Taco Bell to launch new Go Mobile sites in 2021 — with 'bellhops'

Taco Bell is innovating again. This time, the Mexican fast food chain is planning new sites that take advantage of its mobile ordering app.

Starting in 2021, the chain said in a press release it will open new smaller restaurants — called Taco Bell Go Mobile — which are 1,325 square feet, instead of its standard 2,500-square-foot restaurants.

The sites will feature dual drive-thrus — one for standard customers, the other for customers who have pre-ordered through the Taco Bell app.

Using what it calls smart kitchen technology, the new sites will be able to tell when a mobile customer arrives and will suggest the fastest route to pick up the order.

“With demand for our drive-thru at an all-time high, we know adapting to meet our consumers rapidly changing needs has never been more important,” Taco Bell President Mike Grams said. “The Taco Bell Go Mobile restaurant concept is not only an evolved physical footprint, but a completely synchronized digital experience centered around streamlining guest access points.”

Another feature of the new sites will be “bellhops,” Taco Bell employees who take orders on digital tablets in the drive-thrus and in contactless curbside pickup.

“For the first time, our guests will have the ability to choose the pick-up experience that best fits their needs, all while never leaving the comfort of their cars,” Grams said.

The chain has already started implementing some of the new features, saying it has managed to reduce drive-thru times by more than 15 seconds since the first quarter of 2020.