Fast Food! Tortilla’s New CEO Runs Marathon to Visit UK Restaurants

The dynamic new boss of the UK’s most-loved Mexican restaurant Tortilla is running a marathon to visit his fast-paced restaurants.

Andy Naylor, the newly appointed CEO of Tortilla, the real California burrito and taco joint, will run over a marathon as he visits all his London venues.

Three weeks into the job Andy, a keen runner, was hoping to run this Sunday’s London Marathon but just missed the ballot entry deadline, after completing his first marathon in Valencia in an impressive sub-three hours time. So, knowing he wanted to meet more of his restaurant teams and still get involved in the Marathon hype, he decided to combine the two and run to every Tortilla in the capital!

Andy, 40, this Friday will navigate busy London streets to run 28.1 miles (nearly two miles longer than the real marathon!) from Camden around the capital to Islington, popping into each of the 21 Tortilla and Chilango restaurants to say hello to the teams!

Andy will start his marathon meet and greet at 7 am this Friday, April 19. After a quick hello and team photo in Camden, he will then run to restaurants in Finchley Road, Hammersmith, Westfield, Oxford Circus, Euston, Kings Cross, Russell Square, Chancery Lane, Brewer St, Soho, Victoria, Strand, Southwark, London Bridge, Leadenhall, London Wall, Spitalfields, Dalston and finish up in Islington about lunchtime. Phew!

“I’ve been enjoying traveling across the country in recent weeks to meet with our restaurant teams”, Tortilla CEO Andy says.

“We have some excellent people in the business and it’s great to feel the energy as we discuss our exciting plans for the future. With our headquarters based in London and the buzz around the marathon, I thought what better way to show our London crew the love than by recreating our very own burrito marathon? Some of the office and our restaurant teams have hinted at joining me for some of the legs – I think I’ll be needing the moral support, and a Corona or 2 at the end, for sure!”

It is the start of an exciting chapter for Andy and Tortilla as the business continues to expand and grow the popular Mexican restaurants nationwide.

Andy joined Tortilla in July 2017 as CFO and became CEO last month. Andy joined Tortilla from Gaucho, where he was Head of Finance, a role which included overseeing the sale of the business to Equistone Partners. Andy started his career at Deloitte and holds an ACA qualification.

Andy’s commercial expertise and growth mindset have seen him play a critical role in shaping Tortilla’s multi-channel and franchise business strategy over the past seven years.

Tortilla serves over 7 million burritos annually and according to food industry estimates over one billion burritos are consumed each year in the United States alone.

All of Tortilla’s fresh toppings and fillings are made from scratch, every day (often twice a day!). Over 70% of Tortilla’s menu is plant-based and vegan-friendly accredited. The moreish guacamole is made with Hass avocados, hand-smashed until chunky, never pureed! Tortilla imports chillies from Mexico to give each dish that authentic taste and only grass-fed British Isle brisket is used for their beef barbacoa.

Tortilla was inspired by San Francisco’s taquerias, each restaurant boasts a relaxed vibe with neon lights and feel-good tunes, perfect for dinners with friends, family and colleagues. Every dish is made fresh to order and completely customizable, with mouthwatering toppings and fillings to suit all tastes, diets, and cravings.