Taco chefs take over drive-in movie theatre in Prince Edward County

Tacos and drive-in movies seem like the perfect combination on a warm summer evening. In fact, anything with tacos works well, but when a couple of rival taco makers saw an opportunity to join forces and buy a 70-year-old drive-in movie theatre in Prince Edward County, they saw a business too delicious to pass up.

Rebel Tacos founder Ian Chislett and Aravind Selvaraj, who operated Arvy’s Street Eats before signing on with Rebel in the summer of 2025 as an employee, have purchased Mustang Drive-In, a local institution since the 50s located on a nine-acre property just north of the village of Bloomfield.

The new partners plan to keep the theatre going while serving their movie-loving customers Rebel Tacos signature state fair-style tacos and Mexico City-style birria tacos, as well as Tex-Mex offerings at the snack bar.

With the drive-in just minutes from the famous Sandbanks Provincial Park, Chislett also hopes to open the “biggest sandbox in the country” on the property for families to hang out, play games and just chill.

Chislett started Rebel Tacos in 2022, operating ‘gorilla-style’ out of local restaurant kitchens and selling his tacos at ‘trunk sales’ around the county.

A year later Selvaraj started Arvy’s Street eats and the two were ‘friendly rivals’ during this period, sometimes sharing equipment or kitchen space. “We were very much guerilla chefs, we prepped in bars after they closed, 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. – or we rented community centre kitchens or rented space in the local county food hub,” Chislett said.

In 2025, while Selvaraj was negotiating his contracts for the season for Arvy’s, Chislett first broached the subject of the two taco chefs joining forces.

Selvaraj was debating moving back to India and opening Arvy’s Street Eats there and Chislett talked him into staying for the summer as a Rebel Tacos employee.

“I was able to EVENTUALLY convince him the Mustang wasn’t just a pipe dream. We are now partners in Rebel Taco and own the Mustang property together.”

Rebel Tacos has been operating out of the kitchen at nearby Slake Brewing and will keep Slake as a location this summer. Going forward, the drive-in will be home base after a few additions, Chislett said.

“The big draw for the Mustang for us is that it has a large commercial kitchen in it already. We are adding extra kitchen equipment and refrigeration so we will hopefully be able to do all our prep from the Mustang. I can tell you I am most excited about the soft serve machine!”

The Mustang Drive-In, one of the last of its kind still operating in Ontario, was originally listed for sale at $1.6 million and sold this year for $1.25 million, with zoning on the property that would allow for a variety of additional uses.

The sellers were Dawn Laing and Drew Downs, who bought the property in the spring of 2020 at the beginning of a global pandemic and were able to restore the theatre and return it as a premier destination for Prince Edward County.

It’s one of three Mustang Drive-Ins in Ontario, with the others in Guelph and London.

The drive-in is set to open from May through September and Chislett and Selvaraj – with a little help from small business experts Community Futures and the Business Development Bank of Canada – are aiming for a mid-May opening day.

“Between both of us we were able to use our Rebel Taco and Arvy’s sales histories to demonstrate that we actually know what we are doing,” Chislett said, adding that the former owners were “instrumental” in getting the sale across the finish line.

“Dawn and Drew added so much infrastructure to the property in their time as owners that we were able to save considerable costs when we took it over.”

Getting the drive-in open before the Victoria Day long weekend is the goal and the new owners are ready.

“We will definitely be open in May, and it’s looking like the second or third weekend,” he said. “We have had all the inevitable setbacks any place experiences, parts on back order, poor weather, scheduling trades, etc. We are lucky the local contractors we work with are so good about getting us up to speed.”

It’s been a bit of a whirlwind since the deal was made and Chislett and his business partner are getting excited for the opening.

“It’s amazing to be able to share this with all of you,” he said. “Aravind and I wanted to make sure this landmark stayed in our community and it’s our absolute privilege to be the new owners. We will be running movies, events, concerts, and as always TACOS.”

Tacos and a drive-in movie and maybe a little playtime in the sandbox in the summer sunshine in The County.

What could be better?