Texas · Mexican / Tex-Mex
Convert a mexican / tex-mex concept in Texas.
San Antonio + Austin + Houston each have distinct Tex-Mex / Mexican / interior-Mexican equipment profiles.
Texas · permitting context
What the state adds on top.
Austin Development Services pre-flights everything through a Site + Land Use review BEFORE building plan-check. A restaurant on a property without an explicit "restaurant" land-use designation hits a 3-6 week zoning verification step that the building permit can't skip. Pre-walk the lease with the City of Austin's zoning verification letter in hand; without it, the published plan-check rhythm is meaningless.
Houston Permitting Center moves faster (4–7 business days first review) but enforces grease interceptor sizing under IPC §1003 + Houston Health Department supplementary rules — typically a 1,500-gallon minimum for a 4-vat fryer line, with monthly pump-out logged via the HHD portal. Dallas and Fort Worth land 5–8 days first review; San Antonio averages 6–9.
Climate zone varies by city (Austin = 2A humid-mixed, Houston = 2A hot-humid, Dallas/Fort Worth = 3A mixed-humid). Houston's humid climate makes MUA tempering essential — an untempered MUA pulls humidity into the dining room and the AC short-cycles to keep up. Plan for tempered MUA with a 55°F design supply on every Houston restaurant TI.
Hood + MUA rule for Texas
Houston enforces hood capture-velocity per NFPA 96 §5.1 at 150 FPM minimum face velocity. Inherited Type II commercial hoods sized at 100 FPM frequently fail plan-check; replace or re-spec at proposal, not at correction.
AHJ quirk
Austin Site + Land Use review is the bottleneck — building plan-check cannot start until the Site review clears. Skip this and the published timeline does not apply.
MEXICAN / TEX-MEX · WHERE THIS CUISINE QUIETLY COSTS YOU MONEY
Mexican / Tex-Mex specifics, on top of the state rules.
01 / 5
Plancha + comal hood length
Plancha lines are wider than the previous tenant's griddle by 24–48". A hood rated for a 4' griddle won't legally cover a 6' plancha — NFPA 96 requires the hood to overhang cooking surfaces by 6" on each open side. Cheapest fix is hood-extension panels (~$2K); worst case is a new hood + duct chase (~$15K).
02 / 5
Tortilla warmer + steam-table load
A high-volume Mexican line typically runs 3–5 holding/steam units pulling 1,500–2,500W each. That's 8–12 kW of dedicated cook-line load the old electrical panel may not have. Check available 208V slots and panel capacity before equipment spec lock; sub-panel adds $4K–$9K.
03 / 5
Grease + masa drain separation
Masa-rinse water clogs traditional grease interceptors fast — the starch coats the baffle. Many jurisdictions now require a separate solids interceptor upstream for tortilla/masa operations. Confirm with the AHJ early; retrofitting two interceptors after slab-pour is a six-figure mistake.
04 / 5
Walk-in cooler for produce volume
Mexican menus rely on heavy fresh-produce volume (cilantro, tomatoes, peppers, avocados, limes). A 6×6 walk-in that worked for a sandwich shop won't fit the par level. Plan 8×10 minimum, with a separate produce-only section so onions don't aromatize the dairy.
05 / 5
Frying oil disposal
Chimichangas, chips, and taquitos drive 50–80 gallons/week of fryer oil. The lease should specify outdoor used-oil tank placement and access — many strip-center landlords forbid grease/oil containers near the storefront, forcing a long back-of-house run that's a pain at 11pm.
Texas · AHJs we file with
- City of Houston
- City of Dallas
- City of Austin
- City of San Antonio
- City of Fort Worth
- City of Plano
- City of Frisco
- City of El Paso
- City of Arlington
- Harris County
- Dallas County
- Travis County
Looking at a Texas space for mexican / tex-mex? Send the address and the menu — we'll send the conversion notes back the same day.
Begin a project →Other Texas cuisines we convert