Tennessee

Central American chicken chain plans Tennessee expansion

Published

2 years ago

February 20, 2024

Central American chicken chain plans Tennessee expansion

Pollo Campero, a fried chicken restaurant that began in Guatemala, has plans to expand across Tennessee. The fast food chain, whose menus include empanadas, yuca fries and plantains, already has locations in Nashville and Madison with a third opening this spring in Smyrna.

The company is seeking new franchise partners to grow in Middle Tennessee and add restaurants in the Memphis and Knoxville areas.

“The state has really attracted a lot of people from all over the U.S. And then we also saw that the Central American population had been increasing over the last 20 years,” said Blas Escarcega, Pollo Campero’s director of franchise development.

The first Pollo Campero opened in Gualtamela in 1971. The company brought its Central American flavors to the U.S. in 2002 with a location in Los Angeles, which is still open.

Pollo Campero now has 93 locations across the U.S. with plans to add 200 more over the next five years. The chain also has locations throughtout Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe and the Middle East.

Currently, only 15 of those Pollo Campero restaurants in the U.S. are franchises. The company hopes to increase the percentage of franchised locations. The growth in Tennessee will be through franchises, officials said.

The Nashville-area franchisee learned about Pollo Campero from their own workers who were Central American immigrants. While the chain targets states and neighborhoods with Latin American immigrant populations, it also wants to find more customers among other groups.

“We realize there’s only so many immigrants that can support it,” Escarcega said.

Todd A. Price is a regional report in the South for the USA Today Network. He can be reached at taprice@gannett.com.

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Tennessee

Tennessee lawmakers discuss priorities for upcoming session

Published

7 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Tennessee lawmakers discuss priorities for upcoming session

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Tennessee lawmakers are preparing to discuss hundreds of bills as the state legislature convenes, with mental health funding emerging as a priority for two lawmakers.

State Rep. Sam McKenzie, D-Knoxville, and state Sen. Becky Massey, R-Knox County, said mental health care funding will be a focus of upcoming legislative conversations.

“It’s been a big topic,” McKenzie said.

“That’s going to be very top of my mind as far as working and advocating for that,” Massey said.

Massey, who chairs the Transportation Committee, said the state needs more money for road expansion. She expressed concerns about insufficient funding for billion of dollars worth of road projects.

“People are paying less to drive on our roads and the cost of building roads are going up. So your gas tax is going down, the cost of building roads is going up,” Massey said.

McKenzie stressed the need for more public education funding following the first year of families using state dollars for private school through the voucher program.

“In Knox County, our numbers are up. Actually, in Memphis, their numbers are up, so I think some of the changes we’ve made in regard to public education and putting a few more dollars in, I think we can continue that process,” McKenzie said.

State House Speaker Cameron Sexton has said he wants to at least double the voucher program to offer it to 40,000 to 50,000 families. Both Massey and McKenzie expressed skepticism about the expansion.

“This isn’t about those kids in failing schools, this is about their friends, the rich or almost rich, that are just wanting a check from the government,” McKenzie said.

Massey cited revenue concerns about the expansion.

“I’m not getting the vibes that there is going to be enough revenue to do that because we’ve got other funding needs also,” Massey said.

Massey added the state could expand the program this year, but perhaps to 5,000 more families.

The General Assembly will reconvene next Tuesday.

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Tennessee

Deputies perform ‘life-saving measures’ after 5-year-old falls into swimming pool in Tennessee

Published

19 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Deputies perform ‘life-saving measures’ after 5-year-old falls into swimming pool in Tennessee

FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – A Tennessee sheriff’s office is asking the community to pray for a family whose 5-year-old was hospitalized after falling into a swimming pool.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said deputies and family members were “administering life-saving measures” Thursday afternoon after pulling the child out of the water.

The child was then transferred to a hospital, where they are still being treated.

“The child was subsequently transported to the hospital, where they are currently receiving medical care‚” said a Facebook post from the sheriff’s office. “Out of respect for the family’s privacy, no further details will be released at this time.”

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Tennessee

Why first quarter was ‘crucial’ in Mississippi State’s loss to Tennessee

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Why first quarter was ‘crucial’ in Mississippi State’s loss to Tennessee

Sam Purcell felt good about the game plan for Mississippi State women’s basketball’s matchup with Tennessee.

But the Bulldogs gave up 26 points in the first quarter and trailed by seven points. It was a deficit they never recovered from in a 90-80 loss to the Lady Vols at Humphrey Coliseum on Jan. 8.

“You look at that that first quarter, I thought it was crucial. We had a great scout, a great game plan, but we didn’t talk on ball screens,” Purcell said. “Their largest quarter was that first quarter, and we’re going to watch back and go, dang it, we need to be more vocal. And you got to give them credit – top to bottom, they’re probably as good as anybody in the country with athleticism. So you can’t let those athletic kids turn the corner for wide open layups, and we did.”

Kharyssa Richardson and Madison Francis led the Bulldogs with 22 points each, but MSU didn’t have enough defense to pull off the upset.

Had Mississippi State been able to slow down Tennessee’s drivers in the first quarter, it may have been a different result. But once the Bulldogs started slowing that down, the Lady Vols were “phenomenal hitting some big-time shots,” Purcell said.

Tennessee only had the edge in points in the paint, 42-40, but it also went 10-for-27 on 3-pointers, which was an area Mississippi State couldn’t match. The Bulldogs shot 2-for-13 from deep.

MSU also couldn’t stop Tennessee freshman point guard Mia Pauldo, who scored a game-high 26 points on 8-for-12 shooting. The Bulldogs sent her to the foul line time and time again, and she went 8-for-9 on free throws.

“I thought (Pauldo) was poised, she was clutch,” Purcell said. “Obviously, that’s what you need in games like this that are gonna come down the to the wire. You need players to step up, and I thought she was the X factor for them.”

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