InTucker Magazine

Business of the Month – Bell Street Burritos

In recent years, Tucker has seen an infusion of highly regarded, independently owned restaurants throughout different parts of the City. It’s fair to say none of those restaurants opened with quite the buzz as Bell Street Burritos.

“It was a problem,” says Bell Street owner Matt Hinton. “We tried to do a soft open, but we had so many customers turning out that we didn’t have time to actually train our staff.”

The training wheels came off on August 10, when Hinton and his staff held their grand opening at the location in the former El Tapatio space on Lawrenceville Highway. Since then, the restaurant has been packed for lunch, dinner and Saturday morning breakfast burritos.

The story of Bell Street actually begins with Hinton, a Tucker native who was teaching religion at Morehouse and Spelman Colleges. When one of his classes was cancelled because of low enrollment, he decided to make some extra money by crafting and delivering California mission-style burritos. Within a couple of years, the concept was so popular Hinton found himself in the restaurant business.

“This location in Tucker is our first shop outside of the Perimeter,” Hinton explains. “I was raised here. I spent virtually all my [childhood] in Tucker. I went to Midvale Elementary School in Tucker, so I was 30084 for all of my formative years.”

Hinton was glad to come home, opening his new restaurant just a few miles from where his parents live. He sees the location as lucrative and the City as a place where businesses can thrive. But beyond the business side, Hinton says he wants to send a larger message to his customers.

“What we do should be some expression of loving our neighbors,” Hinton says. “Whether it’s how quickly we get the food out, how we deal with mistakes when we do make them, whatever it is, that should be an extension of that principle.”

The Bell Street Burritos Tucker location is located at 4053 Lawrenceville Highway. More information on menus and restaurant hours can be found at www.bellstreetburritos.com.