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El Pollo Loco under construction in Albuquerque
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If you are crazy for El Pollo Loco, you’re in luck. The fire-grilled chicken chain has started construction on at least one Albuquerque location.
The restaurant chain is currently working with a franchise partner to bring its decades-old recipe of fire-grilled, Mexican-style chicken — marinated in citrus and spices — to the Land of Enchantment, El Pollo Loco Chief Development Officer Tim Welsh told the Journal.
“We’re excited to have construction underway; and while we don’t yet have an opening date for this restaurant, we look forward to being an active part of the Albuquerque community this summer,” Welsh said in a statement.
The restaurant will go inside a new multi-unit building on the corner of Juan Tabo and Lomas NE. A construction worker at the site on Monday told the Journal they were expecting to finish the work around December.
In 1989, El Pollo Loco had two locations in Albuquerque and one in Santa Fe, according to Journal archives. It’s unknown when the locations closed, but El Pollo Loco does not currently have any restaurants listed in New Mexico, according to its website.
The chain told the Journal in 2021 that it was eyeing expansion into the state. In 2023, El Pollo Loco announced it had signed agreements with a franchisee to bring nine units to New Mexico, with the first unit due by November 2024.
It is unclear if these agreements are still in place or if the same franchisee is involved in the restaurant going up at 845 Juan Tabo NE.
Founder Pancho Ochoa initially launched El Pollo Loco in Mexico and opened the first U.S. location in Los Angeles in 1980. Today, El Pollo Loco has more than 495 locations across seven U.S. states.
