Barberitos is an American franchise restaurant chain of

Mission burrito A Mission burrito (also known as a San Francisco burrito or a Mission-style burrito) is a type of burrito that first became popular during the 1960s in the Mission District, San Francisco, Mission District of San Francisco, California. It is dis ...

-inspired restaurants based in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, Georgia, United States. The company name is a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

of founder Downing Barber's last name and

burrito A burrito (, ) or burro in Mexico is, historically, a regional name, among others, for what is known as a taco, a tortilla filled with food, in other parts of the country. The term ''burrito'' was regional, specifically from Guanajuato, Guerre ...

History

The idea of the restaurant developed when Downing Barber tried eating a healthy diet without a budget, while noticing a restaurant in

Aspen, Colorado Aspen is the List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city that is the county seat and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population ...

serving fresh food to customers. The original Barberitos in downtown Athens opened in January 2000. The company struggled early on, but started to turn things around by 2010. In 2019, NFL player and UGA alum

David Pollack David M. Pollack (born June 19, 1982) is an American college football analyst and former player who was a linebacker two seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Georgia, was a three-time ...

joined Barberitos as the brand's ambassador. On February 20, 2020, Barberitos celebrated its 20th anniversary. In May 2022, the company was acquired by Woworks.

Franchises

Franchising for the company began in 2002; forty-six restaurants are operating through the Southeastern United States.

Mascot

The company mascot is Pepe, a grinning

chili pepper Chili peppers, also spelled chile or chilli ( ), are varieties of fruit#Berries, berry-fruit plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. They are used as a spice to ...

wearing dark glasses and clutching a burrito.

References

External links

* {{Athens, Georgia Companies based in Athens, Georgia Restaurants in Georgia (U.S. state) Economy of the Southeastern United States Regional restaurant chains in the United States Fast-food chains of the United States Fast-food Mexican restaurants Fast-food franchises Fast casual restaurants 2000 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Restaurants established in 2000