Leadership

Fiesta Restaurant Group appoints new presidents

Fiesta restaurant group, the parent company of the Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana restaurant brands, has appointed two new presidents

Beginning today, Charles “Chuck” Locke will assume the role of president of Taco Cabana and Fiesta senior vice president and chief operating officer Danny Meisenheimer will assume the additional role of Pollo Tropical president. 

Before coming to Fiesta, Locke was chief operating officer at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza for nine years where he successfully grew the brand from 10 locations to 64 restaurants in seven states. He also was an area developer for Family Sports Concepts where he grew its Beef O'Brady's sports-themed concept through franchisees. Locke began his career at S&A Restaurant Group where he held various leadership positions for Bennigans. 

“We are delighted to welcome Chuck to Fiesta and to his new role as President of Taco Cabana. Chuck has built an exceptional track record of improving performance and driving growth throughout his career and has a real passion for delivering an exceptional guest experience. He is a great cultural fit for our company and for the Taco Cabana brand,” Fiesta President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Stockinger said in a statement. “We would also like to congratulate Danny on his appointment as President of Pollo Tropical. Together, these appointments will strengthen the implementation of our strategic renewal plan which is focused on revitalizing restaurant performance in core markets, managing capital and financial discipline, and establishing platforms for long term growth.”

Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.

Multimedia

Exclusive Content

Financing

KFC U.S. same-store sales disappear from Yum Brands’ earnings report

The Bottom Line: The restaurant chain operator has increasingly kept its attention focused on Taco Bell and KFC international. But its most recent report stopped breaking out U.S. same-store sales results.

Operations

The number of independent restaurants declined by 2.3% in 2025

That drop reflected a net loss of about 9,500 restaurant locations due to an increasingly challenging operating environment. Chain restaurants, however, fared a bit better.

Food

Farmer J bucks the bowl trend with chef-driven Fieldtrays

Behind the Menu: The fast-casual British import is generating a following in New York City with curated dishes that customers build into well-balanced, flavorful meals where each component has its own space.

Trending

More from our partners