Taco John's closes after 46 years in St. Peter

Taco John's in St. Peter, a mainstay of the downtown area for nearly a half-century, went dark in late September.

"PERMANENTLY CLOSED. THANK YOU ST. PETER," reads the final message on the fast-food restaurant's entrance sign.

St. Peter Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Ed Lee said he'll miss the business' famous Potato Olés, as well as its presence in St. Peter, whether it was donating coupons to community events or sending out employees to volunteer.

"They had a great team of people," he shared.

The restaurant at 103 North Minnesota Avenue was perhaps one of the nation's oldest Taco John's locations.

According to "A Little Bit of Heaven in St. Peter", written by Robert Wettergren, the establishment opened its doors in November of 1978, when the company that started as a taco trailer in Cheyenne, Wyoming was a decade old .

In fact, Taco John's says Minnesota is the birthplace of both "Taco Tuesday" and Potato Olés.

In St. Peter, the now-shuttered restaurant served as a bright spot for the community especially during the pandemic.

Lee, who can see the property from his office window, said he'll never forget how long the restaurant's drive-thru lines were during the pandemic.

Looking ahead, Lee wrote in an email that he's eager and optimistic that a new restaurant or other business will "see that Saint Peter has 12,000 residents and 18,000 motorists along north- and southbound Highway 169 per day."

"We’re a pretty good bet," he wrote.

Bring Me The News has reached out to Taco John's for comment on the closure.

Related: The Taco John's in the Minneapolis skyway appears to have closed