Ted's Cafe Escondido

What Ted's Cafe Escondido does

Ted's Cafe Escondido is a privately held, Oklahoma-based Mexican restaurant chain founded by Ted Curtis on October 3, 1991, in a remodeled house on 68th Street in Oklahoma City. The company operates 10 full-service locations across the Oklahoma City metropolitan area (Edmond, Norman, Del City, North OKC, South OKC, West OKC/Council Road), the Tulsa metropolitan area (Tulsa Hills, Broken Arrow), and Lawton, plus a separate fast-casual sub-brand called Ted's Tacos and Cantina opened in November 2020 in OKC's Uptown 23rd District. Core menu execution is anchored by a centralized USDA-inspected commissary that slow-marinate meats 24-48 hours in a proprietary spice blend before distribution, combined with in-restaurant made-from-scratch preparation of tortillas, guacamole, queso, beans, rice, and sauces, served via a four-person team service model.

The company generates revenue across five channels: dine-in service with full bar programs including over 20 margarita varieties, off-premise online ordering for pickup and delivery through DoorDash, Postmates, GrubHub, and UberEats, off-site catering with three service tiers (casual buffet at $15.49/person through banquet room at $22.49/person), pre-packaged party packs for family meals priced $25-$185, and gift cards processed via Cashstar. The customer base spans families and individual diners, event planners and corporate catering clients, and community organizations participating in the Fundraiser Night program that returns 10% of sales to schools and nonprofits. Operations are led by COO David Foxx; the company remains independent with no private equity, venture, or parent ownership disclosed.

The business model is asset-heavy real estate (full-service restaurants averaging 100-158 seats) combined with a digitally enabled loyalty stack (Ted's Rewards mobile app, E-Migo email club, Yelp Waitlist integration). Competitive positioning rests on 35 years of brand equity in Oklahoma (13 Best Mexican Food wins, 9 consecutive, plus Best Margarita in 2021), operational consistency via centralized production, and deep community engagement. Geographic concentration in a single state is the principal strategic constraint, while the fast-casual sub-brand and catering/taco truck expansion represent the primary growth vectors.

Name

Ted's Cafe Escondido

Legal name

Ted's Café Escondido

Website

https://tedscafe.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Ted's Cafe Escondido is a privately held, 10-unit full-service Mexican restaurant chain founded in 1991 across Oklahoma, with a fast-casual sub-brand and catering, party packs, and mobile-app loyalty channels serving individual diners, families, and event clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Dining Mexican Restaurant

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Caterers (722320)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual (THAFABAC)

Keywords

• Full-service Mexican restaurant
• Made-from-scratch fajitas
• Restaurant catering services
• Family meal party packs
• Restaurant loyalty program

Headquarters

HQ city

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Restaurant Sales: Full-service dining at 10 Oklahoma locations. Guests order from extensive Mexican food menu including fajitas, enchiladas, tacos, burritos, and margaritas. Revenue from food, beverages, and alcohol sales.
2. Carryout and Delivery: Online ordering for pickup and DoorDash delivery. Phone orders accepted. Curbside to-go service. Third-party delivery through DoorDash, Postmates, GrubHub, and UberEats.
3. Catering Services: Full-service catering for events including casual buffet, serviced buffet, and banquet rooms. Entrees include tacos, enchiladas, and fajitas. Minimum 15-person requirement. Catering managers in each region.
4. Party Packs: Pre-packaged family meals available for 5 or 10 people. Includes tacos, enchiladas, fajitas, breakfast items. Pickup from locations or delivered via DoorDash.
5. Gift Cards: Digital eGift cards and physical gift cards available for purchase. Redeemable at all Ted's Cafe Escondido locations.
6. Ted's Rewards Program: Mobile app-based loyalty program. Members earn 1 point per dollar spent. Points redeemable for free food. Exclusive offers and promotions for app users.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Ted's Cafe Escondido operates a chain of 10 full-service Mexican restaurants across Oklahoma, serving made-from-scratch Mexican cuisine featuring hand-made tortillas, fresh guacamole, slow-marinated fajitas, and a full bar with extensive margarita options. The company also offers catering, party packs, banquet rooms, a mobile taco truck, and a fast-casual sub-brand (Ted's Tacos and Cantina), supported by a mobile app, online ordering, and a loyalty rewards program.

Product overview

Ted's Cafe Escondido operates a chain of 10 full-service Mexican restaurants across Oklahoma (OKC, Tulsa, Edmond, Norman, Broken Arrow, Del City, Lawton) founded in 1991. The core product is made-from-scratch Mexican cuisine featuring hand-made tortillas, fresh guacamole, and slow-marinated fajitas served with table-side setup of chips, salsa, and cheese sauce. The company offers a comprehensive digital ecosystem including a mobile app with Ted's Rewards loyalty program (1 point per dollar), online ordering with DoorDash delivery integration, and an E-Migo email club. Additional revenue streams include catering services (casual/serviced buffet and banquet rooms), party packs for family meals, and a separate fast-casual sub-brand called 'Ted's Tacos and Cantina' featuring specialty tacos and build-your-own burritos. Community programs include fundraiser nights where organizations earn 10% of sales. The company also operates a mobile taco truck for private event catering.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ted's Tacos and Cantina: Fast-casual Mexican restaurant concept featuring counter service, full bar, dog-friendly patio seating, and specialty tacos including The Wet Taco with Birria meat. Located at 600 NW 23rd St. in Oklahoma City's Uptown 23rd District.

