# On the Border: Mark Wahlberg, Bankruptcy, and the "Worst Mexican Chain in America" Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/fine-dining-5768145/on-the-border-mark-wahlberg-bankruptcy-and-the-worst-mexican-chain-in-america Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/fine-dining-5768145/on-the-border-mark-wahlberg-bankruptcy-and-the-worst-mexican-chain-in-america.md Podcast: ["Fine" Dining](https://stenobird.com/podcast/fine-dining-5768145) Published: 2026-02-18T08:01:00+00:00 Episode link: https://www.finediningpodcast.com/ Audio file: https://pdcn.co/e/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/9369c4b7-1e7b-4d55-9b95-8001ab364097/AUDIO_S04E04_On_the_Border_Pt_1_FINAL.mp3?dest-id=3605298 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fine-dining-5768145/episodes/on-the-border-mark-wahlberg-bankruptcy-and-the-worst-mexican-chain-in-america Duration seconds: 2169 ## Resource ๐ŸŒฎ๐Ÿ”ฅ๐Ÿน On the Border: Bankruptcy, Bottomless Calories, and Marky Marg Madness ๐Ÿน๐Ÿ”ฅ๐ŸŒฎ This week, Trent Tucker (@thegotspod) from the Geek Off the Street podcast joins me to break down the chaotic history of On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina , a chain that once lived under the Chili's corporate umbrella at Brinker International before getting unceremoniously left behind. On the Border has had a rollercoaster run. We unpack the Mark Wahlberg-backed Marky Marg (where he didn't even show up for the toast), and celebrate the undeniable appeal of Guacamole Live prepared tableside. Plus, Trent pitches a zero-gravity ramen restaurant, and we read Yelp reviews in the style of a late-night local TV lawyer commercial. ๐ŸŒฏ Formerly a Brinker International Sibling to Chili's ๐Ÿ“‰ "Worst Mexican Chain" According to Men's Health ๐Ÿ’ธ Chapter 11 Bankruptcy and 40 Sudden Closures ๐Ÿน The Marky Marg Featuring Flecha Azul Tequila ๐Ÿ“บ "Why? Because You Can" is the Most American Slogan Ever ๐Ÿฅ‘ Guacamole Live Steals the Spotlight ๐Ÿš€ Trent's Zero-Gravity Ramen Restaurant Pitch โš–๏ธ A Yelper Who Sounds Like a Personal Injury Attorney ๐Ÿ’ฌ COMMENT BELOW: Is tableside guac enough to save a struggling chain? ๐Ÿ“ข SUPPORT THE SHOW & JOIN THE COMMUNITY: ๐ŸŽ‰ Patreon (Bonus episodes, extended Yelp segments & more): patreon.com/finediningpodcast ๐Ÿ’ฌ Discord (Food talk, memes, cursed Yelp): discord.gg/6a2YqrtWV4 ๐ŸŽฅ Watch full episodes: youtube.com/channel/UCLbraNhL6KhDPkdSWt2yiuw ๐Ÿ”— All links: linktree.com/finediningpodcast ๐ŸŽค Guest: Trent Tucker | IG: @thegotspod Patreon Producers: Sue Ornelas & Joyce Van Patreon Subscribers: David Ornelas, Kellie Baldwin, Jeremy Horwitz, Herbert Amaya, Simone Davalos, Scott Bennett, Amy Reinhart, Josef Castaneda-Liles, & Travis Langley Free Patreon Followers: Joe Warszalek, Lauren Cummings, Graceโ€ฆ ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fine-dining-5768145/episodes/on-the-border-mark-wahlberg-bankruptcy-and-the-worst-mexican-chain-in-america/transcription-requests` โ€” Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/fine-dining-5768145/on-the-border-mark-wahlberg-bankruptcy-and-the-worst-mexican-chain-in-america.md` โ€” Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.