Fuego CravingsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Fuego Cravings franchise requires a total initial investment of $145K – $324K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.0M[2]. Verdict grade: B. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $145K – $324K
- 6th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.0M
- 10th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 7
- 17th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Each dollar invested generates 4.4x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Started franchising in 2024. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
Bottom line
- Total investment $145K – $324K including a $35K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.0M/year.
- Verdict B (Above Average) with a risk score of 62/100.
- Emerging franchise: only 2 years of franchising with 7 units. Early-stage systems carry higher risk but may offer better territory availability.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Fuego Cravings Franchising, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- None
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Francisco Zapien
- CEO experience
- 6 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- CA
- HQ
- 7252 Archibald Avenue, #1242, Rancho Cucamonga, California 91701
- Auditor
- Roos & McNabb CPA's PC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $110K
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
Fuego Cravings franchisees operate food service concepts (likely Latin/flame-grilled cuisine based on brand name) involving daily food preparation, customer service, POS operations, inventory management, and staff scheduling. Day-to-day activities include managing kitchen operations, coordinating with suppliers, handling cash/credit transactions, and maintaining food safety compliance.
- CEO
- Francisco Zapien
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $60K | $72K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $50K | $217K |
| Total initial investment | $145K | $324K |
Source: Fuego Cravings 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$113K
11.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
38%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
32 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $145K – $324K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $60K – $72K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Training fee | $300 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.0M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Item 19 type
- Company Owned Outlets
- Sample size
- 3 units
- vs category median 13 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $898K→$1.2M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is 4.4x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Fuego Cravings Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 7
- Opened
- 4
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 57%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 3
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Ceased ops
- 28.6%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Fuego Cravings is a micro-franchise with unproven profitability metrics, undisclosed going concern status, and insufficient franchisee density to validate the business model.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Roos & McNabb CPA's PC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — franchisor may have financial viability issues
- 02MEDNet Income not disclosed in Item 19 — cannot assess actual profitability or ROI
- 03MINOROnly 7 units system-wide — extremely small franchise network suggests weak growth/appeal
- 04MINORNo unit growth data provided — unclear if system is stable, growing, or declining
- 05MINORHigh investment range ($145K–$323K) against only 7 units raises scalability questions
- 06MINOR5% royalty on $992K avg revenue = $49.6K annual fee burden with unknown net income
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | San Bernardino County, California |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 89 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 270 hrs
- Training location
- Rancho Cucamonga, California, your Restaurant Location, and/or other location designated by us
- POS system
- SnackPass
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: SnackPass
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
5 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Fuego Cravings · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Fuego Cravings franchise?
The total investment to open a Fuego Cravings franchise ranges from $145K – $324K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Fuego Cravings franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Fuego Cravings FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.0M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Fuego Cravings's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Fuego Cravings (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Fuego Cravings franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Fuego Cravings has 7 total units in the United States, including 4 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 4 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Fuego Cravings a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Fuego Cravings as a B-grade franchise with a risk score of 62 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.