Products and services

• Full-Service Restaurant Dining Full-service dine-in Mexican restaurant offering made-from-scratch Mexican cuisine including fajitas, enchiladas, tacos, burritos, and a full bar with margaritas. Four-person team service model.
• Catering Services Off-site catering for weddings, corporate events, tailgates, and parties with three service levels: Casual Buffet ($15.49/person), Serviced Buffet ($17.49/person), and Banquet Room ($19.49/person). Minimum 15-person requirement.
• Party Packs Pre-packaged family meal packages for 5 or 10 people, including taco fiesta, enchilada fiesta, fajitas fiesta, and Ted's famous setup. Pickup from any of 10 locations or DoorDash delivery. Prices range from $25 to $185.
• Banquet Rooms Private in-restaurant event spaces with AV equipment and Wi-Fi. Escondido Room holds up to 100 people; Pueblo Room holds up to 50-65 people. Located in OKC and Tulsa locations.
• Ted's Mobile App & Rewards Program Mobile app for iOS and Android with Ted's Rewards loyalty program (1 point per dollar spent, redeemable for free food), Yelp waitlist integration, online ordering, and saved favorite orders.
• Gift Cards Digital eGift cards (delivered within minutes) and physical gift cards in multiple designs with personalization options. Redeemable at all 10 Ted's Cafe Escondido locations.
• Taco Truck Catering Mobile taco truck catering for private events. $200 truck fee for OKC metro (additional fees outside OKC), $600 minimum food order, 2 hours of service ($50 per half hour additional). Serves 40-100+ people with individual meals from $9.99 to $15.99.
• Ted's Tacos and Cantina Fast-casual restaurant sub-brand separate from full-service Ted's locations. Counter service, full bar, dog-friendly patio with fireplace and heaters. Specialty tacos include Birria 'Wet Taco', Nashville Hot Chicken tacos, and Asada tacos. Build your own burritos available.
• Online Ordering Online ordering system for pickup and delivery via tedscafe.com. Available at all 10 locations with DoorDash delivery integration. Also available via Postmates, GrubHub, and UberEats. Curbside to-go service available.
• Fundraiser Nights Community fundraising program where schools, sports teams, clubs, and nonprofits receive 10% of ticket sales from guests who show the event flyer. Available Tuesday and Wednesday evenings from 5 PM to close. Typically raises $100-200 per event.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10 locations serving Oklahoma communities since 1991
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• PostmatesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2020Third-party delivery partner for food delivery alongside DoorDash. Part of multi-partner delivery strategy.
• GrubHubminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2020Third-party delivery partner for food delivery. Available alongside DoorDash and Postmates for customer convenience.
• UberEatsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 March 2020Third-party delivery partner for food delivery. Complete the delivery ecosystem alongside DoorDash, Postmates, and GrubHub.
• DoorDashcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 21 October 2019Delivery partnership for carryout and catering orders. DoorDash handles delivery logistics while Ted's prepares food. Available at all 10 locations. Beer to-go available with DoorDash orders. Partnership announced October 21, 2019.
• Operation FreedomcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2018Charitable partnership for Tacos 4 Teachers initiative. Partnered to provide 10,000 meals for Oklahoma teachers demonstrating at the Capitol. Joint effort to support education community.
• Oklahoma Education AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2018Charitable partner for Tacos 4 Teachers initiative. Joint effort with Operation Freedom to support Oklahoma teachers during the 2018 teacher strike. Donated meals to demonstrators at the Capitol.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves20 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Taco Casa: Regional Mexican fast-casual chain headquartered in Oklahoma with locations across the OKC and Tulsa metros. Most direct competitor in Ted's home market for the fast-casual Mexican segment.
• Abuelo's Mexican Restaurant: Regional Mexican restaurant chain founded in Oklahoma and now operating across multiple states. Comparable full-service Mexican dining concept with made-from-scratch positioning and similar average check sizes.
• Ted's Tacos and Cantina: Fast-casual sister concept owned by the same parent as Ted's Cafe Escondido, operating in OKC's Uptown 23rd District. Same brand family with differentiated counter-service format, build-your-own burritos, and specialty tacos like the Birria Wet Taco.
• Chelino's Mexican Restaurant: Oklahoma-based Mexican restaurant chain operating multiple locations across the OKC metro. Closest geographic peer to Ted's Cafe Escondido, competing for the same Oklahoma Mexican food consumer with similar full-service format.

Broad incumbents

• On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina: National full-service Mexican casual dining chain offering fajitas, tacos, and margaritas across the U.S. Comparable core menu and dining format, but with broader geographic footprint and corporate ownership.
• Chili's Grill & Bar: National casual dining chain offering fajitas, tacos, and full bar service. Comparable on full-service casual dining format, bar/margarita program, and party-pack catering analog, though broader menu beyond Mexican.
• Chipotle Mexican Grill: Largest U.S. fast-casual Mexican chain with assembly-line build-your-own format. Comparable on Mexican cuisine category and digital ordering/loyalty ecosystem, though positioned in a faster, lower-AUV tier than Ted's full-service dining.
• Moe's Southwest Grill: National fast-casual Mexican chain owned by Restaurant Brands International. Comparable to the Ted's Tacos and Cantina sub-brand in service tier, menu focus (burritos, tacos, quesadillas), and digital loyalty model.

Emerging players

• Fuzzy's Taco Shop: Fast-casual Mexican concept with locations across the southern and southwestern U.S. Comparable menu focus (tacos, burritos, margaritas) and franchise expansion model — a potential template or competitor for Ted's future format extension.

Regional players

• Rosa's Cafe: Texas-based regional Mexican fast-casual chain operating across the southwestern U.S. Comparable menu (fajitas, tacos, enchiladas) and casual dining format, though primarily competing in Texas rather than Oklahoma.

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ted-s-cafe-escondio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Ted's Cafe Escondido