Shaun Doty & Fifth Group Opening The Original El Taco

It seems like the taco is about to get some attention from some heavy hitters in the biz. Shaun Doty (of Shaun's in Inman Park) and Fifth Group are coming together to bring you The Original El Taco in the space formerly occupied by Sala. I was never a big Sala fan, primarily because they strayed from two tenants of good Mexican in my mind- it was neither simple nor cheap. I hope Fifth Group learned their lesson from that. Here is the official release.

"The owners of Fifth Group Restaurants have joined forces with Executive Chef Shaun Doty, owner of Shaun’s, to create The Original El Taco in the former Sala space in Virginia-Highland. The new restaurant will open in mid-October. Doty is developing recipes for creative Mexican fare like tacos, tortas and salsas, and the Fifth Group Restaurants team is working with William Peace, Peace Design, to change the look and feel of the restaurant.

“The Original El Taco will be lively, bright, open, and - most of all - fun,” said Robby Kukler, co-owner of Fifth Group Restaurants. “We have known Shaun for years and when we found out he had been thinking about doing Mexican too, we knew it was a great partnership.”

“I love Mexican food and have wanted to do a restaurant like this for a while,” said Doty. “To have this opportunity to work with the pros at Fifth Group Restaurants is great.”

“We are going to create an easy, approachable destination for great Mexican food,” added Kukler.

Doty will work with a chef de cuisine at El Taco when the restaurant opens, while remaining executive chef at Shaun’s.

The Original El Taco is located at 1186 North Highland Avenue N.E. (formerly Sala) and will be open for dinner nightly. Fifth Group Restaurants sold Sala in mid-2007 and reacquired it in July 2008.

Fifth Group Restaurants is the privately owned company that operates Atlanta restaurants South City Kitchen® Midtown, South City Kitchen Vinings, La Tavola Trattoria and Ecco, as well as Bold American®, a catering and events company with onsite services at the Studio 887 and the Event Gallery at the King Plow Arts Center and offsite at private homes, offices and Atlanta's premier venues. For more information, call 678-302-3251 or visit www.fifthgroup.com.