Authentic Restaurant Brands secures $325m for growth

Authentic Restaurant Brands, the Austin-based owner of Pollo Tropical and four other regional chains, has secured a $325 million financing package from London investor Trimontium to fund new restaurant openings and acquisitions.

Trimontium announced the deal on September 10. It described the package as a bespoke structure blending debt, equity and hybrid instruments, with further capital released over time as Authentic Restaurant Brands identifies new growth opportunities.

Authentic Restaurant Brands' next phase

A flexible capital line lets five regional chains keep growing without a single public share sold.

The company was founded in 2021 by chief executive Alex Macedo with backing from private equity firm Garnett Station Partners. It now groups five regional concepts under one roof: Pollo Tropical, Primanti Bros, Tavern in the Square, P.J. Whelihan's and Mambo Seafood.

Together, the five brands run 225 restaurants and generated more than $1 billion in combined revenue last year, with EBITDA above $150 million, the companies said. Same-store sales at Authentic Restaurant Brands have risen for four consecutive years across the portfolio.

"Our growth has always been deliberate," Macedo said in the announcement. "We buy brands people love, we keep the operators who built them, and we give them the resources to go further." The Trimontium capital, he added, removes the need to sell equity or list shares just to keep expanding.

Trimontium founder and chief investment officer Vlado Spasov called Authentic Restaurant Brands "a high-quality business with a proven playbook for regional chains." He said the structure was built to match the pace of that expansion instead of forcing a fixed repayment timeline.

Macedo's playbook since 2021

Macedo previously served as president of Burger King and, before that, of Tim Hortons. Since founding Authentic Restaurant Brands, he has grown the group largely through acquisitions, including the 2023 purchase of Pollo Tropical's parent company and the later addition of Tavern in the Square.

The approach applies shared data and marketing systems across otherwise independent regional brands. Pollo Tropical, the group's largest concept with 122 Florida locations, has posted rising margins and improved customer scores since joining Authentic Restaurant Brands in 2023.

Macedo has said he wants to add up to three more regional chains within three to five years, applying the same criteria: strong sales volumes, loyal customers and founders willing to stay on as operators. A public listing sits on the same horizon, though executives describe it as an option rather than a fixed plan.

For now, the Trimontium deal keeps Authentic Restaurant Brands funded without selling shares on public markets, a route also taken this month by Los Tacos No. 1, which took its own private equity investment. Whether either group reaches a stock listing will depend on how the next acquisitions perform.