A taco restaurant nearly a decade in the making is finally opening for business along Taylor Street, NBC Chicago’s Kate Chappell reports.
Nine years ago, a dream for Taylor Mason began when she served her first taco at her father's 55th birthday party.
Today, she's the proud co-owner of the newest restaurant on Taylor Street, Taylor's Tacos.
"I’m just so grateful," Mason told NBC Chicago.
"It took two years to perfect recipe," said Mason. "I loved street-style tacos, but I wanted to add my own spin on it."
Born and raised on the West Side of Chicago, Mason says her love for street tacos flourished while attending college in southern California.
She met her future wife, Maya, in 2016. Two years later, they both quit their jobs to pursue a taco catering business full time.
They got their start at the Hatchery, an incubator kitchen, in East Garfield Park.
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"We stayed there for three years. When we first got there, we could barely rub two nickels together, now we our own shop on Taylor Street."
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, their world was turned upside down and catering orders came to a near halt.
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'We went from 25 to 30 caterings a week to about two or three," said Mason. "I could fill about two deep fryers with tears that it took to open this space. It’s not easy."
The pair applied for federal and state COVID relief funding, but didn't qualify because they did not have any employees. So, they got creative, leaning on their community for help, not only to stay afloat, but to eventually open the doors to their brick-and-mortar taco shop.
"It takes a village to raise a business, and a lot of other people stepped up for us," Mason told NBC Chicago.
Thanks to the community, Mason was able to acquire the resources that made Taylor's Tacos possible.
"People gave money through an investment campaigned called Honeycomb Credit. We were able to raise $50,000 which helped us open the doors here among other grants," Mason said.
Taylor's Tacos celebrated its grand opening on May 5.
The restaurant is open Tuesdays-Sundays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The menu features four signature tacos along with weekly specials .
"To be able to come in here everyday is literally a dream come true," said Mason.
