A new restaurant has opened its doors in northeast Arkansas to provide Mexican fare to the residents of Jonesboro.
Owner, manager and chef Kevin Kidd opened Taco Kidd after spending 11 years in Laredo, Texas, where he worked as a full-time security guard for Sony.
“We started out making tacos and several Mexican dishes for family and friends in South Texas,” Kidd says on the restaurant’s website. “News about the quality of our great food spread quickly,” he adds, and after two years of planning, the young cook opened the restaurant.
“I’ve always loved to cook,” Kidd said in a news release. “My wife and I experimented with various recipes, and I came to Arkansas and started talking to some developers and banks about the prospects of opening a taco restaurant.”
The restaurant is designed to be fast and efficient while using healthy ingredients. It’s open seven days a week with drive-through and pick-up conveniences and currently employs 12 — six full-time and six part-time employees — with Kidd overseeing big picture items like accounting, décor and the menu.
Taco Kidd was opened with the help of a specialized business loan and grant program provided by Liberty Bank of Arkansas. The Economic Development Program, developed by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, allows small-business owners to take low-cost advances to pay for necessary startup materials. Taco Kidd’s development was also funded by an accompanying $25,000 EDPPlus grant, which are available through FHLB Dallas institutions and offered with EDP advances. Kidd used the loan and supplemental grant to purchase initial food inventory, new kitchen equipment and working capital for employee payroll.
“The grant was a huge help for us being a brand new business and starting up,” Kidd said. “The grant money provided additional working capital.”
Taco Kidd is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The restaurant is also open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays.For more information about the owners, ingredients and menu, visit TacoKidd.net.