Success Story

El Toro Mexican Restaurants Succeeded During the Pandemic by Making Tough Decisions

Having to operate during a pandemic has resulted in improved efficiency, a streamlined menu and stronger working relationships for El Toro Mexican Restaurants in Baytown, TX -- and RO.com helped make the difference.

"We were able to step up when the time came," says Vice President of Operations & Pastor John Mayes, "and my team did a fantastic job of getting it together and jumping through the hoops that were presented to us. We started off a little behind, but are now only 10.4% down over last year."

The company had to close two of the smaller locations for a couple of months, but relocated all the staff and managers to another location in the area. "Other than working long hours and several sleepless nights I would say that we faired pretty well. It all depends on what you are willing to do in order to succeed and what you are willing to sacrifice."

Mayes utilized after-shift meetings to cull ideas from staff and managers on how to improve. "This gave us ideas like turning our parking lots into wait stations. Servers took care of sections of the parking lots and provided guests with drinks while they waited."

Inside, packing teams passed orders along to server trays and one of six packing tables. "We pre-labeled lids to be faster, and had an app up on the TV screens that helped us organize guests in the parking lots and keep us efficient."

As a result, Mayes continues, "We are experts at to-go and drive-thru now. Our kitchens are more efficient due to having to constantly adjust during this time. We are still about 30% to 35% to-go, compared to 20% in the past. We also found that streamlining our menu made us more profitable and better at executing."

RO.com helped by providing invaluable tools and insights. "We utilized some spread sheets that were available to us," Mayes recalls. "I kept checking in to see if there were other ideas on the forums that people were talking about."

The takeaways have been both important and fundamental. Says Mayes, "You have to include your team in the decision and idea process. Never give up. Rely on what you know because you know more than what you give yourself credit for. Be forward-thinkers, and not just waiting for something to come and hit you. This way you are always ahead of the curve. Love what you do and do what you love."

The plan going forward is to finish building a location in La Porte on which work had been stopped in March. "We did this to free up funds to keep the other restaurants open, and to secure funds in case we needed them." His team is also researching new markets for expansion. "Then we will promote one of the senior managers that helped us get through this to district manager and allow other managers to move up, as well."

Management will also streamline its to-go packaging to cut costs "and hopefully get back to some sort of full menu. I would like to treat each of our locations to a staff and family appreciation event for all they have been able to accomplish."

Absorbing still more savvy from RO.com and other sources will remain a priority. "I plan on continuing my education in this business," Mayes promises, "teaching some classes if possible, and leading a chef demo to teach others how to cook. I will begin to do continuing education classes for our managers so that they can continue their growth."