Taco John's facts for kids
Logo of Taco John's used since 2021
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Taco John's restaurant in Cheyenne, Wyoming, in July 2013
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Trade name
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Taco John's |
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| Private | |
| Industry | Restaurants |
| Genre | Fast food |
| Founded | March 14, 1969 in Cheyenne, Wyoming, one year after its roots as Taco House. |
| Founders | Jim Woodson and Harold Holmes |
| Headquarters |
1650 West End Blvd., Suite 200, St. Louis Park, Minnesota
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Number of locations
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 379 as of December 29, 2021[update] |
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Area served
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Key people
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| Products | |
| Revenue | US$106.8 million (2021) |
| Owners | Carolyn O'Connor and Bart Taylor |
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Number of employees
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8,000 (2019) |
Taco John's International, Inc. is an American fast food restaurant chain. It is known for its Mexican-inspired food, especially its famous Potato Olés. Potato Olés are bite-sized fried potato nuggets covered in special spices.
The company's main office is in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. As of 2022, Taco John's had 380 restaurants in about 22 states. Most of them are in the Midwest and Mountain regions of the U.S.
Contents
History of Taco John's
How It All Started
The story of Taco John's begins in 1968 with a small food trailer called the "Taco House." It was started by John Turner in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Turner was a member of the United States Air Force and an entrepreneur, which is someone who starts their own business.
Turner wanted to open a taco stand. He worked with a man named Harold W. Holmes, who turned a camper into a food trailer. The trailer became very popular, especially during a local festival called Cheyenne Frontier Days. Soon after, the first official Taco House stand opened.
Becoming a Franchise
In 1969, Turner sold the rights to his business to two men, James Woodson and Harold Holmes. This allowed them to open more restaurants using his idea. This is called franchising.
They changed the name from Taco House to Taco John's to honor John Turner. The new company, Taco John's International, Inc., began to grow. The first franchise store opened with a devil mascot and the slogan "the hottest spot in town."
The brand grew quickly in the 1970s. The 100th store opened in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, in 1975. The first building with a drive-thru was built in Cheyenne in 1973. By the 1990s, the company was very successful. One restaurant in Iowa made over $1 million in sales in 1994.
Working with Other Brands
By 2004, Taco John's started teaming up with other restaurants. They opened "combo stores" with brands like Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard and Steak Escape. This meant you could get food from both restaurants in one place.
Some of these combo stores are still open today. However, many others closed or became just a Taco John's.
Around this time, the original franchise owners passed away. James Woodson died in 2008, and Harold Holmes died in 2012.
Modern Growth and Changes
Taco John's first opened in smaller towns. Later, it began to open more restaurants in big cities like Denver and Kansas City. The company also opened locations at U.S. military bases.
The chain has continued to try new things. In 2016, the first Taco John's inside a Love's Travel Stop opened in Kansas. More have opened in other travel stops since then.
In 2017, the company expanded to Tennessee and Indiana. By 2021, there were 380 Taco John's locations across the country.
Special Trademarks
A trademark is a word or symbol that a company legally owns to identify its products.
What is West-Mex?
Taco John's trademarked the term "West-Mex" to describe its food. The company says "West-Mex" means food with fresh and bold flavors. This includes their famous Potato Olés and special sauces and spices.
The Story of "Taco Tuesday"
For many years, Taco John's owned the trademark for the phrase "Taco Tuesday" in almost every U.S. state. This meant other companies were not supposed to use the phrase in their advertising.
In 2023, the fast-food chain Taco Bell challenged this trademark. Taco Bell argued that "Taco Tuesday" was a common phrase that anyone should be able to use.
In July 2023, Taco John's decided to give up its trademark. The company's CEO, Jim Creel, said that spending a lot of money on lawyers to defend the trademark "doesn't feel like the right thing to do."
Advertising and Mascots
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Over the years, Taco John's has used several mascots in its advertising.
- An early mascot was a cartoon devil.
- Later, they used a cartoon character named Juan with a big sombrero and his donkey, Pépé.
- In the 1990s, the mascots were replaced with a more modern image.
- More recently, ads featured Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey, a real monkey who performs at rodeos.
In the 1990s, a popular slogan for the company was "A Whole Lotta Mexican."
2006 Food Safety Issue
In December 2006, some people got sick after eating at Taco John's restaurants in Iowa and Minnesota. Health officials investigated and found that the sickness was caused by E. coli bacteria on the lettuce.
The company immediately stopped using the lettuce supplier. The problem was traced back to the fields where the lettuce was grown. Taco John's worked with health officials to make sure its food was safe. This happened around the same time as a separate food safety issue at Taco Bell restaurants.
Gallery
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A Taco John's with a glass-enclosed dining area, called a solarium, in Marshalltown, Iowa.
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An old, abandoned Taco John's in Pocatello, Idaho.
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A Taco John's in Elizabethton, Tennessee, with an older style roof and newer signs.
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A Taco John's with a slightly updated roof design in Morristown, Tennessee.
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An old-style Taco John's building with old signs in Miles City, Montana.
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A very long and narrow Taco John's in Miles City, Montana.
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A Taco John's with a garden in front, in Monona, Wisconsin.
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An abandoned, retro-style Taco John's in Shawano, Wisconsin.
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See also
- List of Mexican restaurants
