Taco Bell to open March 29 on Dickson Street

A rendering of a Taco Bell Cantina in Chicago’s Wicker Park

Courtesy graphic

The franchise owners of Taco Bell Cantina said the new restaurant will open on Wednesday, March 29 inside the former Common Grounds coffee shop building on Dickson Street in Fayetteville.

Renovations are complete on the 100-year-old building, which has been split into two spaces to make room for a Pickleman’s Gourmet Cafe next door.

City permits indicate about $380,000 worth of work went into the improvement project on the Taco Bell side, which included roof and foundation repair, along with electrical and plumbing work and a new back patio.

The Fayetteville Cantina will be the fifth of its kind to open. The concept was first unveiled by Taco Bell in 2015, and included locations in Chicago and San Francisco. Since then, Cantinas have opened in Las Vegas and Austin, and a handful of others are in the works across the country.

K-Mac Enterprises of Fort Smith, owners of the local Cantina franchise, said the Dickson Street location will feature a more upscale menu as compared to a traditional Taco Bell. The menu includes tapas-style sharing plates of nachos, quesadillas, and chicken fingers alongside customizable frozen slush drinks. Customers can choose flavors like pina colada, margarita, or berry blast and can decide to add liquor, ranging from spiced rum to tequila. The regular Taco Bell menu will also be available.
K-Mac has been a Taco Bell franchisee since the early 1980s and now operates 274 Taco Bell stores in nine states.

The new Cantina will be open from 7 a.m to 3 a.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Sunday.

Pickleman’s is expected to open sometime later this spring.