El Mexicana receives £1m funding to expand

The grab and go Mexican restaurant group is looking to grow to 22 sites over the next two years.
El Mexicana was founded in 2011 and currently operates 17 UK restaurants.
It will use the loan to install self-service kiosks in its sites and open a mix of franchise and owned restaurants, the first of which will be in Doncaster.
El Mexicana was created by John Coverley, a former head of convenience stores at Sainsbury’s who also created the Nosh food and coffee shop brand.
“This is an excellent business, with an exciting product…we are delighted to support this growth and continue to support SMEs with capital to pursue their ambitions,” says Stuart Thompson, regional director business development at ThinCats.
ThinCats supported steak restaurant group Flat Iron with a £5m investment in 2019 and recently backed barbecue brand Hickory’s Smokehouse with a £13m funding package.