PepsiCo is bringing one of its most recognisable snack brands into the culinary world with the launch of its first restaurant concept dedicated to Lay’s, opening in Madrid, Spain.

The concept, called Pilla Tortilla, centres on Spain’s iconic tortilla (potato omelette) reimagined with Lay’s potato chips as a signature ingredient.

Developed in collaboration with Michelin-starred chef Miguel Carretero, the restaurant represents the first time PepsiCo has launched a full dining concept around one of its food brands.

The opening forms part of PepsiCo’s Food Ventures initiative, a global business unit designed to expand the company’s presence in the away-from-home channel and create new meal occasions for its brands.

“Pilla Tortilla is the first restaurant project by PepsiCo and Lay’s anywhere in the world,” said Pol Codina, general manager and senior vice president of PepsiCo Food Ventures. “With this opening in Madrid, PepsiCo is expanding its food and culinary focus and delivering on our diversification and growth strategy in the away-from-home channel.”

The Food Ventures unit, based in Barcelona, aims to develop ready-to-eat concepts that connect PepsiCo’s snack brands with consumers in new contexts, both on-the-go and in foodservice environments.

The Pilla Tortilla concept will debut with two formats: a full bar-restaurant offering dine-in, delivery and takeaway, and a separate takeaway-only kitchen.

The menu focuses on tortilla served in different formats, including slices (pinchos), sandwiches and whole tortillas, with customisable toppings such as spicy sausage with brie and honey, anchovies with Lay’s, crispy pork belly with alioli and salsa brava, Iberian ham with gazpacho and pulled pork.

The restaurant also incorporates Lay’s into other menu items, from starters like fish and chips with Lay’s Salt & Vinegar and marinated mussels with lime mayonnaise and Lay’s, to side dishes and desserts that combine sweet and savoury flavours, such as chocolate with Lay’s or goat’s cheese with honey and dulce de leche ice cream.

Menu development was led by chef Miguel Carretero, who heads the restaurant Santerra and earned a Michelin star in 2024. Carretero worked with the PepsiCo brand team to refine the tortilla recipe and integrate Lay’s chips in a way that complements the dish while preserving its traditional character.

“Lay’s is part of the collective imagination of many generations, and bringing its identity into such an emblematic recipe as tortilla was an exciting challenge,” Carretero said. “The result is a tortilla that’s instantly recognisable, but with a twist.”

Erica Lascorz, senior director of innovation marketing at PepsiCo Europe, added: “We wanted to go beyond the typical snack moment and turn something as familiar as eating tortilla into a unique concept, ‘grabbing a tortilla’, a special shared moment with an authentic brand experience.”