Feb. 12, 2020

Taco John’s has set an opening date for its ninth location in Sioux Falls.

The restaurant will open at 26th Street and Sycamore Avenue on Feb. 24.

It has been a long wait for customers on the city’s east side. The franchise group announced the new location in February 2018 and had expected to raze the former Pizza Hut building on the site right away and begin construction for an opening that summer. Demolition didn’t happen until July 2019.

“Working through changes to incorporate some of the new image designs Taco John’s corporate has changed has resulted in it opening much later than we would have liked, but it will be well worth it,” said Ted Miller, vice president of operations for the franchise group.

The dining area incorporates the new look for Taco John’s with pops of red and avocado green throughout. There’s seating for 72 at tables, booths and a long high-top table that has a couple of plug-ins to charge laptops and phones. The drive-thru offers two lanes for ordering and features the chain’s new digital menu boards.

The franchise group owns the property and included space for another tenant in the building. There’s about 2,400 square feet, and the owners are looking for complementary business, Miller said.

Jenn Larsen transferred from the West 12th Street location to manage the new store. Larsen has been with Taco John’s for 21 years, starting during high school, and moved to Sioux Falls from Rapid City three years ago. Larsen has been busy getting her store ready to open and spent the past three days conducting walk-in interviews. She said she’s hoping to hire 35 workers.

Hours will be 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday, with the breakfast menu served until 11 a.m. Customers have to order through the drive-thru after 10 p.m.

On opening day, the restaurant will give away 100 “golden tickets” good for free Potato Oles every day for a year. They will likely give out half in the morning to the first customers and the other half later in the day, Miller said.

The past two years have been busy for the franchise group. It started building a restaurant on East 10th Street across the intersection from its longtime store and relocated there in March 2019. In December, it closed the location at 19th Street and Minnesota Avenue as part of its market realignment.

So what’s next?

“It’s a good question,” Miller said. “We’re working on some stuff out of town. Also the northwest side of Sioux Falls we’re looking at. I could potentially say Tea, but as soon as I say that my phone’s going to be blowing up.”

Hartford could be an alternative to northwest Sioux Falls, he said.