Fuzzy’s Taco Shop is adding a third Wichita restaurant, this one on the west side
It’s a big day for west Wichita restaurant news.
On the heels of the announcement that Red Robin has finally found its west-side spot comes news that Fuzzy’s Taco Shop — which first entered the Wichita market in 2018 — has as well.
Whitney Reitz says she’s picking up the keys to the former Applebee’s building at NewMarket Square and she plans to “de-Applebee’s it and Fuzzy-fy it” in time to open in early 2022.
Reitz also is the franchisee for the Fuzzy’s that opened at 306 N. Rock Road in 2018 and the one that opened in Braeburn Square, 21st and Oliver, in 2019.
When she opened the Wichita State University-adjacent restaurant at Braeburn Square, she said, she planned to get it up and running and then start her west-side search in earnest.
“That store opened in August, and by March, the world ended,” she said, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic. “So it kind of put a yearlong hold on our search.”
Reitz said she’s excited about the new Fuzzy’s location, which is in the coveted NewMarket Square development. The building, which faces 21st Street and is near Jimmy John’s and Andy’s Frozen Custard, has been vacant since November, when Jon Rolph’s Thrive Restaurant Group closed the Applebee’s that had long operated there. The address is 10728 West 21st St.
The new Fuzzy’s will seat about 140, Reitz said, and it will be similar in size to the east-side Fuzzy’s, minus the banquet space. She’s planning to add a patio at the new restaurant, which is a feature that’s lacking in the NewMarket Square area, she said.
“Patios aren’t necessarily a requirement of a Fuzzy’s, but it’s something that NewMarket desperately needs,” she said.
Reitz said this is likely the last full-size Fuzzy’s for the Wichita area, though she hasn’t ruled out the possibility of opening one or two locations of a new Fuzzy’s concept called Fuzzy’s Taqueria. These are smaller, 2,000-square-foot versions of Fuzzy’s that are more focused on carryout.
“We’ll see how this one goes and take it from there,” she said.
Fuzzy’s is part of a Texas-based chain that has more than 100 restaurants across the country. It’s a fast-casual restaurant that serves tacos, burritos, nachos, breakfast, beer and margaritas.
Scott Harper and Brad Saville with Landmark Commercial Real Estate negotiated the lease for Fuzzy’s for the west-side space.
This story was originally published July 13, 2021 at 12:48 PM.
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