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Photo. Del Taco President Kevin Moriarty speaks at a news conference
recently to announce his plans to challenge other fast-food chains
by expanding nationally. The company plans to increase from 320
to 500 restaurants. Associated Press
Del Taco is planning to expand, but claims it is not going to cause a war with its competitors.
LOS ANGELES _ Watch it, Taco Bell: the competition is heating up. As the nation's appetite for Mexican food grows more ravenous, California's Del Taco wants a far bigger slice of the fast-food pie er, enchilada.
Del Taco's expansion goals are as big as its $2.99 macho burrito, a one pound-plus stomach buster. President Kevin Moriarty said the company, with 320 restaurants, wants to expand to 500 outlets across the nation by 1995, then add 225 per year from 1996 through 2000.
Officials of the Costa Mesa-based company say there's more than enough room for them and Taco Bell at the fast-food windows as Americans' tastes shift toward spicier ethnic foods.
"People talk about taco wars, but this isn't really a war," said Paul Hitzelberger, Del Taco's executive vice president for marketing and part of the team that bought the company in 1990.
"It's almost like we're friends....