Georgia

Del Taco’s locations in this Southern state have closed. See where.

Published

2 months ago

February 20, 2026

Del Taco’s locations in this Southern state have closed. See where.

Del Taco’s Georgia locations have abruptly closed as the franchise owner of the restaurants navigates Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the company said.

As of Friday, Feb. 20, when searching for the American-Mexican fast-food chain’s Georgia locations, its website says, “Sorry, this location no longer exists.”

When reached by email on Feb. 20, Del Taco said the franchisee operating its Atlanta, Columbus, Macon and Chattanooga (Fort Oglethorpe) locations closed all 14 restaurants.

“This closure occurred without prior notice to Del Taco,” the company said in its statement. “The franchisee is currently undergoing bankruptcy proceedings, and we are actively exploring options to reopen these locations as soon as possible. Updates will be shared as plans are finalized.”

Del Taco was owned by Jack in the Box from 2021 until late 2025, when Yadav Enterprises, which operates more than 300 franchise restaurants across the United States, bought the company in December 2025. At the time, Del Taco said it operated more than 600 locations across the country, with most of its restaurants in California, where the company is based.

A Redditor shared on Tuesday, Feb. 17, that the location in Georgia’s Warner Robins, about 20 miles south of Macon, closed.

“Manager was told all the Del tacos in the state of Georgia are closing effective today,” the user wrote on Feb. 17. “There’s nothing in the news about this. Anyone know what’s up? She said it had to do a chapter 11 bankruptcy.”

Court records obtained by USA TODAY show that a franchise owner running 22 Del Taco locations in Georgia and Alabama filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2025 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of South Carolina.

USA TODAY contacted the franchise owner, Matador Restaurant Group, but did not immediately receive a response on Feb. 20. According to the documents, the company has about 336 employees.

Del Taco franchise owner took out high-interest loans to fight money woes

The restaurant group said in the July 2025 court documents that the company has “cash flow issues” and previously closed two of its underperforming locations.

According to the court filing, the restaurant group’s financial woes began in late 2024 due to company growth, an “unexpected decline in sales, and rising operational costs.”

After discussing the issues with brokers, the company took out Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) loans to resolve the issue. MCA loans involve a company paying a “lump sum of cash up front in exchange for a percentage of the business’s future sales or revenue,” according to the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. 

The restaurant group said the MCA loans put the company “into further financial distress due to the excessive fees, excessive effective interest rate, and aggressive payback schedules.”

“Despite its efforts to reduce expenses, (the restaurant group’s) revenue has not been able to keep up with the MCA obligations,” the company wrote in the documents, adding that as of July 15, 2025, the company had 10 MCA loans with nine different creditors.

Per the documents, the restaurant group said it owed $2.701 million.

Another franchisee, Newport Ventures, abruptly closed 17 of Colorado’s 18 locations in March after issues with Del Taco and a bankruptcy filing, the Pensacola News Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Del Taco confirmed to USA TODAY in June 2025 that the 17 locations are reopening.

How recently did Del Taco closures begin?

Online reports of Del Taco closures in Georgia date back to at least August 2025, when a Redditor and fan of the chain shared that they tried to visit a location in Kennesaw, only to find “its doors locked with signs plastered everywhere stating the location is permanently closed.”

“This is the second DT in town to close in as many months,” the user wrote. “GA has already lost Del Taco once before, and I fear we may be headed towards a second dark age.”

Another user added that they, too, stopped by a Georgia location in August, this time in Morrow, and it was boarded up as well.

Elsewhere in the U.S., Del Taco locations in Florida have closed. Pensacola Del Taco District Manager Kimberly Garrasi previously confirmed to the Pensacola News Journal that five Del Taco locations in Florida would close.

The Tallahassee, Florida, location closed about a year after opening, according to the Tallahassee Democrat, part of the USA TODAY Network. Per the Democrat, a note posted on the Del Taco drive-thru read “This location is now closed. We appreciate your support!”

However, while franchise closures have been reported in multiple states, Del Taco has announced plans to expand.

Per the Louisville Courier Journal, also part of the USA TODAY Network, Del Taco announced in summer 2025 plans to open five locations with a new franchisee, Karan Pandher, in Louisville, Kentucky.

According to the Courier Journal, Del Taco said the first location will likely host its grand opening by 2027.

Contributing: Kyla A Sanford, Tallahassee Democrat; Brittany Misencik, Pensacola News Journal; Amanda Hancock, Louisville Courier Journal

Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.

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Georgia

Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?

Published

6 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?

NORCROSS, GEORGIA — Geoff Duncan, former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia, won’t stop apologizing.

He’s sorry for supporting the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which bans abortion at around six weeks, after a fetal heartbeat is detected. He’s sorry for facilitating the passage of a “constitutional carry” bill in 2022, which allows most people to carry a concealed handgun with no license or background check. He’s also sorry for opposing Medicaid expansion, arguing at the time that it was not fiscally responsible.

“I’m sorry for those positions and any harm that they may have done,” Duncan told me.

Duncan first rose to prominence as one of the Republicans who resisted President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow 2020 win in Georgia. Duncan has been speaking out against what he calls Trump’s “toxic” and “dangerous” Republican Party since leaving office in 2023, and even endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2024. After being excommunicated from the Georgia Republican Party in January 2025, Duncan switched parties in August. He is now running for governor as a Democrat in what will be one of the most closely watched races in the midterms.

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Georgia

Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup

Published

18 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup

Georgia Tech didn’t let the weekend get away.

