Moe's Southwest Grill
Encyclopedia
Moe's Southwest Grill is an American
chain of fast casual
style Tex-Mex
restaurants headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia
.
Moe's was founded in Atlanta, Georgia
, in December 2000, by Raving Brands. In August 2007, the brand was purchased by FOCUS Brands
. As of the 2007 purchase, there were 360 locations in operation in 35 states
.
Many of the menu items have names drawn from popular culture
memes such as:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chain of fast casual
Fast casual restaurant
A fast casual restaurant is a type of restaurant that does not offer full table service, but promises a higher quality of food and atmosphere than a fast food restaurant. In the US, it is a relatively new and growing concept positioned between fast food and casual dining...
style Tex-Mex
Tex-Mex
Tex-Mex is a regional American cuisine that blends food products available in the United States and the culinary creations of Mexican-Americans influenced by the cuisines of Mexico.Tex Mex may also refer to:...
restaurants headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
.
Moe's was founded in Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, in December 2000, by Raving Brands. In August 2007, the brand was purchased by FOCUS Brands
FOCUS Brands
Focus Brands is an affiliate of the Atlanta-based private equity firm, Roark Capital Group, that owns the Schlotzsky's, Carvel, Cinnabon, and Moe's Southwest Grill brands. It purchased Cinnabon from AFC Enterprises in 2004 and Schlotzsky's from Bobby Cox Companies in 2006...
. As of the 2007 purchase, there were 360 locations in operation in 35 states
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
.
Many of the menu items have names drawn from popular culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
memes such as:
- "Art Vandalay" and "Close Talker" (both from the television series SeinfeldSeinfeldSeinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
) - "Who is Kaiser Salsa", a reference to the villainKeyser SözeKeyser Söze is a fictional character in the 1995 film The Usual Suspects, written by Christopher McQuarrie and directed by Bryan Singer. According to Roger "Verbal" Kint, Söze is a crimelord whose ruthlessness and influence have acquired a legendary, even mythical, status among police and criminals...
in The Usual SuspectsThe Usual SuspectsThe Usual Suspects is a 1995 American neo-noir film written by Christopher McQuarrie and directed by Bryan Singer. It stars Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio del Toro, Chazz Palminteri, Kevin Pollak, Kevin Spacey and Pete Postlethwaite....
. - "El Guapo's Infamous Salsa", named after the villain in the movie Three Amigos.
- The "Triple Lindy" burrito (no longer on the menu), a reference to the movie Back to School.
- The "John Coctostan" quesadilla, a reference to the movie FletchFletch (film)Fletch is a 1985 comedy film about a wisecracking investigative newspaper reporter, Irwin M. Fletcher , who writes under the name of Jane Doe...
. - The "Billy Barou" nachos, a reference to the movie CaddyshackCaddyshackCaddyshack is a 1980 American comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Ramis, and Douglas Kenney. It stars Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe, Cindy Morgan, and Bill Murray...
. - The "Fat Sam" is a reference to the drug dealer (George Wendt) in the movie FletchFletch (film)Fletch is a 1985 comedy film about a wisecracking investigative newspaper reporter, Irwin M. Fletcher , who writes under the name of Jane Doe...
. - The "Ruprict" may be a mistaken reference to Steve Martin's gimp-retard character "Ruprecht" in a scene from the movie Dirty Rotten ScoundrelsDirty Rotten Scoundrels (film)Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Frank Oz. The screenplay by Dale Launer, Stanley Shapiro, and Paul Henning focuses on two con artists who ply their trade on the French Riviera...
.