Brand Evolution for Vato Tacos
Mexican food is easily a top three American staple cuisine. On campus, there haven’t been many great options to get the delicious mainstays of tacos, burritos, and more. That is until Vato Tacos came along. Over the years Vato Tacos has become the go-to on Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College campuses, but the brand didn’t have a look that lived up to the food. Additionally, the menus weren’t performing at their full potential.
Year
Client
Client Type
Location(s)
Services
2024
Cruz Hospitality
QSR - Quick Serve Restaurant
Tallahassee, FL
Advertising, Branding, Marketing, Menu Design, Packaging, Verbal Identity, Visual Identity
Previous Look
Shifting the brand Strategy
Vato Tacos came to us with a brand identity that felt visually loud but lacked the substance and originality needed to stand out. The existing design leaned heavily on overused tropes—particularly sugar skulls and low-quality illustration styles—that gave off the wrong impression. Instead of bold and craveable, the brand came across as chaotic and cliché, missing the mark for a modern Mexican eatery with edge.
Key Challenges:
Overused and generic illustration style diminished perceived quality
Reliance on sugar skull imagery made the brand feel stereotypical and uninspired
Chaotic visual elements created clutter and confusion
Overall aesthetic failed to communicate a distinct or elevated brand personality
Mex Cliché
Vibrant
Absurd
Restaurant brand identity design
Vato Tacos’ initial brand identity was a mishmash of Mexican clichés laid out in cluttered compositions. The brand fell flat and felt cheap. Everything Vato Tacos was not. A complete rebrand was needed to usher in a better era for Cruz Hospitality’s brand with the most opportunity.
Refreshing the identity wouldn’t be enough, but that’s not to say everything designed to date had to go. The skull illustration served as a strong icon that could be rethought and redesigned to anchor the brand in something familiar for the student and staff patrons. But a basic skull wouldn’t be nearly enough.
“Explosive flavors” was a term used on some phone calls when describing the food at Vato Tacos. We took those words at face value and integrated it into the brand mark. The skull became an old school bomb with fuse. Now, THAT is explosive.
From that basis, a new typographic approach was introduced. Tall, bold lettering created a domineering, rebellious look. The slight serifs gave a hint at traditional Mexico, and the bold colors thrust the identity in the modern era. The condensed typography offset the various widths and weights of the brand’s type family, Roc Grotesk
Restaurant MENU engineering & Design
Vato Tacos brought in decent revenue, but the menu design was holding back from realizing maximum returns. No one, singular thing stood out as the biggest issue. Instead, it was the layout and approach overall. A full menu engineering workflow had to happen in order to optimize the experience and design.
By reviewing historic sales data and comparing associated menu layouts in the corresponding time periods, we were able to see some patterns. We identified items that were popular, profitable, and perceptual drivers and categorized them as such. We continued on to benchmark the pricing and found ways to realize more profitability where slippage was occurring.
Using the insights excavated from the data review, we wireframed new layouts for each of the two digital menu boards. Once the wireframes were finished, reviewed, and optimized for usability, we then applied a new design aesthetic that featured large, bold typography and clean user flows to organize the content. Additionally, we put emphasis on the most cumbersome part of the menu: the build your own section.
Restaurant advertising Design
Keeping things interesting semester to semester while maintaining a steady anchor of high profitability and popularity was critical to realizing success. It was accomplished by launching seasonal special items which also gave the client a way to test out new flavors and offerings.
To promote these limited time offerings, we created digital and print advertisements. These ads grabbed attention with their bold colors and typography, and unique AI-generated luchador wrestlers nestled into the composition.
We took inspiration from vintage wrestling poster art found in the internet archives. These posters had bold, chunky typography and vibrant color combinations which were just the ticket to establish a unique identity for Vato Tacos.
Restaurant packaging & Apparel Design
Packaging isn’t just about utility—it’s a billboard, a handshake, and a megaphone for your brand all rolled into one. Done right, it doesn’t just hold your food; it grabs attention, sparks curiosity, and reinforces everything that makes your brand unique. It’s not just packaging; it’s marketing in its most tangible form.
For Vato Tacos, we took their bold, unapologetic personality and made it impossible to miss. By weaving in striking typographic elements and leaning into their luchador imagery, the takeout packaging became a showstopper. It’s the kind of design that doesn’t just carry tacos—it carries the brand wherever it goes, turning heads and sparking conversations.
But we didn’t stop there. We saw another opportunity to make a statement: uniforms that double as merch. Inspired by vintage wrestling posters, we stripped the design down to essentials and created bold, wearable pieces that scream Vato Tacos. Whether in the kitchen or on the street, these uniforms ensure the brand’s identity is always front and center.
Project Recap
Vato Tacos’ rebrand wasn’t just a facelift—it was a full-scale transformation that delivered measurable impact. By redesigning the menu with an engineering-forward approach, we streamlined the ordering process, significantly cutting wait times and increasing throughput. This efficiency translated into more tickets per hour, maximizing revenue potential.
The refreshed identity is more than a new look; it’s a storytelling platform. With every touchpoint, from signage to social media, the brand’s voice remains unmistakably strong, setting the tone for sustained growth. Marketing and advertising efforts continue to drive the momentum, ensuring Vato Tacos stays top of mind and ahead of the curve.
This is how a rebrand should work—bringing clarity, efficiency, and a whole lot of energy to the table.
“Vato Tacos has been one of our strongest concepts. I didn’t think it could get better. Bullhearted’s mix of strategy and top notch design showed me that we can.”