FARGO — Fans of Plaza Azteca are getting another spot on the south side of Fargo to enjoy their favorite Mexican foods and beverages, while Mas Tequila Cocina & Cocktails in West Fargo could be serving sometime around the New Year.

Juan Perez, the co-owner and local manager of the ventures, said a new 4,434-square-foot Plaza Azteca is going up at 5081 Charles Way S., with construction getting underway this week.

The estimated cost of construction is $1,435,000, according to city permit records. Perez said if all goes well, it will open in the Timber Creek development by the end of July 2022.

Perez said the intersection of Interstate 29 and 52nd Avenue South is a prime and underserved spot.

“There’s no restaurants (on 52nd Avenue South). I think a sit-down restaurant is good for that area,” Perez said Friday, Nov. 5.

The menu of the new Plaza Azteca will be slimmed down, with an emphasis on more upscale offerings, Perez said.

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It will look similar to the area’s first Plaza Azteca at 5505 28th Ave. S., which opened in early 2020 just off Veterans Boulevard, in the Uptown & Main Development.
Perez estimates the new Plaza Azteca will be ready to open by the end of July 2022.

Sioux Falls expansion

Perez and his partners Alberto Arellano and Ruben Leon are also opening a Plaza Azteca in Sioux Falls. He said the project got underway about three months ago and that the building shell is nearly closed up.

SiouxFalls.Business reports that the $1.4 million eatery at 3500 3500 W. 69th St. will also be about 4,400 square feet.

Plaza Azteca got its start in the 1990s in Virginia Beach, Va., and has expanded to more than 40 locations, most of them in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states.

The restaurant chain serves authentic Mexican dishes, including table-side guacamole and homemade salsa. The menu includes a variety of burritos, enchiladas, tacos, fajitas, seafood, steak and chicken dishes, and vegetarian options and salads.

Nearly Mas Tequila time

Mas Tequila, just a couple blocks west of the intersection of Sheyenne Street and 32nd Avenue West in West Fargo, is nearly complete, Perez said.

All that remains is for some kitchen equipment to arrive and be installed for the 4,000-square-foot tequila-focused bar and cocina (kitchen), to open.

The business will have some food service — seven styles of tacos, some burritos, chicken wings and nachos, and operate as a family restaurant until 9 p.m. After that, Mas Tequila will go into full bar mode, Perez told The Forum in a December 2020 interview.

It will be “a little bit of food with a great atmosphere,” Perez said. “You’re going to feel like you’re in Mexico, that’s going to be the atmosphere.”

This is the first planned Mas Tequila. If the concept works, others will follow, Perez said.