The No. 2 Yellow Jackets were flying high with a 13-game win streak heading into the weekend showdown against No. 3 North Carolina. The Tar Heels took the first two games, but Tech salvaged the finale 5-2 on Sunday.

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Georgia

Gaudette & Patel Pitch Past No. 3 UNC, 5-2

Published

1 day ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Gaudette & Patel Pitch Past No. 3 UNC, 5-2

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 2 Georgia Tech got back to its winning ways, defeating No. 3 North Carolina (33-7-1, 15-6 ACC) by a final score of 5-2 from Boshamer Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Yellow Jackets (32-7, 16-5 ACC) held UNC in check from the third inning on, using 6.1 scoreless innings from Caden Gaudette and Mason Patel to salvage the series and collect its 10th Top 15 victory of the season for this first time this century.

After both teams traded runs in the first inning, the Jackets struck for three runs on three hits in the third. The inning started with a leadoff double from Drew Burress who was quickly brought to the plate by a single from Jarren Advincula. Vahn Lackey drew a walk off a full count before Kent Schmidt connected for an RBI double, bringing in Advincula for what would become the game-winning run. Lackey made it a three-run inning when he scored on an RBI groundout by Ryan Zuckerman. UNC would work the bases loaded and score a run in the bottom of the inning before Gaudette entered the game and induced an inning ending groundout. UNC wouldn’t get another runner into scoring position until the eight inning as Gaudette and Patel slammed the door on any potential comeback.

QUICK HITS: TEAM

The Jackets improve to 32-7, the best start to a season since 2010. Tech is 16-5 in ACC play, the best start since 2011.
Tech has won 32 of its first 39 games for only the 6th time in the program’s 131 seasons: 2010, 2003 2002, 1997, 1993 and now 2026.
James Ramsey owns the best record by any GT head coach in his first season through 39 games (32-7).
The Jackets improve to 8-1 in nationally televised games this season.
Tech has now won 10 games over Top 15 opponents for the first time this century.
Tech has scored 417 runs through their first 39 games. It’s the most runs Georgia Tech has recorded after 39 games in the program’s 131-year history and the most runs any Power 4 team has scored through 39 games in the BBCOR era (since 2011).
The Jackets scoring average now stands at 10.7 runs/game this season. The program record is 10.3, set back in 1984.
GT is outscoring its opponents 417-174, that +243 margin is the highest through 39 games in program history.
The bullpen delivered 6.1 scoreless innings, marking the 15th scoreless outing of the season and second of the weekend.

QUICK HITS: THE BATS

Junior Drew Burress produced his 17th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored.
He has scored 51 runs this season, one shy of Vahn Lackey for the most on the team. Burress has scored 201 runs over his career, tied with Danny Payne (2005-07) for the 11th most in Georgia Tech history.
He becomes the first Yellow Jacket in the BBCOR era to record 200+ runs over a career.
Junior Kent Schmidt went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead RBI double and a shift-beating bunt.
He leads the team with 26 RBI in ACC play and has delivered 35 for the season.
Schmidt has now collected extra base hits in three straight games for the first time this season and third time in his GT career.
He finishes the series with a .500 average, going 4-for-8 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI, two runs scored and three walks
Junior Jarren Advincula recorded his 24th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
He leads the ACC with 68 hits this season, averaging 1.7 hits per game and putting him on pace for 94 hits over the course of the regular season. With potential postseason games, that would put him in striking distance of being the first 100-hit player at GT since 2005 (Wes Hodges & Tyler Greene).
He drove in his 45th RBI of the season, the third most on the team behind Vahn Lackey and Ryan Zuckerman.
Junior Ryan Zuckerman became the first Jacket to reach 50 RBI when he drove in Lackey for the fourth run of the game.
Sophomore Caleb Daniel came off the bench in the 5th inning and blooped an RBI double, it was his 24th RBI of the season and his 5th as a pinch hitter.

QUICK HITS: THE ARMS

Sophomore Jackson Blakely made his sixth consecutive weekend start, pitching 2.2 innings with two earned runs allowed and three strikeouts.
He has only allowed runs in only three of his eight appearances this season (37.1 innings) this season.
His ERA stands at 2.65, the lowest among all starting pitchers on the roster.
R-junior Caden Gaudette made his team-leading 16^th appearance of the season and 2^nd of the weekend, pitching 2.1 scoreless innings.
He entered the game with a two-run lead (4-2) and the bases loaded with two outs before inducing an inning ending groundout to short.
Gaudette lowers his ERA to 2.86 in 22.0 innings of work.
The man they call “Rock” pitched a total of 3.1 innings this weekend, allowing only one hit with four strikeouts.
He has now pitched as many innings this season as he had in his previous two years combined (22.0) while allowing less than half as many earned runs (7 in 2026, 15 in 2024-25) and exactly half as many hits (12 in 2026, 24 in 2024-25).
Mason Patel got the ball to start the 6th inning, keeping the score at 5-2 for the final four frames and collecting his fourth save of the season.
Since recovering from an injury that saw him miss 20 days, Patel has made six appearances out of the bullpen, pitching 13.2 scoreless innings with a victory and four saves.
Over the last two seasons, Patel has made 29 appearances out of the bullpen, posting 12 wins and nine saves.
This was his longest relief appearance of the season (4.0 innings) after pitching at least 3.0 innings in 15 of his 23 appearances during his All-American season last year.

Up Next

Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. Tuesday at 7 pm at Truist Park. Tickets are available HERE with all proceeds benefiting the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Full Steam Ahead

Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.

For the latest information on the Georgia Tech baseball team, follow us on X (@GTBaseball), Facebook, Instagram (@gt_baseball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.

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