Fan-favorite Naugles to reopen in Fountain Valley on Saturday for weekends only

After shutting down this week because demand from customers was overwhelming its ability to serve them, Naugles will reopen its new location in Fountain Valley on Saturday, owner Christian Ziebarth announced Tuesday night.

The business, which Ziebarth refers to as a “test kitchen” rather than a restaurant, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, he said.

The Mexican fast-food establishment’s first week after opening July 28 was intended to be “soft,” known only to fans on social media.

But fans flocked to the location in an industrial park on Mount Langley Street as word spread of Naugles’ return 20 years after the brand disappeared following a merger with Del Taco. Customers waited in long lines, and a shortage of food caused the business to close hours before the scheduled time on multiple days.

Ziebarth said he hopes the new hours will help alleviate problems, especially the potential for running out of food before closing time.

“It’s still a corporate test kitchen, which, by its very nature, tends to have limited hours,” he said in an email Wednesday. “The city told us there is nothing wrong with having a crowd outside, but at the same time, we don’t want to be a perennial annoyance to neighboring businesses.”

He said he plans to open a full-fledged Naugles restaurant with a drive-through, but said he could not elaborate.

“We have some specific ideas,” he said. “We will see which one comes to fruition first.”

Naugles was a popular chain in the 1970s and ‘80s. It merged with Del Taco in 1988, and its last location closed in 1995.

Ziebarth, a fan of Naugles when he was growing up, won the rights this year to the Naugles trademark from Del Taco.