Taco John’s Started in Cheyenne. 6 Things Wyomingites Know About It That Everyone Else Gets Wrong
Taco John’s, then based in Cheyenne, held the Taco Tuesday trademark in 49 states starting in 1989.
Many Wyomingites know the chain’s story, and people elsewhere get pieces of it wrong.
Here’s what Wyomingites know about Taco John’s that the rest of America often gets wrong.
1. Frontier Days Debut
Taco John’s started as a taco stand outside the entrance to Cheyenne Frontier Days.
Frontier Days calls itself the world’s largest outdoor rodeo and Western celebration.
A lot of people elsewhere assume a chain this widespread began in some big city.
John Turner set up that stand, called the Taco House, in 1968.
Harold Holmes, a camper manufacturer, converted a camper into that first stand.
You would hardly guess that from a modern drive-through lane.
A camper became a kitchen.
2. Who John Was
Taco John’s gets its name from John Turner, who started the original Taco House stand.
A lot of people elsewhere assume a man named John built the whole chain.
If you’ve ever wondered who John was, Turner is your answer.
The chain came from Jim Woodson and Harold Holmes, two Cheyenne businessmen who lacked experience in the restaurant industry.
Turner provided the restaurants with tortillas and a proprietary blend of seasonings.
They bought the franchise rights from Turner for $10,000.
That deal came in 1969, when the Taco House became Taco John’s International.
The name stuck.
3. Plywood Buildings
Taco John’s first hundred restaurants were prefabricated buildings of plywood and aluminum.
Crews constructed them in Cheyenne and trucked them to places like Rapid City, Scottsbluff, and Torrington.
Woodson and Holmes chose small markets with fewer competitors.
None had seating, so if you ordered, your food went with you.
Taco John’s added drive-through windows and interior seating in 1973.
By 2021, 65% of the chain’s business was drive-through.
Drive-through took over.
That makes your drive-through habit a 1970s upgrade, not an original feature.
Psst! How much do you know about Taco John’s? Take our quiz and see if you can ace it.
Quiz
Taco John’s Trivia
Answer these questions on Taco John’s and Cheyenne. We bet you can’t get them all right. Prove us wrong?
Taco John’s introduced a cowboy mascot named Whiplash in 2004. What kind of animal was he?
4. Potato Olés
Taco John’s introduced Potato Olés in 1979.
A 2012 Wyoming Tribune Eagle report called them the chain’s signature side dish.
The chain’s headquarters was in Cheyenne then, and it stayed there for 56 years in all.
Many people assume they were on the menu from the start.
They’re deep-fried potatoes that look like flattened tater tots.
In 2015, you could order them in a bucket with a side of cheese or sour cream.
Order them today, and you’re eating an item the chain didn’t have in its early years.
It’s hard to picture.
5. Taco Tuesday Trademark
Taco John’s, then headquartered in Cheyenne, held the Taco Tuesday trademark registration in 49 states from 1989 until 2023.
Many people still think the chain owns the phrase.
In July 2023, Taco John’s confirmed it would abandon the registration.
Taco Bell argued that Taco Tuesday should belong to everyone who makes, sells, eats, and celebrates tacos.
Defending the mark could have cost as much as $1 million.
In 2015, Taco John’s corporate lawyers were still sending cease-and-desist letters to restaurants unknowingly using the phrase.
That fight is over.
The restaurant on your corner can now advertise Taco Tuesday without fear of a cease-and-desist letter.
How Taco John’s Gave Up Taco Tuesday
Taco Bell filed petitions to cancel Taco John’s Taco Tuesday registration in mid-May 2023.
Taco John’s then filed a notice of abandonment with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The phrase went back to the public on July 18, 2023.
6. Headquarters Move
Taco John’s corporate headquarters is no longer in Cheyenne.
As of August 2025, Taco John’s was fully relocating its corporate headquarters to the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park, Minnesota.
Cheyenne had been home to the headquarters for 56 years.
That’s a long run.
The shift began in 2020, when the company opened a satellite office in Minneapolis.
Many people still picture the chain’s headquarters in Cheyenne.
At the time, some accounting staff stayed in the old Cheyenne building, and the Wyoming Lottery occupied the rest.
If you want to dig into that history, the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center has worked with Taco John’s since 2004 to preserve its corporate history.
The university also maintains an archive of Taco John’s memorabilia.
Store Count Over Time
Taco John’s store count depends on which year and which source you check.
A 2012 Wyoming Tribune Eagle report said the chain had more than 400 restaurants in Wyoming and 24 other states.
Cowboy State Daily put it at around 380 stores in 2025.
The company’s page says it operates and franchises more than 300 restaurants in 21 states.
The numbers don’t match.
If you’re comparing them, check the year on whichever one you see.
High School Culinary Contest
Taco John’s once asked teenagers for recipes.
The chain held a culinary competition on November 15, 2018, open to all Wyoming high school students taking a culinary class.
Teams of two each submitted one.
Judges awarded the winning Green River High School students $750 scholarships each.
Scholarships were the prize.
The Culinary Cup was an annual competition in 2015 where Wyoming high school chefs proposed potential menu items.
If your teenager was in a culinary class that year, the 2018 contest was open to them.
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