In 1970, Robert Baltierrez opened the family restaurant in Grand Rapids. Two years later his son, Robert Baltierrez II, opened the second location in Mount Pleasant as the first Mexican restaurant in town.

Taco Boy has served entire generations of Mount Pleasant locals with traditional homemade Mexican food using family recipes. Taco Boy prides itself on remaining a family owned establishment and a staple of the community for over 50 years.

Central Michigan Life talked to Baltierrez II about his restaurant and its history in Mount Pleasant.

CM-Life: What is it like running a small business in Mount Pleasant for over 50 years?

Baltierrez II: It's very challenging, we were the sixth restaurant here in Mount Pleasant. As you see there are a lot of restaurants now (and) a lot of chains. It makes it tough on independent owners when you compete against big corporations, but it's been good. I've met a lot of good people here in Mount Pleasant.

We have a big following - we've been around here so long. We still have people that come to this restaurant that actually came to our restaurant we originally opened 50 years ago. We have a lot of alumni (and) we have their families coming in too.

Do you have trouble competing with big chain restaurants?

Yes and no. I mean a lot of people are used to that kind of food, but it's different. It's a whole different kind of food because we make everything from scratch and that's what separates us from them. Nothing we serve comes pre-canned or pre-packaged.

We have a lot of regulars that come in. Some of them will come in two, three (or) sometimes four times a week.

A lot of them knew the original location on Preston Street, and they still come in and they bring in their kids. Some of them have kids that have kids now that come in... Taco Boy has a big legacy here in Mount Pleasant.

Is there a story behind the name and logo?

It's my nephew in the logo. My dad took a picture of him one time and a little sombrero as you see on the sign out front. My dad thought it was kind of cute, so he says, "Well, we’ll just call it Taco Boy," and that's how we got the name. It was actually during the time that we were putting our first restaurant together in Grand Rapids.

What are your most popular food items?

Our wet burritos are especially popular. We sell a lot of wet burritos and a lot of taco salads. All our food that we serve here is all homemade - they’re all my grandmother's and mother's recipes. We cook everything from scratch, and it's a special enchilada sauce that they came up with that we put on top of the burritos - that's why we call them wet burritos.

Did you stay open during the COVID pandemic?

Yes, I didn't have to let any of my employees go - I kept them all. You know, everybody that works for me has families and bills to pay. There were times when it was slow, and it hurt a little bit to have to pay them but I didn't want to let anyone go. My employees are very loyal, and when I get that kind of loyalty I try to give it back to them. I kept them all on a schedule one way or another to get through this.

Why should students come here?

If they want a good product (and) something good to eat, then this is where they should try. I know a lot of them eat at Taco Bell, but this is a totally different kind of food - it’s a local staple. When we get young people in the door they love it and we have specials every day.