A New Boozy Taco Bell Cantina Could Be Coming To A City Near You

Update: In May, Taco Bell announced that this summer it would be testing completely redesigned upscale versions of its classic fast-food restaurants. The tests started in the Orange County area of California, and now the chain is looking to expand the idea. Brian Niccol, Taco Bell Corp's CEO, said in a recent press release, "expansion into urban markets is a key focus for us both this year and over the course of the next several years." Among the urban areas getting these modern TBell Cantinas are Cleveland, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Las Vegas, and New York. In addition to their chic designs, the new locations will offer shareable menus and will serve alcoholic beverages such as beer, wine, sangria, and spiked frozen drinks. Sounds like a fiesta we want to be invited to. (BusinessWire)

This article was originally published on May 17, 2016.

Taco Bell is getting a new look. The fast-food chain is going "modern chic" with four brand-new restaurant redesigns that might end up at a location near you. The makeovers will be tested this summer at Taco Bell locations throughout Orange County, CA, near the company's headquarters. The goal behind T-Bell’s new aesthetic is to better reflect the communities in which it operates. “It’s no longer one-size-fits-all,” stated Deborah Brand, VP of Development and Design at Taco Bell Corp. “Consumers are looking for a localized, customized, and personalized experience that reflects the diversity of their communities — the flexibility in bringing these four designs to life gives us just that.” The four design concepts are dubbed Modern Explorer, California Sol, Heritage, and Urban Edge. According to Marisa Thalberg, Taco Bell Corp's chief marketing officer, “While all four restaurant designs each have a different contextual personality, they all share a commonality in expressing Taco Bell’s brand like never before. From the open kitchen that showcases our freshly prepared foods to the community tables designed for friends to hang out, each of these formats fosters a modern, unique experience.”

The new designs definitely don't look like their previous iterations. In fact, they are hardly recognizable as Taco Bell without the familiar logo. But we're guessing this is all part of a bigger plan to win over millennials — and entice customers to actually eat at Taco Bell.