GREER — A regional taco chain location that had been open for more than five years has closed its doors before a new eatery takes its place in 2026.
Tipsy Taco, a chain of Mexican restaurants founded in Greenville, abruptly closed its Greer location at 14180 E. Wade Hampton Blvd. on Dec. 31, according to a news release published the same day, as the restaurant group behind the chain is partnering with Capri’s Italian Restaurant to open another one of that brand’s locations in the same spot.
The restaurant group behind Tipsy Taco said that the Greer location closing “isn’t a goodbye, it’s a transition.”
“We’re incredibly grateful to the Greer community for the years of support, memories, and moments shared within these walls,” the statement added.
The Greer Tipsy Taco location opened its doors in October 2019 and the brand’s first spot opened in June 2016.
Britton Briley, the owner of the agency on record for Tipsy Taco and Capri’s Italian, told The Post and Courier that Tipsy Taco worried that its Upstate South Carolina market was a little oversaturated, with locations in Duncan, Simpsonville, Clemson and other cities across the region, and that the brand found more success expanding into North Carolina.
Tipsy Taco has a location in Hendersonville, N.C., and another spot is planned to open in the state, in Brevarad, in 2026.
There are multiple Capri’s Italian locations across the Upstate, including in Boiling Springs, Greenville and Easley. Briley said Greer is a promising market for the brand and that the restaurant filling the Wade Hampton space is “the perfect idea.”
“I really think Capri’s saw (Greer) as like ‘OK, this is an area that we can have, grow, we know there’s a fan base and we know there’s food that’s reliable,’” Briley said. “Capri’s sort of fits into that mold very easily in Greer.”
Capri’s Italian is expected to open at the same location in February 2026, with the spot retrofitted and renovated to fit the new eatery.
The Tispy Taco restaurant group said it and Capri’s Italian group “came together with a shared vision to bring something new and exciting to Greer.”
“We’re proud to pass the torch to Capri’s Italian and can’t wait for the community to experience what’s next,” the Tipsy Taco group said.
Dining and Cooking