🌮
AISLE 6 · FAST FOOD
Don Pablo's
by Don Pablo's
Gone. The last Don Pablo's, in Deptford Township, New Jersey, closed abruptly on June 23, 2019, after the final Texas and Maryland stores had shut. Independent restaurants with the same name in Minnesota are unrelated.
Last verified Nov 9, 2026
The Tex-Mex chain that started in Lubbock in 1985 and grew to about 120 restaurants, second only to Chi-Chi's among America's full-service Mexican chains. It spent its last two decades passing through bankruptcies.
🧾 One more thingThe parent company sold off its Applebee's franchises in 1998 and renamed itself Avado Brands to bet on Don Pablo's. Avado went into Chapter 11 twice, in 2004 and 2007.
📅 Timeline
- 1985The first Don Pablo's opened in Lubbock, Texas.
- 1995Apple South bought parent company DF&R, which then ran 51 Don Pablo's.
- 1998Apple South renamed itself Avado Brands to focus on Don Pablo's, which had about 120 restaurants.
- 2008After Avado's second bankruptcy, Rita Restaurant Corp. bought 41 locations.
- 2016Rita filed for Chapter 11 in October, and the chain shrank by roughly half.
- 2019The last location, in Deptford Township, New Jersey, closed on June 23.
❓ People also ask
Are there any Don Pablo's restaurants left?
No. The last one, in Deptford Township, New Jersey, closed in June 2019. Restaurants named Don Pablo's in Fergus Falls and Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, are unrelated.
Where did Don Pablo's start?
In Lubbock, Texas, in 1985.
🧾 Sources
- PhillyVoice, Deptford Don Pablo's Mexican restaurant abruptly closes (2019)
- NJ.com, Last Don Pablo's in the country abruptly closes in N.J. (2019)
- Franchising.com, Don Pablo's Returns to Texas Roots (2014)
- Wikipedia, Don Pablo's (2026)
🕯️ Shoppers also mourned