Ghai Restaurant Group buys 44 Taco Bell locations in Houston area

What changes for me if my store changes hands? For Taco Bell crews and shift leaders in Houston, that is the practical question behind Mas Restaurant Group’s sale of 44 local locations to Ghai Restaurant Group. A new owner can mean new scheduling rules, new payroll contacts, different HR systems, and a fresh set of expectations on overtime, training, and store standards.

Mas said June 1 that it sold the Houston sites out of a system of 123 Taco Bell restaurants spread across the Houston and Columbus, Ohio, metro areas. The company had backed by Bessemer Investors since 2018, alongside chief executive Chad Motsinger and chief financial officer Ben Walsh. Sidley represented Mas in the transaction.

For Ghai Restaurant Group, the purchase more than doubled its Taco Bell presence. The company said the deal gave it 81 Taco Bell locations and about 260 restaurants overall, up from 37 Taco Bell units before the acquisition. Harsh Ghai described the Houston package as a “dream portfolio” in a “dream market,” a sign the buyer sees room to keep growing in one of Taco Bell’s biggest urban corridors.

That matters inside the restaurants because Taco Bell is heavily franchised. Yum! Brands says Taco Bell operates more than 9,000 restaurants in more than 35 countries and territories, with 2025 system sales of $18.361 billion. The chain opened its first restaurant in 1962 in Downey, California, and sold its first franchise in 1964. In a system built on franchise ownership, local operators make the day-to-day calls that shape labor scheduling, pay timing, field leadership, and how quickly stores absorb menu or tech changes.

That is why the handoff is more than a corporate reshuffle. For managers, the transition can change who signs off on labor hours, which HR team handles benefits and payroll issues, and how quickly new training playbooks reach the floor. For crew members, the biggest test will be whether the new owner brings steadier staffing, clearer communication, and consistent routines as the Houston stores move under Ghai’s control. Ben Walsh and Kay Bassett, Mas’s senior director of HR, oversee the internal systems that often become even more important when a franchise network changes hands.