholic Beverages and Bar: A full bar generates significant revenue through margaritas, domestic and imported beers, wines, and signature cocktails. Happy hour promotions (Monday-Friday 3-6 PM) drive off-peak traffic. Margarita pitchers are a popular group purchase item.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mercado Juarez is a family-owned Tex-Mex restaurant chain serving mesquite-fire grilled meats, handmade tortillas, and signature margaritas at two DFW-area locations (Arlington and Fort Worth Stockyards). Beyond dine-in service, the company offers dedicated catering for corporate events and private parties, online ordering through SpotOn, daily happy hour, and party/event bookings. The business has operated continuously for over 40 years.

Product overview

Mercado Juarez is a full-service Tex-Mex restaurant chain operating two locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex (Arlington and Fort Worth, TX). The core offering is in-restaurant dining featuring mesquite-charbroiled Tex-Mex cuisine. The company extends its offering through complementary modules: catering services for events, online ordering via SpotOn, a weekday happy hour program, and party booking for large groups. The product portfolio centers on authentic Mexican dining with signature offerings like sizzling fajitas, margaritas (Superita, Sauzarita, Mercarita), and handmade tortillas.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Mercado Juarez Catering: Catering service offering Tex-Mex catering for events including corporate lunches, weddings, birthday parties, and family celebrations throughout Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Products and services

• In-Restaurant Tex-Mex Dining Full-service dine-in offering of mesquite-fire grilled Tex-Mex fare, handmade tortillas, and signature margaritas at the Arlington and Fort Worth Stockyards locations, targeted at individual consumers and families in the DFW metroplex.
• Catering Services Off-premise catering for corporate events, office lunches, weddings, and private parties, with quote-based pricing and a dedicated catering division targeting organizations and event planners in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.
• Online Ordering (SpotOn) Direct-to-consumer online ordering service for Tex-Mex food and beverages, delivered via the SpotOn platform, enabling pickup/ordering convenience for individual customers.
• Happy Hour Program Daily in-restaurant happy hour offering discounted beverages (including signature margaritas) and food items, targeted at walk-in individual consumers and small groups.
• Party and Event Bookings On-site party and event booking service at Mercado Juarez restaurants, allowing customers to reserve space for private gatherings and celebrations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Best Carne Guisada awarded by The Dallas Morning News
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Rosa's Cafe & Tortilla Factory: Rosa's Cafe is a Texas-based Tex-Mex chain founded in 1983 with made-from-scratch tortillas, fajitas, and a family-dining focus. It is comparable on Tex-Mex menu, in-house tortilla production, and Texas heritage positioning.
• El Fenix Mexican Restaurant: Founded in 1918 in Dallas, El Fenix is a long-standing DFW Tex-Mex chain with deep local heritage and full dine-in service. It directly competes with Mercado Juarez on Tex-Mex menu, full bar, and family dining occasions in the same geography.
• Pappasitos Cantina: Pappasitos is a Houston-based Tex-Mex casual dining chain with fajitas, house tortillas, and a strong bar/margarita program. It is highly comparable on cuisine, fajita-led menu, and Texas market positioning, and now operates in DFW.
• Lupe Tortilla: Lupe Tortilla is a Houston-based Tex-Mex chain famous for its handmade flour tortillas and fajita platters. It overlaps directly with Mercado Juarez on the handmade-tortilla and mesquite/fire-grilled protein positioning.
• Blue Mesa Contemporary Mexican Grill: Blue Mesa is a DFW-based Tex-Mex full-service restaurant with strong happy hour, signature margaritas, and a Tex-Mex-tilt menu. It is comparable on cuisine, beverage program, and DFW dine-in traffic, though positioned slightly more upscale.
• Mi Cocina Restaurant: Mi Cocina is a DFW-based upscale Tex-Mex concept from the M Crowd Restaurant Group, renowned for its frozen margaritas and modern take on Tex-Mex. It directly overlaps Mercado Juarez on Tex-Mex menu, signature cocktails, and DFW dine-in traffic.
• Mariano's Hacienda Ranch: Mariano's is a long-established Dallas Tex-Mex restaurant with deep local roots, full bar, and family/casual dining focus. It is comparable on cuisine category, local DFW positioning, and dine-in catering-like group event capability.
• Gloria's Latin Cuisine: Gloria's is a DFW-based Latin/Mexican full-service restaurant group with signature cocktails and strong local brand recognition. It competes with Mercado Juarez for dine-in, bar, and catering occasions across DFW.

Broad incumbents

• Torchy's Tacos: Torchy's is a fast-growing Austin-based Tex-Mex/taco chain with strong brand equity and a multi-state footprint. While it leans more counter-service, it competes with Mercado Juarez for Tex-Mex occasions, casual dining dollars, and digital-first customer acquisition in Texas.
• Fuzzy's Taco Shop: Fuzzy's is a Texas-based taco/Mexican casual chain with DFW presence. It competes with Mercado Juarez for Tex-Mex dining occasions in a more casual/counter-service format, and is relevant for category positioning comparisons.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/mercadojuarez_tx
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mercado-juarez

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mercado Juarez